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BEFORE THE RECORDAN EVIDENCE ATLAS

Atlas Timeline Compare Hypotheses Method

COMPARE / TEST A CONNECTION

Put cases in conversation.

Choose two to four cases. Compare their dates, evidence, and differences, then follow the full records to test an explanation.

Select cases

DHP-001 · Shell ornaments at Bizmoune CaveDHP-002 · Ochre work and marks at Blombos CaveDHP-003 · The Leang Karampuang compositionDHP-004 · Architecture and occupation at Göbekli TepeDHP-005 · The drowned landscape at Bouldnor CliffDHP-006 · Madjedbebe, northern AustraliaDHP-007 · White Sands footprints, North AmericaDHP-008 · Plant use at Ohalo IIDHP-009 · Cape Bruguieres underwater lithicsDHP-010 · Ngurunderi, narrative and coastal changeDHP-011 · Monte Verde II, southern ChileDHP-012 · Pottery at Xianrendong Cave, East AsiaDHP-013 · A child's burial at Panga ya Saidi, East AfricaDHP-014 · Pigment and stone movement at Olorgesailie, East AfricaDHP-015 · The Ust’-Ishim genome

Select at least two cases to begin.

Questions for a proposed connection

Is the shared feature specific, or common to many societies?
Do the dated contexts overlap in a plausible sequence?
Is there independent evidence of contact or an intermediary?
Could similar materials, environments, or human needs explain the resemblance?
Which case would most clearly challenge the proposed pattern?

Before the Record

A living atlas of the deep human past
by Kevin S. Martin.

About Corrections & revisions Research method

A date on a sample is not automatically the date of an idea. Every claim remains open to revision.