Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/C519446/1
Early Human Settlement in the Americas: Geoarchaeology and Dating in the Valsequillo Basin, Central Mexico.
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Professor S Gonzalez, Liverpool John Moores University, Natural Sciences and Psychology
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor T Higham, University of Vienna, UNLISTED
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor CB Ramsey, University of Oxford, School of Archaeology
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr J Kirkby, Liverpool John Moores University, Sch of Biological and Environmental Sci
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor D Huddart, Liverpool John Moores University, School of Education
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor M Bennett, Bournemouth University, Faculty of Science and Technology
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor S Metcalfe, University of Nottingham, Sch of Geography
- Grant held at:
- Liverpool John Moores University, Natural Sciences and Psychology
- Science Area:
- Terrestrial
- Freshwater
- Earth
- Overall Classification:
- Earth
- ENRIs:
- Global Change
- Biodiversity
- Science Topics:
- Science-Based Archaeology
- Volcanic Processes
- Sediment/Sedimentary Processes
- Palaeoenvironments
- Abstract:
- The timing and point of origin of the earliest colonisation of the American Continent has been the subject of great debate during the last 100 years. The currently accepted date for the oldest site is 12,500 years ago from the Monte Verde site in Chile. However, some researchers believe that there is evidence for human occupation at some sites up to 30,000 years ago, but these sites are always hotly debated and not widely accepted by the scientific community. We have discovered a number of sites with human and animal footprints in central Mexico, from the Valsequillo Basin, preserved in volcanic ash, for which we have obtained some preliminary dates. These indicate that they are older than 20,000 years ago but much more research is needed to definitively date these footprints. These footprints are close to a series of archaeological sites which were originally studied in the 1960s and which proved to be extremely controversial in terms of their dating, the paucity of associated environmental evidence and disputes about the importance of the archaeological artefacts. We need to establish the relationships between the new sites and the older locations and the significance of this basin for studies of early man in the Americas. We propose to study the footprints in detail, particularly their dating, distribution in the area, and the geological conditions, climate and the ecology of the area when they were made to try to demonstrate that the occupation of the American Continent happened much earlier than previously thought. The range of dating techniques to be used are at the cutting edge of the technology available and we will try to date the volcanic sediments in which the footprints are preserved, the sediments above and below the footprint horizon and the megafaunal bone and shell material in associated sedimentary sequences in the former lake basin. The geological environment at the time of formation was that of a volcanic ash sequence deposited from a small volcano in the middle of the lake. The footprints were made on the lake shorelines as the lake level fluctuated occasionally. The climate and ecology of the lake basin will be worked out from a study of the animal bones, the oxygen isotopes, diatoms and pollen from the associated sediments. The footprints will be excavated further to obtain pristine prints. Their distribution and morphology will be mapped using sophisticated laser scanning. This will produce very accurate digital images, maps and casts of the prints which is the first stage in the creation of a database and the conservation of these sites. The research is important for the understanding of the global pattern of human migration, being the last part in the dispersal of modern humans across the continents.
- NERC Reference:
- NE/C519446/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Standard Grants Pre FEC
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- Standard Grant
This grant award has a total value of £221,841
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| Total - T&S | Total - Staff | Total - Other Costs | Total - Indirect Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| £34,140 | £105,405 | £33,810 | £48,485 |
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