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SUMMARY:Aboriginal body shape and clothing\, and the Tasmanian problem(s) 
 - Ian Gilligan (Department of Archaeology\, University of Sidney)
DTSTART:20170510T153000Z
DTEND:20170510T163000Z
UID:TALK69650@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Ann Van Baelen
DESCRIPTION:Among modern humans (and earlier hominins)\, body shape varies
  with climate according to the biological ‘rules’ of  Bergmann (1847) 
 and Allen (1877). In essence\, having a lighter and more slender body buil
 d is better in warm environments\, and vice versa. This pattern is seen wi
 th Australian Aborigines\, as demonstrated by a re-analysis of Birdsell’
 s (1993) data. Rather than supporting his ‘trihybrid’ theory of three 
 different founding populations\, the variation in morphological indices wh
 ich Birdsell documented corresponds to meteorological conditions. A simila
 r climate pattern is seen with indigenous clothing – although throughout
  the continent\, Aborigines were habitually unclad. This routine nakedness
  was true even in the colder climate of Tasmania\, leading some anthropolo
 gists to cite the lack of ‘adequate’ clothes as an example of the Tasm
 anians’ alleged cultural devolution due to isolation. However\, while mo
 rphological data are scarce\, it is likely that the Tasmanians had develop
 ed enhanced biological cold adaptations which allowed them to survive with
  less clothing than their mainland relatives. To add to the Tasmanian enig
 ma\, archaeological evidence reveals that significant innovations appeared
  during the late Pleistocene – innovations which elsewhere are construed
  as examples of modern human behaviour. Yet these innovations (such as bon
 e tools) disappeared during the Holocene\, adding to the picture of local 
 devolution. Conversely\, insofar as it relates to clothing\, the loss of t
 echnology can instead be seen as an adaptive response.
LOCATION:BioAnth Lecture Theatre (Room 41)\, Division of Biological Anthro
 pology\, Pembroke Street\, Cambridge\, CB2 3QG
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