I n s i d e t h i s i s s u e : Red Lily Rock Art Recent Publications 2 Dr. Hsiao-chun Hung returns to the Mariana Islands In Other News 3 Professor Judith Cameron presents at the Vatican Dr. Xaiyun Xiao returns to China 4 ANH contributes to human health study PNG Highlands Dissertations Digiti- zation Project 5 Society for Ameri- can Archaeology 78th Annual Meeting Upcoming Conferences 6 A jocular space-filler Upcoming Events 7 Archaeology and Natural History A p r i l 2 0 1 3 V o l u m e 4 , I s s u e 1 School of Culture, History and Language ANU College of Asia & the Pacific Fieldwork in the Namadgi Ranges Archaeological work in the Namadgi Ranges around Canberra is continuing as part of Fenja Theden-Ringl's PhD project into the archaeological and palaeoenvironmental histories of the region. Seven rock shelters have been excavated since last October, distribut- ed from Wee Jasper in the north to the southern tip of the ACT. The excava- tions have involved dozens of post- graduate and undergraduate students from the Archaeology and Natural His- tory and the Archaeology and Anthro- pology departments of the ANU as well as interested researchers and locals. With work likely to continue into May, volunteers are always most welcome! Email: fenja.theden-ringl@anu.edu.au Excavation at Wee Jasper rock shelter Pictured: Fenja Theden-Ringl Pictured (only just): Subterraneous activity Pictured: Sievers Sieving Soil P a g e 2 Recent Publications ANH & ANSTO rock-art dating collaboration During September last year Dr. Vladimir Levchenko from the Institute for Environmental Research at ANSTO, joined PhD Candidate Tristen Jones in the field at Red Lily Lagoon, western Arnhem Land. The collaborative project aims to investigate the radiocarbon dating potential of mineral accretion layers that encase rock-art, utilising the carbon compound found in calcium oxalate, the main mineral in the accretion layer. Dr. Levchenko and Tristen sam- pled 22 mineral accretion lay- ers associated with rock art. Samples have since been analysed in RSES laboratories by Tristen and RSES re- searchers Dr. Penny King and Dr. Ulrike Troitzsch using FTIR, XRD and SEM-EDS technologies. These tech- niques have generated inter- esting data on the content and development of mineral accre- tions. Samples that contained calcium oxalate have been AMS radiocarbon dated at ANSTO facilities by Dr. Levchenko and his team. Re- sults of the age determinations are currently being prepared for publication. These dates will be the first radiocarbon age determinations for an art style, known as Northern Run- ning Figures, assumed to be of mid Holocene antiquity. The research is an ongoing project, headed up by Dr. Christian Reepmeyer and is supported by an AINSE Research Grant, ALNGRA12047P. Cameron, J. 2013. Fibre Tech- nology, Prehistoric Art and Cognition at Blombos Cave, South Africa. World Rock Art. Newman, R. with contributions by Martin Allen, Katie Ander- son, Emma Beadsmoore, Ju- dith Cameron, Craig Cessford, Natasha Dodwell, Andy Hall, David Hall, Vicki Herring, Lor- rain Higbee, Rosemary Horrox, Phillip Mills, Mark Samuel, Simon Timberlake and Anne de Vareilles 2008. St John’s Tri- angle, Cambridge. An Archaeo- logical Excavation and Watch- ing Brief. Vols. I & II. Cam- bridge: Cambridge Archaeologi- cal Unit, University of Cam- bridge. Cameron, J. 2012. Textile Crafts in the Prehistoric Gulf of Tongking: The Intersection between Archaeology and History. Studies of Maritime History 4: 14-26. (In Chinese). This is a translation of a chap- ter in a book published in 2012. Benson, A. (2012). ―RSES— Laser ablation methods for Sr and U Series isotopes on hu- man teeth and bone‖. Journal of American Science. Carson, M.T., H.C. Hung, G. Summerhayes & P. Bellwood. 2013. On the trail of decorative pottery style from Southeast Asia to the Pacific. Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology 8 (1): 17-36. Zhang, C. and Hung, H.C. 2013. Jiahu 1: earliest farmers beyond the Yangtze River. Antiquity 87:46-63. Zhang, C. and Hung, H.C. 2013. Eastern Asia: archaeolo- gy, in I. Ness and P. Bellwood (eds.), The Encyclopedia of Global Human Migration, Vol. 1 Prehistory, pp. 209-216. New York: Wiley-Blackwell. Dr. Vladimir Levchenko microscopically analysing mineral accretions overlying rock-art, Red Lily Lagoon, Arnhem Land. Dr. Hsiao-chun Hung returns to the Mariana Islands P a g e 3 V o l u m e 4 , I s s u e 1 In February-March 2013, Hsiao-chun Hung and Mike Carson returned to the Mariana Islands in far western Micronesia, searching for more evidence of the oldest human habitation at the House of Taga Site, ca. 3500-3400 BP. Following on their 2011 field-work, they uncovered more than 90 sq m of a very well preserved habi- tation layer, very dense with artefacts and midden, as well as arrangements of post-holes and other structural features. This work confirms that the very first inhabitants in the Marianas made red- slipped pottery of various forms with or without carination, including hundreds of decorated pieces that appeared from the earliest deposit of this site. This excavation produced the largest so far known collection of decorated red-slipped pottery in the Marianas, with beautifully dentate-stamped de- signs highlighted by white lime in-fill. Some early pottery with painting was noticed, too! Certainly, the large amount of decorated pottery can help us to understand more about cross-regional relations. Thanks are due to the funding sources, including both Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation and Australian Research Council. Strong support from local scholars and authorities graciously made this pro- ject gain fruitful results. The preliminary results have been invited for presentation at several loca- tions, such as at Archaeology Center of Stanford University (USA) and Northern Marianas Humani- ties Council (Saipan), as well as featured in media such as Radio Australia News and Archaeology Magazine‘s top news story on 14 March 2013. The ANU library is interested in digitizing old Terra Australis and other ANH (and predecessor organizations) publications. Publications will be put online, and acces- sible in the DSpace. The department has donated a copy of each TA we have avail- able but there are a number missing. If you have any ANH publications that you are willing to donate for digitisation please contact Dr. Jack Fenner, jack.fenner@anu.edu.au It is a pleasure to announce that Dr Julien Louys who is currently a post doc at the University of Queensland and Stuart Hawkins who is a PhD candidate in ANH will be joining the Department as Post- doctoral Fellows in July 2013 on the ARC Laureate project 'From Sunda to Sahul: Understanding Modern Human Dispersal, Adaptation and Behaviour en Route to Australia'. These appointments are for 5 years and involve field research through- out Island Southeast Asia. In Other News Congratulations also to ANH’s Dr. Matthew Prebble who from February 1st was appointed acting Convener, for the Masters of Archaeological Science Pro- gram, CASS, ANU. Dr Prebble has been involved in the Program in the past, teaching of the Vanuatu Field School for the program in 2012. Well done Matt! The House of Taga site, Marina Islands A shard of decorated red-slipped pottery Ambrose, W. and S. Novak. 2012. Obsidian hydration chronomet- rics using SIMS and optical meth- ods from 26-year temperature controlled exposures. In I.Liritzis and C. Stevenson (eds.) Obsidian and Ancient Manufactured Glass- es. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press. Pp. 15-25. Bowler, JM, R. Gillespie, K. Bolkjovac, and H. Johnson. 2012. Wind v Water: Glacial Maximum records from the Willandra Lakes. In S.G. Haberle & B. David (eds.) Peopled Land- scapes: Archaeological and Bio- P a g e 4 Dr Xaiyun Xiao returns to China Professor Judith Cameron presents at the Vatican Dr Xaiyun Xiao (Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chi- nese Academy of Sciences) has been a visiting fellow at ANH for the last 3 months, working with Simon Haberle to develop a collaborative research program between ANH and the Chinese Academy of Sci- ences in Nanjing. During her stay she was able to take part in field- work in southern NSW (Bega Swamp) and has prepared two significant manuscripts on the last 20,000 years of environmental change in Yunnan Province for publication. We look forward to ongoing collaboration in the future. At the invitation of Professor San- tamaria, Chief Scientist at the Vati- can, Judith Cameron presented a paper on prehistoric textiles in Southeast Asia to archaeologists and conservators at th Vatican Museum on January 28th 2013. Excavations of burial beneath the Necropolis had produced large frag- ments f woven asb stos cloth and such finds are exceptio ally rare. Prof. Sa tam ria h d read J dith‘s paper ‗Asbestos Cloth and Elites in Southeast Asia’ published in 2000 in the Bulletin of the Indo- Pacific Prehistory Association 2000 19: 47-51 and was interested in archaeological parallels. Judith is currently investigating asbestos fibres from Kamrej in India with Sunil Gupta and tiny fragments from Batujaya, a 2nd century temple site in West Java as part of The Ar- chaeology of Batujaya Project by Prof. Pierre-Yves Manguin (EFEO) and the Urasan Arkeologi Nasional (Indonesia). Her new collaboration with the Vatican Museum dovetails well into Judith‘s Future Fellowship which is concerned with long- distance interaction in Southeast Asia. The Romans, legend has it, would often throw asbestos napkins and tablecloths into the fire to clean them (e.g.: mesothelioma-help- network.com) Pictured: Professor Judith Cameron (Far left) Picture: Farewell lunch at the Dumpling House with members of the ANH Palaeoworks Lab and friends P a g e 5 V o l u m e 4 , I s s u e 1 The working group hope to develop a strong case for funding to support ongoing monitoring of daily pollen counts in cities around Australia and New Zealand. More information on the working group and ACEAS can be found at http://www.aceas.org.au Pollen are routinely used to understand palaeoecological change yet there remains knowledge gaps regarding how modern pollen rain relates to different landscape settings and to different climatic regions. A new study funded through ACEAS (Australian Centre for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis) will provide important infor- mation on the relationship of land cover changes associated with urbanization and rural land management. We know that pollen assemblages can provide a very cost-effective measure perspective of landscape phenological patterns, including identification of invasive allergenic spe- cies. We can also gain insights into how these are driven by current climate pat- terns and potentially map the influence of future climates on pollen production. Ex- panding urbanization and climate change are likely influences of aerobiological distri- bution of allergenic pollens. It is likely that the relative distribution of pollen from clinically important species, will be affected by changes in temperature, precipitation and CO2 concentrations associated with climate change. Simon Haberle attended the first workshop of the working group for "Australian aerobiology to monitor environmental change" met on Stradbroke Island on 11-15 March 2013 to develop a framework for the establishment of a national pollen count monitoring program with the potential to assist with management of patients with allergic respiratory diseases such as hay fever and asthma that can be triggered by airborne pollens, particularly but not exclusively from grasses. The group included leaders in the measurement and analysis of pollens in Australia. This exciting multi-disciplinary team includes scientists and clinicians with expertise ecology, botany, archaeology, climate change science, allergy, immunology, public health and biostatistics. ANH has been involved in a number of aero- biology studies over the last decade in loca- tions such as Darwin, Canberra, Hobart, Brisbane and even the Daintree Rainforest. Library’s Digital Library Program coordi- nated the work of getting the scans made and a million other details. Hanley Cocks and Marilu Vallejo worked on creating catalog records for each title; Arwen Hutt ensured that these records were adapted for metadata describing the digital ver- sions. All of the authors generously gave permission to include their works with- out restriction. Special thanks to scholars who supplied advice, contact infor- mation, missing pages, scans of original plates, loans of original typescripts, and other treasures: Chris Ballard, Philip Gibbs, Terrence Hays, Robin Hide, Allison Jablonko, Ragnar Johnson, Deveni Temu, Paige West, Polly Wiessner and many others. A huge thank you to everyone above—and apologies if anyone has been left off the list. The UC San Diego Library has recently completed a project to digitize and pro- vide online access to fifty-two disserta- tions and theses which document an- thropological (and related) research in Papua New Guinea. With one exception (Kenneth Read’s 1946 master’s thesis) the research was situated in the High- lands. This work was done with permis- sion granted by the authors or their heirs. Funding was provided by the UC San Diego Library. Access is through the Digital Library Collections at https:libraries.ucsd.edu/ digital/ and the dissertations are easily found by browsing “By Collection/ Library” and selecting “Papua New Guin- ea Highlands dissertations” under the “Tuzin Archive for Melanesian Anthro- pology”. Links are also present in the records for individual titles in our library catalog (http://roger.ucsd.edu), most easily found by a keyword search on “Papua New Guinea Highlands Dissertations”. This project could not have happened without help from many people. Janel Kozlowski Fink managed the permission- seeking process. Roger Smith, Joaquim (Jack) Neves, Gabriela Montoya and Cristela Garcia-Spitz of the UC San Diego PNG Highlands Dissertations Digitization Project ANH contributes to human health study Picture: Pollen and human health collage Picture provided by Professor Simon Harberle P a g e 6 Ambra Calo (Australian National University) “Bronze, Copper and Gold from the Metal Age Sites of Sembiran and Pacung, Bali, Indonesia: Exchange and Local Production” Geoffrey Clark (Australian National University) “Culture Contact and Chiefly Lineages in Tonga AD 1250 – 1880” Hsiao-chun Hung (Australian National University) “The Emergence of Metal Age in Taiwan and Its Relation with Southeast Asia” Christian Reepmeyer (The Australian National University) “Modeling Social Interaction in the South-Western Pacific: A View from the Obsidian Sources in Northern Vanuatu” Katherine Seikel (Australian National University) “Architectural Analysis of Stone Monuments from Pohnpei” Ella Ussher (Australian National University), Alex Pryor (University of Cambridge) and Matthew Prebble (Australian National University) “Development of an Accessible Parenchyma Comparative Collec- tion for the Pacific and beyond” Alexa Benson (Australian National University) RSES—Laser ablation methods for Sr and U Series isotopes on human teeth and bone‖ From 3rd to the 7th April, ANH Department staff members Prof. Sue O'Connor, Assoc. Prof. Geoff Clarke, Dr. Sally Brockwell, Dr. Ambra Calo, Dr. Christian Reepmeyer and Dr. David Bulbeck, along with PhD candidates Mirani Lister, Ella Usher, Katherine Seikel, Alexa Benson and Tony Bar- ham travelled to Honolulu, Hawaii to attend the 78th Annual Meeting for the Society for American Archaeology. Many of the Departmental participants presented papers (while some co-authors also remained at home in the of- fice!), congratulations to all for an outstanding effort! Jane Balme (University of Western Australia) and Sue O'Connor (Australian National University) “Traditions and Change in Scaphopod Shell Beads in the South- ern Kimberley, Australia from the Pleistocene to the Recent Past” Sue O’Connor (The Australian National University) “Pleistocene Maritime Societies in Island Southeast Asia” David Bulbeck (Australian National University), Ben Marwick (University of Washington), Sue O'Connor (Australian National University), Ambra Calo (Australian National University) and Jack Fenner (Australian National University) “The Prehistoric Archaeology of the Routa Region of Central Sulawesi” Anthony Barham (Australian National University), Philip Hughes (HEH Pty Ltd, Australian National University), Marjorie Sullivan (HEH Pty Ltd, Australian National University), Sue O’Connor (Archaeology and Natural History) and Patrick Faulkner (University of Queensland ) “Geoarchaeological Advances in Identifying Shell “Scatters” As Middens Located on Tropical Shorelines Influenced by Cata- strophic Marine Inundation Events (Cyclones and Tsunamis)” Society for American Archaeology 78th Annual Meeting A Centenary of Celebrating heritage Accessing, presenting and interpreting heritage places and their collections that have contribut- ed to 100 years and more in Canberra and the region. Hosted by Canberra Archaeological Society, National Trust of Australia (ACT) and Signifi- cance International with sponsors: Australia ICOMOS; Donald Horne Institute for Cultural Heritage University of Canberra; and the Insti- tute of Professional Practice in Heritage and the Arts ANU. When: Saturday 20th July 2013; time: 8.30am to 5pm. Where: Sir Roland Wilson Building Theatre, Bldg 120, ANU campus. Cost: $70 full, $50 members of the host organizations, $30 concession & full-time students - registration details will be availa- ble by the end of April 2013. Call for presentations to be submitted by Friday 3 May 2013 to Helen.cooke@anu.edu.au. The 2nd International Contact Rock Art Symposium Contributors have been invited based on their experience researching and writing about con- tact rock art in their respective countries and also for their interest in moving contact rock art research away from purely description-based studies towards a more theoretically-grounded area of specialisation within rock art studies. Our aims are: 1: To share international perspectives on rock art depicting/representing contact between different cultural groups. 2: To explore different approaches to the inter- pretation of contact rock art. 3: To highlight similarities, differences and themes in the nature of representing ‗contact‘ in different parts of the world and at different times. 4: To discuss options for promoting the study and protection of contact rock art globally. This symposium will include a field trip for pre- senters to meet local Aboriginal Traditional Owners and visit important contact rock art sites in Kakadu National Park and western Arnhem Land. For more information, contact Sally May (sally.may@anu.edu.au) or Ben Smith (benjamin.smith@uwa.edu.au) When: 13-15 September 2013 Where: North Australia Research Unit (NARU), 23 Ellengowan Drive, Brinkin (Darwin) NT 0810 Upcoming Conferences Pictured: Christian Reepmeyer, Ella Ussher and Katherine Seikel Canberra Archaeological Society & ANU Students Archaeological Association: Recording Signifi- cant sites in the Tuggeranong Valley Daryl Wesley, Peter Dowling, Helen Cooke and Tris- ten Jones offer all ANU undergraduate students, CAS and CAR members the opportunity to participate in a day fieldtrip to record significant sites in the Tuggera- nong Valley. The group will revisit known sites of culturally modified trees and artefact grinding grooves. Lab session outlining recording techniques and field- work safety briefing will take place on Friday 17 May, 2 - 3.30pm at Coombs (Building 9) Teaching Lab: 6002. Field survey will take place on Sunday 19 May, at 2 pm. For more information, or to RSVP please contact Helen Cooke on 0408 443 243 or email Hel- en.cooke@anu.edu.au Lunchtime talks The Department is still looking for presenters for ANH‘s monthly ―Lunch Time Talks‖. If you are happy to informally present on any recent fieldwork or re- search activities please contact Dr. Janelle Steven- son, Janelle.stevenson@anu.edu.au Canberra Archaeological Society Inaugural Welcome BBQ The CAS Committee invites all CAS members and prospective members to join them on Friday 17 May 4pm, at the grassy BBQ area outside Coombs Building, near the Coombs Lecture Theatre for the inaugural welcome BBQ. Come and enjoy the free sausage sizzle, mingle with colleagues and catch up on all things archaeological in the Canberra region! Deadline for 2013 Rhys Jones Fieldwork Schol- arship application. This scholarship is given annually upon competi- tive application to a postgraduate student at the ANU in the field of archaeology and palaeoanthro- pology in order to assist with fieldwork expenses above those available from their College funds. This year the closing date for applications is the 30th April 2013. Details of eligibility, selection criteria and application procedure can be request- ed via Simon.Harberle@anu.edu.au Morning Tea Also for all department members who haven‘t yet signed up to host a morning tea this year, please sign up on the noticeboard in the tea room. We have still have free spots from September through to December! HC Coombs Building 9 Australian National University Canberra, ACT 0200 Australia Website: http://chl.anu.edu.au/archaeology/ For newsletter inquiries and contributions please email: Tristen.Jones@anu.edu.au or Billy.O.Foghlu@anu.edu.au Research in Archaeology and Natural History at the ANU School of Culture, History and Language aims to understand prehistoric human societies, the envi- ronments in which they developed and the environ- mental consequences of human presence. Depart- mental research ranges from southeast Asia and the Pacific, through the tropical forests of New Guinea and the savannahs of Australia, to the islands of Oce- ania. Field research in ANH is supported by well-equipped laboratories that were fully updated and refurbished during 2009. Our laboratories support research into prehistoric textiles, archaeobotanical remains, rock art, prehistoric environments, zoological material and ceramics. ANH houses the largest pollen reference collection in Australia, as well as plant, bone, shell and ceramic collections. We also have access to world-class ANU facilities for archaeological dating, stable isotope analysis, and electron microscopy. Archaeology and Natural History School of Culture, History & Language College of Asia & the Pacific ANU Upcoming Events ... ―Ah! Alas, such is the way of airborne Saharan dust particles, their 2µm and 3µm brethren are so often exiled to the depths of the Atlantic‖* Meanwhile, in the karst vastness of The Burren, Co. Clare, Ireland... ―What say you!!?‖ ―Widthways? Forsooth I make this particle to be half a metric mile, I have also discovered organic content, and have plucked it hence for precarious examination…‖ * See Morales, C. (1986). ―The Airborne Transport of Saharan Dust: A Review‖, Climate Change Vol. 9 Issue 1 – 2. pp. 219 – 214. This space-filler, entitled ―Particle Size Analysis‖ is brought to you, albeit begrudgingly, by ―Dodgy River Folk‖ Somewhere. In a lab. Alongside a Mastersizer... ―Mass median radius? Oh about 1µm‖