@article{fdi:010084373,
  title = {{I}n situ-produced {B}e-10 and {A}l-26 indirect dating of {E}larmekora {E}arlier {S}tone {A}ge artefacts : first attempt in a savannah forest mosaic in the middle {O}gooue valley, {G}abon},
  author = {{B}raucher, {R}. and {O}slisly, {R}ichard and {M}esfin, {I}. and {N}toutoume, {P}. {P}. and {A}ster {T}eam},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{D}iscovered in 1988 by {R}. {O}slisly and {B}. {P}eyrot, {E}larmekora is a high terrace that, today, is situated 175 m above the {O}gooue {R}iver in the historical complex of {E}larmekora, attached to the {L}ope {N}ational {P}ark in {G}abon, a {W}orld {H}eritage site since 2007. {T}he site yielded a small lithic assemblage, including mainly cobble artefacts embedded within the 1 m thick alluvial material. {B}ased on geomorphological and palaeoclimatological criteria, the preliminary dating suggested an age of 400 ka. {H}owever, {E}larmekora could be a key site for {A}tlantic {C}entral {A}frica if this lithic industry can be dated absolutely. {I}n 2018 and 2019, two field trips were organized to collect surface samples as well as samples in vertical depth profiles with the aim of measuring their in situ-produced cosmogenic nuclide ({B}e-10 and {A}l-26) content. {R}esults suggest a surface abandonment between 730 and 620 ka ago representing a minimum age for the cobble artefacts. {C}oncurrently, technological reappraisal of the artefacts suggests an atypical lithic industry that should, for the moment, be considered as 'undiagnostic' {E}arlier {S}tone {A}ge. {T}his age bracketing may be compared with a similar age range obtained for prehistoric occupations in {A}ngola using the same approach. {T}his age will place {E}larmekora among the oldest evidence for the presence of hominins in western {C}entral {A}frica and raises the question of a '{W}est {S}ide {S}tory' to early human dispersals in {A}frica. {T}his article is part of the theme issue '{T}ropical forests in the deep human past'.},
  keywords = {cosmogenic nuclides ; {E}arly {S}tone {A}ge ; {W}est {C}entral {A}frica ; {E}larmekora ; {L}ope national park ; {G}abon ; {GABON} ; {OGOOUE} {VALLEE}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{P}hilosophical {T}ransactions of the {R}oyal {S}ociety {B} : {B}iological {S}ciences},
  volume = {377},
  numero = {1849},
  pages = {20200482 [12 ]},
  ISSN = {0962-8436},
  year = {2022},
  DOI = {10.1098/rstb.2020.0482},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010084373},
}