New radiometric ages for the BH-1 hominin from Balanica (Serbia): implications for understanding the role of the Balkans in Middle Pleistocene human evolution

Newly obtained ages, based on electron spin resonance combined with uranium series isotopic analysis, and infrared/post-infrared luminescence dating, provide a minimum age that lies between 397 and 525 ka for the hominin mandible BH-1 from Mala Balanica cave, Serbia. This confirms it as the easternm...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inPloS one Vol. 8; no. 2; p. e54608
Main Authors Rink, William J, Mercier, Norbert, Mihailović, Dušan, Morley, Mike W, Thompson, Jeroen W, Roksandic, Mirjana
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Public Library of Science 06.02.2013
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects
Animals
Archaeology
Balkan Peninsula
Biological Evolution
Biology
Chemistry
Dating techniques
Earth Sciences
Electron paramagnetic resonance
Electron spin
Electron spin resonance
Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy - methods
Enamel
European Continental Ancestry Group
Evolution
Fossil hominids
Fossils
Hominidae - physiology
Hominids
Homo heidelbergensis
Homo neanderthalensis
Human evolution
Humans
Infrared analysis
Mandible
Mandible - chemistry
Morphology
Multivariate analysis
Neanderthals - physiology
Phylogenetics
Pleistocene
Radiometric Dating - methods
Radiometry - methods
Sediments
Serbia
Spin resonance
Tooth - chemistry
Uranium
Uranium - chemistry
Serbia
Balkan Peninsula
Canada
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Newly obtained ages, based on electron spin resonance combined with uranium series isotopic analysis, and infrared/post-infrared luminescence dating, provide a minimum age that lies between 397 and 525 ka for the hominin mandible BH-1 from Mala Balanica cave, Serbia. This confirms it as the easternmost hominin specimen in Europe dated to the Middle Pleistocene. Inferences drawn from the morphology of the mandible BH-1 place it outside currently observed variation of European Homo heidelbergensis. The lack of derived Neandertal traits in BH-1 and its contemporary specimens in Southeast Europe, such as Kocabaş, Vasogliano and Ceprano, coupled with Middle Pleistocene synapomorphies, suggests different evolutionary forces acting in the east of the continent where isolation did not play such an important role during glaciations.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Conceived and designed the experiments: WJR NM DM MR. Performed the experiments: WJR NM JT. Analyzed the data: WJR NM MR DM MM. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: WJR NM MM MR DM. Wrote the paper: WJR NM MR DM MM.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0054608