Notes on the Palaeolithic finds from the Walanae valley, southwest Sulawesi, in the context of the Late Pleistocene of Island Southeast Asia

Most of the evidence for what may be associated with the first modem human occupation in Island Southeast Asia derives from the second half of the Late Pleistocene, and is thus later than dates for the first colonisation of Australia. The Pacitan artefacts are comparable both in technology and typology to those from the Walanae valley, such as the horsehoof cores, and especially the bifacially modified cobbles and pointed bifaces. Estimates of the length of time land was exposed based on current bathymetric depth contours is critical for estimating opportunities for hominid dispersal within Island Southeast Asia and beyond. The similarities noted between the earliest Baksoka River and Walanae valley artefacts and their estimated age in the early part of the Late Pleistocene could indicate that these represent activities of the earliest modem humans. Interpretations of hominid palaeogeography, adaptation, and dispersal in Island Southeast Asia must consider the effect volcanic eruptions may have had on their distribution within the region.