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Prof Michael Petraglia
Senior Research Fellow; Co-Director, Centre for Asian Archaeology, Art & Culture; Senior Research Fellow, Linacre College
Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art
New Barnett House, 28 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HU
New Barnett House, 28 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HU
phone: 01865 275373
fax: 01865 285220
email: michael.petraglia@rlaha.ox.ac.uk
Research Interests
- Human Evolution
- Palaeolithic Archaeology
- Lithic Technology
- Out of Africa Dispersals
- Evolution of Cognition
- Modern Human Origins
- Hunter-Gatherers
Primary Geographic Areas
- Arabian peninsula
- Indian subcontinent
- Eastern North America
Current Grants
- 2012-2017 European Research Council;
-
Palaeodeserts Project; “Climate Change and Hominin Evolution in the Arabian Desert: Life and Death at the Cross-roads of the Old World”; Principal Investigator
- 2008-2012 Australian Research Council;
- Discovery Project; “Monsoons and Migrations: Quaternary climates, landscapes and human prehistory of the Arabian peninsula and the Indian subcontinent”; Co-Investigator (with Richard Roberts (PI) and Allan Chivas)
- 2008-2012 Australian Research Council;
- Discovery Project; “Assessing lithic evidence for the impact of the Toba Super-eruption (74,000 years ago) on long-term cultural, biological and ecological histories in the Indian subcontinent”; Co-Investigator (with Christopher Clarkson (PI) and Nicole Boivin)
- 2006-2009 Leverhulme Trust;
- “The Toba super-eruption and its impact on human populations and ecosystems”; Principal Investigator
- 2006-2009 British Academy;
- Larger Research Grant; “The 74,000 BP Toba super-eruption and its impact on human populations and ecosystems: a case study form the Kurnool District, South India”; Principal Investigator
- 2009 McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research;
- “Stone tool assemblages from Gibraltar: assessing Iberia-Africa connections”; Principal Investigator
Current Projects
- Director, Palaeodeserts Project, Arabian Peninsula (2012-present)
- Director, Son Valley Archaeological Project, Madhya Pradesh, India (2008-present)
- Director, Kurnool District Archaeological Project, Andhra Pradesh, India (2003-present)
- Director, Iberia-Africa Connections Project, Gibraltar (2009)
- Co-director, South Deccan Prehistory Project, Karnataka, India (2004-present)
- The Toba Super-eruption
Published Books
2012 - Petraglia, M.D., R. Korisettar and J.N. Pal (Eds). The Toba Super-Volcanic Eruption of 74,000 Years Ago: Climate Change, Environments, and Evolving Humans. Special journal issue of Quaternary International. no. 258.
2009 - Petraglia, M. D. & Rose, J., (2009), The Evolution of Human Populations in Arabia: Paleoenvironments, Prehistory and Genetics, Netherlands: Springer Press
2007 - Petraglia, M.D. & Allchin, B., (2007), The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia: Inter-disciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Linguistics and Genetics, Netherlands: Springer Press
2004 - Petraglia, M.D. & Potts, R., (2004), The Old World Paleolithic Collections and the Development of a National Collection, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropology Series
Publications
Journal Articles & Conference Proceedings
- In press
- , A high-precision 40Ar/39Ar age of the Young Toba Tuff and datin gof ultra-distal tephra: forcing of Quaternary climate and implications for hominin occupation of India, Quaternary Geochronology, ,doi:10.1016/j.quageo.2012.12.004
- 2013
- , (2013), Human dispersal across diverse environments of Asia during the Upper Pleistocene, Quaternary International,
- , (2013), Mid-Holocene age obtained for nested diamond pattern petroglyph in the Billasurgam Cave complex, Kurnool District, southern India, Journal of Archaeological Science, 40,1787-1796
- 2012
- , (2012), Uncovering a landscape buried by the super-eruption of Toba, 74,000 years ago: A multi-proxy environmental reconstruction of landscape heterogeneity in the Jurreru Valley, south India, Quaternary International, 258,135-147
- , (2012), The Dispersal of Homo sapiens across Southern Asia: How Early, How Often, How Complex?, Quaternary Science Reviews , 47,15-22
- , (2012), The Prehistory of the Arabian Peninsula: Deserts, Dispersals, and Demography., Evolutionary Anthropology , 21,113–125
- , (2012), A southern Indian Middle Palaeolithic occupation surface sealed by the 74 ka Toba eruption: Further evidence from Jwalapuram Locality 22, Quaternary International, 258,148-164
- , (2012), Dhaba: an initial report on an Acheulean, Middle Palaeolithic and microlithic locality in the Middle Son Valley, north-central India, Quaternary International, 258,191-199
- , (2012), Grain size distribution analysis of sediments containing Younger Toba tephra from Ghoghara, Middle Son valley, India, Quaternary International, 258,180-190
- , (2012), Toba Volcanic Super-eruption of 74,000 years ago: Climate Change, Environments and Evolving Humans, Quaternary International , 258: 1-4.
- , (2012), Hominin dispersal into the Nefud Desert and Middle Palaeolithic settlement along the Jubbah palaeolake, northern Arabia, PLoS ONE, 7(11): e49840
- , (2012), The Toba volcanic super-eruption, environmental change, and hominin occupation history in India over the last 140,000 years, Quarternary International, 258,119-134
- , (2012), Neandertal Humeri may reflect Adaptation to Scraping Tasks, but not Spear Thrusting, PLoS One , e40349
- , (2012), Lithic Technology and Social Transformations in the South Indian Neolithic: The Evidence from Sanganakallu-Kupgal, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology , 31 (2),156-173
- 2011
- , (2011), Late Acheulean hominins at the Marine Isotope Stage 6/5e transition in north-central India, Quaternary Research, 75: 670-682
- , (2011), Cryptotephra from the 74 kyr BP Toba super-eruption in the Billa Surgam caves, southern India, Quaternary Science Reviews, 30: 1819-1824
- , (2011), Archaeology: Trailblazers across Arabia, Nature, 470: 50-51
- , (2011), Middle Paleolithic occupation on a Marine Isotope Stage 5 lakeshore in the Nefud Desert, Saudi Arabia., Quaternary Science Reviews, 30,1555-1559
- , (2011), Geochemical fingerprinting the widespread Toba tephra using biotite compositions., Quaternary International, 246,doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.05.012
- 2010
- , (2010), Systematic transect survey enhances the investigation of rock art in its landscape: An example from the Katavani Kunta valley, Kurnool District, Man and Environment, 34 (2),1-12
- , (2010), Experimental examination of animal trampling effects on artifact movement in dry and water saturated substrates: a test case from south India, Journal of Archaeological Science, 37,3010-3021
- , (2010), The 74,000 BP Toba super-eruption and southern Indian hominins: archaeology, lithic technology and environments at Jwalapuram Locality 3, Journal of Archaeological Science, 37,3370-3384
- , (2010), Foote’s steps: the history, significance and recent archaeological investigation of the Billa Surgam caves in southern India., South Asian Studies, 26,1-19
- , (2010), Out of Africa: new hypotheses and evidence for the dispersal of Homo sapiens along the Indian Ocean rim, Annals of Human Biology, 37(3),288-311
- , (2010), Comment on ‘Environmental Impact of the 73 ka Toba Super-eruption in South Asia’ by M. Williams et al, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 296,199-203
- , (2010), Systematic transect survey of the Jurreru Valley, Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh, Man and Environment, 35,24-36
- , (2010), Continuity, change and cultural connections to painted rock art of the Kurnool area, one of south India's little known rock art provinces, Antiquity, 84,335-350
- 2009
- , (2009), The oldest and longest enduring microlithic sequence in India: 35000 years of modern human occupation and change at the Jwalapuram Locality 9 rockshelter, Antiquity, 83,326-348
- , (2009), Primate Archaeology, Nature, 460,339-344
- , (2009), Comment on Sharon, G., “Acheulian giant core technology: A worldwide perspective”, Current Anthropology, 50(3),335-367
- , (2009), Population increase and environmental deterioration correspond with microlithic innovations in South Asia ca. 35,000 years ago, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 106,12261-12266
- , (2009), Pleistocene and Holocene occupations of the Kurnool District India: Cave and rockshelter records, the Toba super-eruption and forager-farmer interactions, Journal of Eurasian Prehistory, 6(1-2),119-166
- , (2009), The prehistoric axe factory at Sanganakallu-Kupgal (Bellary District), southern India, Internet Archaeology, 26
- , (2009), Stone tool experiments and reduction methods at the Acheulean site of Isampur Quarry, India, Antiquity, 83,769-785
- 2008
- , (2008), Successfully negotiating international archaeological collaboration: An East-West example, The SAA Archaeological Record, 8(2),8-11
- , (2008), First farmers in south India: The rol eof internal processes and external influences inthe emergence of the earliest settled societies, Praghara, 18,179-200
- , (2008), Large cutting tool variation East and West of the Movius Line, Journal of Human Evolution, 55,962-966
- , (2008), Pleistocene and Holocene occupations of the Kurnool District India: Cave and rockshelter records, the Toba super-eruption and forager-farmer interactions, Journal of Eurasian Prehistory,
- 2007
- , (2007), Palaeolandscapes and Palaeolithic locales of southern India: A consideration of hominin dispersals and adaptations, Pragdhara, Journal of Uttar Pradesh State Department of Archaeology, 17,27-44
- , (2007), Middle Paleolithic assemblages from the Indian subcontinent before and after the Toba super-eruption., Science, 317 (5834),114-116
- 2006
- , (2006), The southern dispersal hypothesis and the South Asian archaeological record: Examination of dispersal routes through GIS analysis, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 26,88-108
- 2005
- , (2005), Modern human origins and the evolution of behavior in the later Pleistocene record of South Asia, Current Anthropology, 46,S3-S27
- , (2005), New insights on the Acheulean: A case study from southern India, Humankind, 1,61-75
- 2004
- , (2004), Symmetry of form and the analysis of point types, Journal of Middle Atlantic Archaeology, 20,61-71
- , (2004), Comment on McNabb, J., Binyon, F. & Hazlewood, L., “The large cutting tools from the South African Acheulean and the question of social traditions“, Current Anthropology, 45(5),669-670
- 2003
- , (2003), The Lower Paleolithic of the Arabian peninsula: occupations, adaptations, and dispersals, Journal of World Prehistory, 17,141-179
- , (2003), The Middle Palaeolithic of Arabia: Implications for modern human origins, behaviour and dispersals, Antiquity, Antiquity, 77(298),671-684
- , (2003), Landscapes, activity, and the Acheulean to Middle Paleolithic transition in the Kaladgi Basin, India, Journal of Eurasian Prehistory, 1(2),3-24
- , (2003), French Pyrenean collections in the Smithsonian Institution: Upper Paleolithic assemblages from the Salat Valley, Bulletin de la Socit Prhistorique de L'Arige-Pyrenees,, LVII,171-194
- 2002
- , (2002), Introduction, Geoarchaeology: An International Journal, 17,3-6
- , (2002), Recent findings on the Acheulian of the Hunsgi and Baichbal Valleys, Karnataka, with special reference to the Isampur excavation and its dating, Current Science, 83(5),641-647
- , (2002), The heated and the broken: Thermally altered stone, human behavior, and archaeological site formation, North American Archaeologist, 23,241-269
- 2001
- , (2001), Further field studies at the Lower Palaeolithic site of Isampur, Karnataka, Puratattva, Bulletin of the Indian Archaeological Society, 31,9-15
- , (2001), Indian Paleolithic collections in the Smithsonian Institution: International exchanges and their archaeological potential, Man and Environment, 26(1),57-68
Contributions to Edited Books
- 2012
- , (2012), Rock art research in India: Historical approaches and recent theoretical directions: in “A Companion to Rock Art (eds. McDonald, J., & Veth, P.)”, pp 179-196, Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.
- , (2012), Research in India: Historical Approaches and Recent Theoretical Directions: in “A Companion to Rock Art (J. McDonald, P. Veth, Eds.)”, pp 179-196, Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester.
- , (2012), Hominin Evolutionary History in the Arabian Desert and the Thar Desert: in “Changing Deserts: Integrating People and Their Environment (L. Mol, T. Sternberg, Eds.)”, pp 61-82, White Horse Press, Cambridge.
- 2011
- , (2011), Technical entries: in “The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Human Evolution, ed. B. Wood”, pp various, Wiley-Blackwell.
- , (2011), The prehistoric axe factory at Sanganakallu-Kupgal (Bellary District), Southern India: in “Stone Axe Studies III (eds. Davis, V. & Edmonds, M.)”, pp , London: Oxbow.
- 2010
- , (2010), Indian lithic technology prior to the 74,000 BP Toba super-eruption: Searching for an early modern human signature: in “Upper Palaeolithic Revolution in Global Perspective: Essays in Honour of Paul Mellars (eds. C. Boyle, C. Gamble & O. Bar-Yosef, O). ”, pp 73-84, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research: Cambridge.
- , (2010), The Early Paleolithic of the Indian Subcontinent: Hominin Colonization, Dispersals and Occupation History: in ““Out of Africa I: The First Hominin Colonization of Eurasia”, eds. J. Fleagle, J. Shea, F.E. Grine, A. Baden, R.E. Leakey”, pp 165-179, Springer Press.
- , (2010), The Prehistoric Axe Factory at Sanganakallu-Kupgal (Bellary District), Southern India: in “Stone Age Studies III” eds. R.V. Davis, M. Edmonds”, pp , Oxbow Press.
- , (2010), Inter-continental Variation in Acheulean Bifaces: in “Asian Palaeoanthropology: From Africa to China and Beyond, eds. C.J. Norton and D. Braun”, pp 49-55, Springer Press.
- 2009
- , (2009), Re-examining rock art studies in India: A case study from Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh: in “Recent Research Trends in South Asian Archaeology; K. Paddayya, P.P. Joglekar, K.K. Basa & R. Sewant”, pp 261-278, Pune: Deccan.
- , (2009), The Lower to Middle Palaeolithic transition in South Asia and its implications for hominin cognition and dispersals: in “Sourcebook of Paleolithic Transitions: Methods, Theories and Interpretations; eds. M. Camps, P. Chauhan”, pp 255-264, Netherlands: Springer Press.
- , (2009), Acheulean Landscapes and Large Cutting Tool Assemblages in the Arabian Peninsula: in “The Evolution of Human Populations in Arabia eds. M.D. Petraglia, J.I. Rose”, pp 102-115, Springer Press.
- , (2009), Major Issues in the Evolution and History of Human Populations in the Arabian Peninsula: in “The Evolution of Human Populations in Arabia eds. M.D. Petraglia, J.I. Rose”, pp 1-14, Springer Press.
- , (2009), Inferring aspects of Acheulean sociality and cognition from biface technology in the Hunsgi-Baichbal Valley, India : in “Lithic Materials and Paleolithic Societies; eds. B. Blades & B. Adams”, pp 219-231, New York: Wiley-Blackwell.
- , (2009), Acheulean biface refinement in the Hunsgi-Baichbal Valley, Karnataka, India: in “Theoretical and Methodological Issues in Evolutionary Archaeology: Toward an Unified Darwinian Paradigm; eds. H. J. Muscio & G.E.J. López”, pp 95-102, Oxford: Archeopress.
- 2007
- , (2007), Mind the gap: factoring the Arabian peninsula and the Indian subcontinent into Out of Africa models: in “Rethinking the Human Revolution; eds. P. Mellars, O. Bar-Yosef, K. Boyle & C. Stringer”, pp 383-394, Cambridge: McDonald Institute Archaeological Publications.
- , (2007), Human evolution and culture change in the Indian subcontinent: : in “The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia: Inter-disciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Linguistics and Genetics; eds. M.D. Petraglia & B. Allchin””, pp pp 1-20, Springer Press.
- , (2007), Human evolution and culture change in the Indian subcontinent: in “The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia: Inter-disciplinary Studies in Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, Linguistics and Genetics; eds. M.D. Petraglia & B. Allchin”, pp 1-20, Netherlands: Springer Press .
- 2006
- , (2006), The Acheulian quarry at Isampur, Lower Deccan, India: in “Axe Age: Acheulian Tool-Making from Quarry to Discard; eds. N. Goren-Inbar & G. Sharon”, pp 45-73, London: Equinox Publishing.
- , (2006), The Indian Acheulean in global perspective: in “Axe Age: Acheulian Tool-Making from Quarry to Discard; eds. N. Goren-Inbar & G. Sharon”, pp 389-414, London: Equinox Publishing.
- , (2006), Native American collaboration in the Delmarva: New meanings and an expanded approach to Delmarva archaeology: in “Native Peoples and Archaeology in the Northeastern United States; ed. J. Kerber”, pp 213-229, Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
- , (2006), The archeology of global expansion 300,000-8000 years ago: Asia: in “Encyclopedia of Quaternary Science: Hominin Evolution; ed. C. Gamble”, pp , London: Elsevier Science Publishers.
- 2005
- , (2005), Hominin responses to Pleistocene environmental change in Arabia and South Asia: in “Early-Middle Pleistocene Transitions: The Land-Ocean Evidence; eds. M. Head & P. Gibbard”, pp 305-319, London: Geological Society, Special Publications, 247.
- , (2005), Life and mind in the Acheulean: A case study from India: in “The Hominid Individual in Context: Archaeological Investigations of Lower and Middle Pleistocene Landscapes, Locales and Artefacts; eds. C. Gamble & M. Porr”, pp 197-219, London: Routledge.
- 2003
- , (2003), Acheulean bifaces and early human behavioral patterns in East Africa and South India: in “Multiple Approaches to the Study of Bifacial Technologies; eds. M. Soressi & H. Dibble”, pp 31-53, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
- 2002
- , (2002), Pursuing site formation research in India: in “Indian Archaeology in Retrospect: Archaeology and Historiography, vol. IV; eds. S. Settar & R. Korisettar”, pp 217-241, New Delhi: Manohar Publishers.
- 2001
- , (2001), The Lower Palaeolithic of India and its behavioural significance: in “Human Roots: Africa and Asia in the Middle Pleistocene; eds. L. Barham, & K. Robson-Brown”, pp 217-233, Bristol: Western Academic & Specialist Press.