The age of Homo naledi and associated sediments in the Rising Star Cave, South Africa

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dc.citation.doi10.7554/eLife.24231.001en_ZA
dc.contributor.authorDirks, P.H.G.M.
dc.contributor.authorRoberts, E.M.
dc.contributor.authorHilbert-Wolf, H.
dc.contributor.authorKramers, J.D.
dc.contributor.authorHawks, J.
dc.contributor.authorDosseto, A.
dc.contributor.authorDuval, M.
dc.contributor.authorElliott, M.
dc.contributor.authorEvans, M.
dc.contributor.authorGrün, R.
dc.contributor.authorHellstrom, J.
dc.contributor.authorHerries, A.I.R.
dc.contributor.authorJoannes-Boyau, R.
dc.contributor.authorMakhubela, T.V.
dc.contributor.authorPlaczek, C.J.
dc.contributor.authorRobbins, J.
dc.contributor.authorSpandler, C.
dc.contributor.authorWiersma, J.
dc.contributor.authorWoodhead, J.
dc.contributor.authorBerger, L.R.
dc.date.accessioned2017-05-10T09:37:59Z
dc.date.available2017-05-10T09:37:59Z
dc.date.issued2017-05
dc.description.abstractNew ages for flowstone, sediments and fossil bones from the Dinaledi Chamber are presented. We combined optically stimulated luminescence dating of sediments with U-Th and palaeomagnetic analyses of flowstones to establish that all sediments containing Homo naledi fossils can be allocated to a single stratigraphic entity (sub-unit 3b), interpreted to be deposited between 236 ka and 414 ka. This result has been confirmed independently by dating three H. naledi teeth with combined U-series and electron spin resonance (US-ESR) dating. Two dating scenarios for the fossils were tested by varying the assumed levels of 222Rn loss in the encasing sediments: a maximum age scenario provides an average age for the two least altered fossil teeth of 253 +82/–70 ka, whilst a minimum age scenario yields an average age of 200 +70/–61 ka. We consider the maximum age scenario to more closely reflect conditions in the cave, and therefore, the true age of the fossils. By combining the US-ESR maximum age estimate obtained from the teeth, with the U-Th age for the oldest flowstone overlying Homo naledi fossils, we have constrained the depositional age of Homo naledi to a period between 236 ka and 335 ka. These age results demonstrate that a morphologically primitive hominin, Homo naledi, survived into the later parts of the Pleistocene in Africa, and indicate a much younger age for the Homo naledi fossils than have previously been hypothesized based on their morphology.en_ZA
dc.description.librarianSP2017en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationDirks, P.H.G.M. et al. 2017. The age of Homo naledi and associated sediments in the Rising Star Cave, South Africa. eLife 6: Article number e24231.en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn2050-084X
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10539/22475
dc.journal.titleeLifeen_ZA
dc.journal.volume6en_ZA
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publishereLife Sciences Publications Ltden_ZA
dc.rights© 2017. Dirks et al. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.en_ZA
dc.subjectHomo naledien_ZA
dc.subjectRising Star caveen_ZA
dc.subjectSOUTH AFRICAen_ZA
dc.subjectageen_ZA
dc.subjectsedimentsen_ZA
dc.subjectDinaledi Chamberen_ZA
dc.subjectdatingen_ZA
dc.subjectflowstoneen_ZA
dc.subjectfossilsen_ZA
dc.titleThe age of Homo naledi and associated sediments in the Rising Star Cave, South Africaen_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA
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