Japanese Archipelago in the Paleolithic period: Historical studies

Paleolithic studies on the Japanese Archipelago started from the excavation of the Iwajuku Site in 1949. In 2000, research efforts were damaged by a forgery incident, which was concerned with the Lower/Middle Paleolithic period. After completing the investigation on the incident, the presence of the Lower/Middle Paleolithic remains unsolved. However, we have entered a new stage of research on the Upper Paleolithic for which over ten thousand sites were discovered. The new research framework places, at the heart, tephra-based lithic chronology, site structure analysis that investigates a site's formation process through conjoined pieces and parent rock analysis, and obsidian archaeology in which diachronic research is conducted on obsidian source exploitation and circulation range. Now unique characteristics of Japanese Paleolithic culture are coming to light, beginning with the migration from the neighboring continent, connecting East Asia through the Paleolithic Cultural Corridor around the Sea of Japan and the Obsidian Road, and nurturing the unique traditions of lithic production. (C) 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.