Devil's Lair
Encyclopedia
Devil’s Lair is a single-chamber cave
with a floor area of around 200 square metres that formed in a Quaternary
dune
limestone
of the Leeuwin–Naturaliste Ridge, 5 kilometres from the modern coastline of Western Australia
. The stratigraphic sequence in the cavefloor deposit consists of 660 centimeters of sandy sediments, with more than 100 distinct layers, intercalated with flowstone
and other indurated deposits. Excavations have been made in several areas of the cave floor. Since 1973, excavations have been concentrated in the middle (approximately on a north-west, south-east axis) of the cave, where 10 trenches have been dug. Archaeological evidence for intermittent human occupation extends down to layer 30 (about 350 cm), with hearths, bone, and stone artifacts found throughout.
Devil’s Lair has been the subject of scientific research since the 1970s by palaeontologists
and archaeologists
. Excavations have recovered stone artefacts
, numerous animal bone
remains, hearth
s, bone artefacts and human skeletal remains. Preservation of cultural materials has been very good and a long, well dated cultural sequence has been documented. The diversity and productiveness of the evidence from Devil’s Lair make it unusually valuable as a source of information on cultural and natural history in the extreme southwest of Australia since the first colonisation of the continent.
, a site with very early human ornaments
and an unusually rich source of information for prehistoric cultural and natural history in the southwest of Western Australia.
Several different techniques of dating have been used at Devil’s Lair to show that human occupation began at around 48,000 years BP (Turney, et al. 2001). This makes it amongst the earliest sites in Australia and so an important source of information about the timing and character of the first human colonizers of Australia. Located in the south-west of Western Australia, Devil’s Lair shows that people reached the extreme southwest of the continent very soon after their first arrival.
Excavations at Devil’s Lair have yielded early human ornaments in the form of three ground bone beads dating to 19,000–12,700 years BP. These beads were made from the limb-bones of macropods and were manufactured by cutting the bone shafts into short segments and grinding them smooth on abrasive stone. A deliberately-perforated but otherwise unmodified stone object with wear patterns suggestive of its use as a pendant
dated to 14,000 year BP has also been recovered from Devil’s Lair.
These artifacts are some of the earliest evidence of symbolic behavior in Australia and are internationally significant for understanding the timing and character of the emergence of symbolic capacities in humans.
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
with a floor area of around 200 square metres that formed in a Quaternary
Quaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
dune
Dune
In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
of the Leeuwin–Naturaliste Ridge, 5 kilometres from the modern coastline of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. The stratigraphic sequence in the cavefloor deposit consists of 660 centimeters of sandy sediments, with more than 100 distinct layers, intercalated with flowstone
Flowstone
Flowstones are composed of sheetlike deposits of calcite formed where water flows down the walls or along the floors of a cave. They are typically found in "solution", or limestone caves, where they are the most common speleothem. However, they may form in any type of cave where water enters that...
and other indurated deposits. Excavations have been made in several areas of the cave floor. Since 1973, excavations have been concentrated in the middle (approximately on a north-west, south-east axis) of the cave, where 10 trenches have been dug. Archaeological evidence for intermittent human occupation extends down to layer 30 (about 350 cm), with hearths, bone, and stone artifacts found throughout.
Devil’s Lair has been the subject of scientific research since the 1970s by palaeontologists
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
and archaeologists
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
. Excavations have recovered stone artefacts
Stone tool
A stone tool is, in the most general sense, any tool made either partially or entirely out of stone. Although stone tool-dependent societies and cultures still exist today, most stone tools are associated with prehistoric, particularly Stone Age cultures that have become extinct...
, numerous animal bone
Bone
Bones are rigid organs that constitute part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells and store minerals. Bone tissue is a type of dense connective tissue...
remains, hearth
Hearth
In common historic and modern usage, a hearth is a brick- or stone-lined fireplace or oven often used for cooking and/or heating. For centuries, the hearth was considered an integral part of a home, often its central or most important feature...
s, bone artefacts and human skeletal remains. Preservation of cultural materials has been very good and a long, well dated cultural sequence has been documented. The diversity and productiveness of the evidence from Devil’s Lair make it unusually valuable as a source of information on cultural and natural history in the extreme southwest of Australia since the first colonisation of the continent.
Archaeological Significance
Devil’s Lair is important as one of the earliest years old sites of human occupation in AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, a site with very early human ornaments
Jewellery
Jewellery or jewelry is a form of personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets.With some exceptions, such as medical alert bracelets or military dog tags, jewellery normally differs from other items of personal adornment in that it has no other purpose than to...
and an unusually rich source of information for prehistoric cultural and natural history in the southwest of Western Australia.
Several different techniques of dating have been used at Devil’s Lair to show that human occupation began at around 48,000 years BP (Turney, et al. 2001). This makes it amongst the earliest sites in Australia and so an important source of information about the timing and character of the first human colonizers of Australia. Located in the south-west of Western Australia, Devil’s Lair shows that people reached the extreme southwest of the continent very soon after their first arrival.
Excavations at Devil’s Lair have yielded early human ornaments in the form of three ground bone beads dating to 19,000–12,700 years BP. These beads were made from the limb-bones of macropods and were manufactured by cutting the bone shafts into short segments and grinding them smooth on abrasive stone. A deliberately-perforated but otherwise unmodified stone object with wear patterns suggestive of its use as a pendant
Pendant
A pendant is a loose-hanging piece of jewellery, generally attached by a small loop to a necklace, when the ensemble may be known as a "pendant necklace". A pendant earring is an earring with a piece hanging down. In modern French "pendant" is the gerund form of “hanging”...
dated to 14,000 year BP has also been recovered from Devil’s Lair.
These artifacts are some of the earliest evidence of symbolic behavior in Australia and are internationally significant for understanding the timing and character of the emergence of symbolic capacities in humans.