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Rapid human response to Late Glacial climate change: a reply to Housley et al. (2000)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

S. P. E. Blockley
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeological Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, England
R. E. Donahue
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeological Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, England
A. M. Pollard
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeological Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, England

Extract

In their reply to our recent paper (Blockley et al.2000), Housley et ~ l(2.0 00) make four substantialpoints. Firstly, they assert that our critique oftheir two-stage re-colonization model rests solelyupon radiocarbon calibration. Secondly, and consequently,they point to problems with Late Glacialcalibration curves. Thirdly, they argue thatradiocarbon calibration should be advanced onlyfor sound archaeological reasons. Finally, theystate that our approach is environmentally deterministicand that we have demonstrated onlya weak correlation between human demographicchange and rapid climatic amelioration.Housley et al. (2000) argue against the use ofLate Glacial calibration curves, and in particularstate that 'it is because the calibration data are soheavily smoothed that Blockley et al. dispute ournotion of a northward movement of people'

Type
Papers
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd. 2000

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