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Hiroppara archaeological and palaeoenvironmental research

Archaeological analysis and paleoenvironmental reconstruction is now in progress at the Hiroppara site in the Central Highlands.

The COLS has conducted archeological and paleoenvironmental research on the Hiroppara wetland and prehistoric sites in its surroundings, in the Central Highlands of Nagano Prefecture. Two excavation areas (EA-1 and EA-2) were investigated, revealing a cultural sequence in the interval between the Upper Palaeolithic and the Jomon periods in the area adjacent to the Hiroppara wetland. As a result of the excavation, a bifacial point industry in association with blade cores from EA-1 (Layers 2b-3) and a blade industry including a feature of “obsidian concentration” from EA-2 (Layers 3-4a) have been discovered. Presumed Aira-Tn tephra (AT) was identified at EA-1 (Layer 5). Although other cultural layers assigned to Upper Paleolithic industries have been discovered from each excavation area, their details have not yet been clarified because they were only partially recovered. Additionally, soil samples for the analyses of grain size, water content, total organic carbon content (TOC), opal phytolith, and tephra identification are in progress from the profiles of EA-1 and EA-2.