Occupation prior to the Last Glacial Maximum at Parramatta site AT14, NSW, Australia: Association of stone artefacts with age determinations. A partial response to Williams et al. 2024
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: • Site AT14 at Parramatta, NSW, Australia, was first occupied at or before 34–35 ka. • This contradicts claims by Williams et al. (2021 , 2024). • Evidence is demonstrated via age determinations and detailed lithic analysis. • Assemblage variation demonstrates First Nations versatility during the Pleistocene. In a series of papers Williams et al. (2012 , 2014, 2021, 2024; also Barry et al., 2021 ) argued that prior to the Holocene Aboriginal people focussed occupation of the Greater Sydney Region along the Hawkesbury-Nepean River corridor, one of several near-coastal riverine environments in south-east Australia. The authors argued that people made increasing use of landscapes away from the Hawkesbury-Nepean River after c.14 ka, including the Cumberland Plain, Parramatta, eastern Sydney regions, and the elevated Blue Mountains to the west. In support of their argument Williams et al (2024) dismissed claims by Owen et al. (2024) and Quinn et al. (2023) that the Parramatta area had been occupied prior to the Terminal Pleistocene, arguing that younger evidence had been displaced or moved into older deposits or (in the case of ochre) modified during archaeological excavation. The current paper is focussed on site AT14 at North Parramatta, located on a source-bordering dune associated with Parramatta River. The paper sets out age determinations for the site and describes how stone artefacts are associated with them. Analysis considers stone material types, whether artefacts had been subject to size-sorting by pedogenic processes after discard, and the vertical distributions of conjoining artefacts. The analyses demonstrate that site AT14 was occupied at c.34–35 calBP, in at least two locations (i.e. not a random one-off event), as well as more recently. AT14 adds to a growing list of sites which questions the model proposed by Williams et al. (2024) .
Authors: Beth White, Lara Donohoe, Timothy Owen
Institution: Flinders University
Language: English
Subfield: Anthropology
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $2,910
Funder: New South Wales Government
OpenAlex ID: W4416163602