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Healey, Elizabeth, John Piprani, Osamu Maeda, Ellon Souter, and Julie Birchenall. "Introduction: Immersed in Lithics." Journal of Lithic Studies 8, no. 3 (December 21, 2021): 1–9. http://dx.doi.org/10.2218/jls.6169.
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The idea of holding a conference to discuss how we can explore what affects our approaches to, and understanding of, lithic artefacts and their analysis emerged from a hands-on workshop entitled Northern Knap-in in November 2014. In that workshop we wanted to explore how prehistoric people in the north of England, which is perceived by many as being a (lithic)resource-poor region, might have adapted to the lack of good quality flint and chert for tool manufacture and so we experimented with the working of non-flint raw materials. Many things emerged from that day including how the experimental knapping of materials other than flint allowed us to think outside the conventional box, and how communal knapping and grinding demonstrated some of the different ways that people interacted and adapted to each other’s rhythm when making artefacts. We were also struck (excuse the pun) by how much non-lithic specialists contributed to the questions we raise in lithic analysis. This brought home to us the importance of finding other, sometimes non- conventional, ways in which we can engage with the past. This eventually led to the Immersed in Lithics Conference in February 2016.
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Monteiro-Rodrigues, Sérgio, Alberto Gomes, and João Pedro Cunha-Ribeiro. "Os artefactos líticos talhados do litoral de Vila Nova de Gaia: caracterização genérica, contextualização geoarqueológica, problemas e perspectivas." Estudos do Quaternário / Quaternary Studies, no. 15 (December 21, 2016): 99–116. http://dx.doi.org/10.30893/eq.v0i15.143.
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O litoral de Vila Nova de Gaia, a sul da cidade do Porto, constitui um trecho geoarqueológico ímpar para o estudo da ocupação quaternária da fachada ocidental da Ibéria. Neste trabalho apresentam-se algumas características tecno-tipológicas das indústrias líticas do litoral de Vila Nova de Gaia e avançam-se hipóteses sobre os respetivos contextos cronoestratigráficos, litoestratigrágicos e geoarqueológicos. De acordo com observações mais ou menos pontuais realizadas durante as últimas três décadas sugere-se que:a) A indústria lítica mais antiga parece associar-se ao nível marinho I (20-30 m a.n.m.a.m.), podendo ter sido posteriormente remobilizada na sequência de processos coluvionares. A presença de bifaces e de machados de mão entre os artefactos identificados remete-a para o Acheulense;b) A ocorrência de bifaces muito boleados em depósitos coluvionares que recobrem o nível marinho II (10-20 m a.n.m.a.m.), sugere que o seu contexto primário terá sido o referido depósito marinho;c) na base do depósito do nível marinho III da Praia da Aguda ocorrem artefactos líticos enquadráveis no Acheulense (presença de bifaces e de machados de mão);d) nas coluviões sobre os níveis marinhos I e II existem artefactos muito eolizados – aparentemente posteriores às formações marinhas e anteriores à génese das coluviões – e artefactos sem qualquer alteração física – possivelmente coevos dos processos de coluvionamento. Aspetos técnicos e tipológicos observados nestes dois conjuntos artefactuais permitem avançar a hipótese de se relacionarem, respetivamente, com o último período glaciar (idade mínima) e com o Holocénico.
The carved lithic artefacts from the littoral of Vila Nova de Gaia: generic characterization, geoarchaeological contextualization, problems and perspectives - The coast of Vila Nova de Gaia, south of the city of Porto, constitutes a unique geoarchaeological stretch for the study of the quaternary occupation of the western facade of Iberia. This work presents some techno-typological characteristics of the lithic industries from Vila Nova de Gaia coastline and hypotheses concerning their chronostratigraphic context are presented. According to general observations carried out during the last three decades it is suggested that:a) The earliest lithic industry seems to be associated with marine level I (20-30 a.s.l.); however, it may have been subsequently remobilized by colluvial processes. The presence of handaxes and cleavers among the artefacts connect this assemblage with the Acheulean;b) The presence of rolled handaxes in colluvial deposits overlying marine level II (10-20 m a.s.l.) suggests that their primary context may have been the mentioned marine level;c) At the bottom of the marine level III deposit from Praia da Aguda (< 10 m a.s.l) there are lithics of Acheulean age (presence of handaxes and cleavers);d) In the colluvial deposits overlying marine levels I and II there are lithic artefacts with a very high degree of aeolisation – apparently younger than the marine formations and older than the colluvial processes – and artefacts with no patina – possibly synchronous of the colluvia. Technical and typological features observed in these two sets suggest that the first one may date from the last glacial period (minimum age) and the second one from the Holocene.
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Minzoni‐Déroche, Angela. "Lithic artefacts interpretation: An empirical approach." World Archaeology 17, no. 1 (June 1985): 20–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00438243.1985.9979947.
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Vornicu, Diana-Măriuca. "Three years of the Journal of Lithic Studies." Journal of Lithic Studies 3, no. 1 (September 15, 2016): 1–2. http://dx.doi.org/10.2218/jls.v3i1.1765.
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The methods of analysing lithic artefacts from archaeological contexts have had an outstanding development in the last decades. Along with methodological achievements, new conceptual frameworks help to interpret the prehistoric record, all getting us closer to understanding the realities of the human past. Thus, the appearance of several journals focused on disseminating the investigation of stone tools was needed and became a reality for some decades. Three years ago, the Journal of Lithic Studies came to join those publications focused on lithics research. It was established from the beginning as an open access journal, with a clear interest in making information available worldwide.
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Vukosavljević, Nikola, Goran Gužvica, Biserka Radanović-Gužvica, Dražen Kurtanjek, and Ivor Karavanić. "Mousterian lithic assemblage from Vinica cave (Hrvatsko zagorje, Croatia)." Arheološki vestnik 73 (July 7, 2022): 7–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.3986/av.73.01.
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In this paper we present techno-typological and raw material analysis of the Mousterian lithic assemblage from Vinica cave (Hrvatsko zagorje, Croatia) excavated during late 1990s and early 2000s. Lithic artefacts are found in two Mouste- rian layers, c and d, whose age is determined by 14C AMS dating. Sample from layer d brought indefinite age older than 50,300 years BP while calibrated age for the sample from layer c is 36–34.5 ka BP. Quartz is predominant raw material in both layers followed by different cherts. Quartz cobbles were knapped on-site while at least some chert artefacts were not flaked in the cave but brought from elsewhere as blanks and tools. Among small number of tools, scrapers are the most frequent. Small lithic assemblages from both layers suggest that cave was used as short term Neandertal camp during Middle Paleolithic.
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Galanidou, Nena. "Biographies of the lithic artefacts from Upper Palaeolithic Kastritsa." Annual of the British School at Athens 95 (November 2000): 1–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0068245400004561.
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Technological and typological studies of the chipped-stone industries of Palaeolithic Greece have hitherto been founded upon thorough descriptions of the morphological attributes of artefacts. This article departs from this tradition to examine, by means of refitting, the technology that created a group of 1691 lithic artefacts at Upper Palaeolithic Kastritsa. Refitting seeks to reconstruct individual reduction sequences by making connections between artefacts that are the results of successive steps in lithic production, thereby revealing more about the biographies of those artefacts. This approach, although extremely valuable, is not universally applicable because it is time-consuming and works only if the artefacts it examines have been retrieved from undisturbed contexts. Kastritsa's industry, however, lends itself to this sort of analysis thanks to the site's generally good spatial and temporal integrity. Attention is focused on layer 12 (in the western part of the rockshelter), a layer that has, amongst other features, yielded two sets of postholes. This evidence of habitation structures of this sort is unique in the Upper Palaeolithic record of south-east Europe. The analysis shows that this layer contains the greatest percentage of refitting specimens so far recorded at Kastritsa and makes a number of observations concerning the technological decisions taken by the knappers who worked there. It also suggests that specialised knapping and transformation activities probably took place in this part of the camp.
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Wenban-Smith, Francis F. "Red Barns Palaeolithic site." Antiquity 74, no. 283 (March 2000): 9–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00065960.
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The Lowed/Middle Palaeolithic site at Red Barns, Portchester, on the outskirts of Portsmouth (SU 608063), was re-investigated in summer 1999. Three test-pits succeeded in relocating and exposing the artefact-bearing horizon first discovered in 1973 by J.C. Draper of Fareham and last seen in 1975 when a rescue excavation took place. This excavation produced a massive (in every sense) lithic collection including seven sediment samples, 8678 flint artefacts, 2058 flint nodules and a staggering 18,423 thermally fractured flint pieces (Gamble & ApSimon 1986). Recent study of the 1975 material (Wenban Smith et al. forthcoming) has demonstrated that the site is older than previously thought, dating to at least 200,000 BP and probably to nearer 400,000 BP, and that lithic technology at the site was dominated by the production of pointed plano-convex handaxes. Study of the organizational structure of the lithic production gave an insight into the patterning of Archaic hominid behaviour, with the site serving as a locale were handaxes were regularly made, but from which they were normally removed before being used and abandoned elsewhere.
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Przeździecki, Michał, Michał Szubski, and Artur Grabarek. "Między Wschodem a Zachodem. Inwentarz krzemienny z osady ludności kultury ceramiki wstęgowej rytej na stanowisku Podlesie 6, woj. świętokrzyskie." Folia Praehistorica Posnaniensia 25 (December 15, 2020): 191–208. http://dx.doi.org/10.14746/fpp.2020.25.09.
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Paper presents results of analysis of the assemblage of flint artefacts from the settlement of Linear Pottery culture (LBK) at the site no. 6 in Podlesie, Świętokrzyskie voivodeship. Importance of the site is primarily by its location: on the border of two geographical regions, two geological conditions, two settlement eccentrics of the LBK and two provinces of lithic raw materials. Within the flint assemblage we can distinguish two main classes of lithical artefacts: an internally cohesive collection of 104 obsidian products and a collection of 2069 artefacts made of at least five different types of flint. In the group of siliceous rocks, the most numerous is the Jurassic flint from Cracow area – 53%. Second place in the inventory is occupied by the Światchowski flint, which share reaches the level of 19%. Only slightly smaller are amounts of chocolate flint – 15%.
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Greenough, John D., Leanne M. Mallory-Greenough, and James Baker. "Orthopyroxene, augite, and plagioclase compositions in dacite: application to bedrock sourcing of lithic artefacts in southern British Columbia." Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 41, no. 6 (June 1, 2004): 711–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/e04-012.
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Extremely fine-grained, hypocrystalline, microporphyritic dacite (whole-rock SiO2 = 6570 oxide wt.%), called "glassy basalt" by archaeologists, was commonly used to manufacture lithic artefacts found in the British Columbia (B.C.) Interior. Geochemical fingerprinting of dacite minerals can help identify the geologic source of these artefacts. Multiple (~300) mineral analyses show that mafic orthopyroxene (En6580), plagioclase (An3070), augite (Wo3045, En4045, Fs1015), and olivine (~Fo85) (in that order) represent the most abundant and commonly occurring microphenocrysts. Relative abundances vary among sources. Clustering of averaged mineral data reveals at least five distinct dacite sources for lithic artefacts in the B.C. Interior. Discriminant analysis separates individual mineral analyses according to these five areas with ~ 90% efficiency and provides functions for "sourcing" new artefacts in the future. Two sites represent "quarry" locations and their scope (e.g., geographic area ≥ 4 km2, archaeological stratigraphic depth locally ≥ 2 m at Cache Creek) implies prolonged use and trade. However, fingerprinting suggests that in the B.C. Interior, tools were made from local dacite. Mineral fingerprinting uses small (~0.1 g) samples, which is important when analyzing valuable artefacts. Hypocrystalline, "knappable," microporphyritic dacite is probably common around the Pacific due to Cenozoic subduction. Thus, mineral-based sourcing could have wider application outside of western Canada.
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Boëda, Eric, Marcos Ramos, Antonio Pérez, Christine Hatté, Christelle Lahaye, Mario Pino, David Hérisson, et al. "24.0 kyr cal BP stone artefact from Vale da Pedra Furada, Piauí, Brazil: Techno-functional analysis." PLOS ONE 16, no. 3 (March 10, 2021): e0247965. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247965.
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Current archaeological paradigm proposes that the first peopling of the Americas does not exceed the Last Glacial Maximum period. In this context, the acceptance of the anthropogenic character of the earliest stone artefacts generally rests on the presence of projectile points considered no more as typocentric but as typognomonic, since it allows, by itself, to certify the human character of the other associated artefacts. In other words, without this presence, nothing is certain. Archaeological research at Piauí (Brazil) attests to a Pleistocene human presence between 41 and 14 cal kyr BP, without any record of lithic projectile points. Here, we report the discovery and interpretation of an unusual stone artefact in the Vale da Pedra Furada site, in a context dating back to 24 cal kyr BP. The knapping stigmata and macroscopic use-wear traces reveal a conception centred on the configuration of double bevels and the production in the same specimen of at least two successive artefacts with probably different functions. This piece unambiguously presents an anthropic character and reveals a technical novelty during the Pleistocene occupation of South America.
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Liu, Ji-Ying, and Hong Chen. "An experimental case of wood-working use-wear on quartzite artefacts." Documenta Praehistorica 43 (December 30, 2016): 507–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.4312/dp.43.27.
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Use-wear analysis has become an essential method for the functional study of lithic artefacts from prehistoric archaeological assemblages. On the basis of earlier research, this article discusses experiments and analyses of use-wear on quartzite artefacts caused by wood-working. The raw materials of the artefacts were collected from the Wulanmulun Site, Inner Mongolia. The woodworking techniques include scraping, drilling, and chopping. Scarring sizes are mostly medium and small. Scarring terminations are mainly feathered; stepped terminations are caused by scraping and chopping wood. Scarring mainly appears as run-together distributions. Medium and heavy rounding is found on the edges of the artefacts.
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Durden, Tess. "The production of specialised flintwork in the later Neolithic: a case study from the Yorkshire Wolds." Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 61 (1995): 409–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0079497x00003157.
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This paper examines the evidence for specialist artefact production during the later Neolithic on the Yorkshire Wolds. It is proposed that such an industry was responsible for the production of some of the highly distinctive lithic artefacts present in that period, such as polished discoidal knives, ripple-flaked and polished oblique arrowheads, and polished flint axes. It is suggested that much of the value attached to these items derived from the highly organised but restricted nature of their production. Two sites on the Wolds were fieldwalked and the finds subjected to both technological and spatial analysis. Results indicate that an industry exercising a higher level of skill existed alongside more everyday knapping activities. This industry was divided into two phases, consisting of the roughing out of flint nodules at the stone source and the completion of the specialised artefacts in spatially restricted workshops within settlements.
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Wenban-Smith, Francis, David Bridgland, Simon Parfitt, Andrew Haggart, and Phillip Rye. "Palaeolithic Archaeology at the Swan Valley Community School, Swanscombe, Kent." Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 67 (2001): 219–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0079497x00001675.
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This paper reports on the recovery of Palaeolithic flint artefacts and faunal remains from fluvial gravels at the base of a sequence of Pleistocene sediments revealed during construction works at two sites to the south of Swanscombe village, Kent. Although outside the mapped extent of the Boyn Hill/Orsett Heath Formation, the newly discovered deposits can be firmly correlated with the Middle Gravels and Upper Loam from the Barnfield Pit sequence dating to c. 400,000–380,000 BP. This increases greatly the known extent of these deposits, one horizon of which produced the Swanscombe Skull, and has provided more information on their upper part.Comparison of the lithic assemblages from volume-controlled sieving with those from general monitoring demonstrated that artefact collections formed without controlled methods of recovery, such as form the majority of the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic archaeological record, are likely to be disproportionately dominated by larger, more visible, and more collectable neatly-made handaxes to the detriment of more poorly made, asymmetrical handaxes and cores, flakes, and percussors. The lithic assemblage from the fluvial gravel was confirmed as dominated by pointed handaxes, supporting previous studies of artefacts front the equivalent Lower Middle Gravel at Barnfield Pit. The raw material characteristics of the assemblage were investigated, and it was concluded that there was no indication that the preference for pointed shapes could be related to either the shape or source of raw material.This paper also reviews the significance of lithic assemblages from disturbed fluvial contexts, and concludes that, contrary to some current perspectives, they have a valuable role to play complementing less disturbed evidence in developing understanding of the Palaeolithic.
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Croes, Dale R. "The North-Central cultural dichotomy on the Northwest Coast of North America: its evolution as suggested by wet-site basketry and wooden fish-hooks." Antiquity 71, no. 273 (September 1997): 594–615. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00085355.
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Where there are wet sites and organic artefacts are preserved, one can study artefacts of perishable materials which may by their nature offer more information than do lithic assemblages. On the US/Canadian Northwest Coast, with its series of celebrated wet sites, basketry and wooden fish-hooks survive so often that a decisive issue in the region's regional pattern can be explored this way — with archaeo-experimental help from unlucky inhabitants of the local aquarium!
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Gibert, J., Ll Gibert, A. Iglesias, and E. Maestro. "Two ‘Oldowan’ assemblages in the Plio-Pleistocene deposits of the Orce region, southeast Spain." Antiquity 72, no. 275 (March 1998): 17–25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00086233.
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Stone artefacts reported from the Orce region (Grenada, Spain) indicate a first human presence in western Europe as early as the Plio-Pleistocene boundary, making a ‘long chronology’ for European hominids against the claims for a briefer human presence. Excavations of Barranco León-5 and Fuentenueva-3a in 1995 have produced two groups of lithic artefacts of ‘Oldowan’ type, seen as the most ancient of western Europe by faunal associations and palaeomagnetic study.
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Piprani, John. "Experimental production of lithic artefacts: Developing understanding; developing engagement." Journal of Lithic Studies 8, no. 3 (December 21, 2021): 103–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.2218/jls.3034.
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This paper is reflective and discusses the results of a process experiment designed to develop understanding of a particular British Early Upper Palaeolithic stone tool technology. The technology in question is the Lincombian, and the discussion breaks down into three main parts. The first part argues that raw material availability and practitioner performance can be influential factors within the modern experimental reproduction process. When these issues were factored in for this experiment it became clear that early phase debitage materials reflected a process of interpretation, not replication. The second substantive part of this discussion focuses upon the final phase of the experimental process. Selection criterion for assessing finished artefacts was tightly constrained by archaeologically derived data. It is argued therefore that when finished artefacts fell within these assessment criteria the final phase of the process was akin to replication. Consequently, debitage associated with the final phase can provide useful analogue material to fill gaps in our understanding of this Lincombian technology. The final section is summative and returns to the issue of performance. It argues that practitioner performance facilitates audience engagement. Engagement is valuable for communicating understanding to both specialist and non-specialist audiences. The paper concludes by arguing that a rigorously evaluated experimental process can be used twice: firstly, as a tool for generating materials to develop our understanding; secondly, as an engaging performance to communicate understanding to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
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Barone, S., P. Neri, A. Paoli, and A. V. Razionale. "Automatic technical documentation of lithic artefacts by digital techniques." Digital Applications in Archaeology and Cultural Heritage 11 (December 2018): e00087. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.daach.2018.e00087.
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Markó, András. "Istállóskő revisited: Lithic artefacts and assemblages, sixty years after." Acta Archaeologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 66, no. 1 (June 2015): 5–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.1556/072.2015.66.1.1.
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Morgenstein, M. E., S. Luo, T. L. Ku, and J. Feathers. "URANIUM-SERIES AND LUMINESCENCE DATING OF VOLCANIC LITHIC ARTEFACTS*." Archaeometry 45, no. 3 (August 2003): 503–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1475-4754.00124.
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Xavier, Pedro, and Carlos Alves. "Non-destructive studies of prehistoric lithic material culture in the search for sources of geologic raw materials: an overview of techniques and issues." Cadernos do Laboratorio Xeolóxico de Laxe. Revista de Xeoloxía Galega e do Hercínico Peninsular 41 (December 2, 2019): 123–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.17979/cadlaxe.2019.41.1.5820.
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Geological raw materials are an important component of the archaeological record in the Prehistory (namely due to their persistence under buried conditions) and pinpointing their original position on the geological context could give important information about activities of ancient human groups. However, archaeological lithic artefacts impose strict restrictions on analytical procedures due to the need to preserve features with cultural meaning, which might affect the effectiveness of the analytical procedure. We attempt here a critical overview of non-destructive techniques for the search of the source of geological raw materials used to make prehistoric lithic artefacts, highlighting issues involved in the interactions between techniques and study objects. It is emphasized that the success of provenance studies will strongly depend on the sensitivity of the analyses undertaken to the characteristics of the sample, as well as the geological information available.
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Woodman, Peter C. "Rosses Point revisited." Antiquity 72, no. 277 (September 1998): 562–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00086981.
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The re-evaluation of artefacts sometimes reveals a long history of misinterpretation. Here Peter Woodman re-assesses stone tools from western Ireland which have important lessons for how our personal biases influence our interpretation of lithic assemblages.
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Redmond, James, and Krister Scheie Eilertsen. "Picking up the Pieces." In Situ Archaeologica 14 (June 1, 2020): 185–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.58323/insi.v14.9526.
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This article centers on a discussion of blade fragments from two Late Mesolithic assemblages recovered during a recent excavation project in Rogaland, southwest Norway. Analysis undertaken during post excavation cataloging of lithic artefacts suggests some retouched and edge damaged pieces, represent minimally modified tools. The temporal context of the Sola finds offers an opportunity to reorientate research related to the northeast European/‘Post-Swiderian’ technological complex of which such tools were a central component. The studied fragments suggest that the two closely spaced areas may represent specialized, broadly contemporary activity. The results of this preliminary study highlight the latent interpretive potential of this relatively abundant yet somewhat intractable artefact class.
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Telizhenko, Serhii, and Oleksandr Silaiev. "Lithic Assemblages of the Linear Pottery Culture Settlement Modrychi-I." Arheologia, no. 3 (September 27, 2022): 17–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.15407/arheologia2022.03.017.
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A total of 145 flint items, as well as four obsidians and seven stone-made artefacts, were collected during the excavations on the Linear Pottery culture settlement Modrychi-1 in Lviv Oblast, which is located within Ukrainian Outer Subcarpathia. The assemblage of flint and obsidian items has been analyzed as an integral complex that characterizes the material culture of the Neolithic settlement. The prevailing number of flint items such as cores, flakes and blades reflect on-site production. As for the obsidian artefacts, an attempt was made to establish the origin of raw materials.
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Shiner, Justin, Simon Holdaway, and Patricia Fanning. "Flaked stone assemblage variability across the Weipa region of western Cape York Peninsula, Queensland." Queensland Archaeological Research 21 (April 25, 2018): 1–11. http://dx.doi.org/10.25120/qar.21.2018.3636.
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Shell mounds located on the coastal and estuarine fringes are the best-known archaeological feature in the Weipa region, northwestern Cape York Peninsula, Australia. Other archaeological deposits have received less attention, with stone artefacts thought to be all but absent reflecting the lack of raw material suitable for flaking in the region. Cultural heritage surveys on the bauxite plateau in the Weipa region undertaken since 2003 have changed this view. Here we report on stone artefacts manufactured from quartz, quartzite, silcrete, and mudstone. Surprisingly, flakes and cores in assemblages from across the surveyed region retain a relatively large proportion of cortex, indicating limited lithic reduction despite the lack of local raw material. Comparisons made with assemblage characteristics from other regions in Australia indicate that this lack of core reduction may reflect use of the Albatross Bay landscape by people who were confident of being able to access the lithic sources outside the region to replenish their tool kits.
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Muşkara, Üftade, and Ayşin Konak. "Characterization of the Obsidian Used in the Chipped Stone Industry in Kendale Hecala." Quaternary 5, no. 1 (January 7, 2022): 3. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/quat5010003.
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Kendale Hecala is located on the Ambar River in the Upper Tigris Basin, province of Diyarbakır in Southeast Anatolia. Various raw materials, including obsidian, radiolarite, chert, jasper, chalcedony, and quartzite, were used in the lithic industry. Obsidian artefacts constitute an average of 64% of the chipped stone assemblage. Technological analysis reveals that obsidian was brought to the settlement as nodules and chipped into various tools at the settlement. Understanding the operational sequence of the lithic industry, chaîne opératoire, including the distribution of raw material from source to site, is important to demonstrate the socio-cultural organization of the settlement in Southeastern Anatolia during the Ubaid period. In order to identify source varieties, the obsidian artefacts uncovered from Ubaid layers of Kendale Hecala were analyzed by macro-observations, and the characterization of archaeological samples was performed using a handheld XRF. Multivariate analysis of the data indicates the use of obsidian from different resources at the settlement, including Nemrut Dağ, Bingöl B, and Group 3d.
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D'Andrea, Andrea, Rosalia Gallotti, and Marcello Piperno. "Taphonomic interpretation of the Developed Oldowan site of Garba IV (Melka Kunture, Ethiopia) through a GIS application." Antiquity 76, no. 294 (December 2002): 991–1001. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00091808.
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A GIS intra-site application for the taphonomic interpretation of the Developed Oldowan site of Garba IV (Melka Kunture, Ethiopia) allowed the automatic data processing of more than 12,000 lithic artefacts and faunal remains lying on a 100-sq. m excavated palaeosurface dating to about 1,500,000 years ago.
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Hiscock, Peter. "Slippery and Billy: Intention, Selection and Equifinality in Lithic Artefacts." Cambridge Archaeological Journal 14, no. 1 (April 2004): 71–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0959774304230050.
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Monteiro-Rodrigues, Sérgio, and António González. "A Estação Paleolítica da Praia da Aguda (Arcozelo, Vila Nova de Gaia). Notícia preliminar." Estudos do Quaternário / Quaternary Studies, no. 6 (December 21, 2010): 23–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.30893/eq.v0i6.72.
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A existência de materiais líticos paleolíticos no litoral do Porto e de Vila Nova de Gaia é conhecida, pelomenos, desde os finais do século XIX. A partir de 1987, trabalhos de prospecção neste último concelhoconduziram à descoberta do sítio do Cerro (freguesia da Madalena), escavado em 1989 e em 1992. Taisescavações permitiram a recolha de uma indústria técnica e tipologicamente conectável com o Acheulense.A estação paleolítica da Praia da Aguda (Arcozelo, Vila Nova de Gaia), agora apresentada, foi, porseu turno, identificada em 2004. Pouco depois da sua descoberta recolheram-se mais de uma centena deartefactos macrolíticos conectáveis com o Paleolítico Inferior (bifaces, machados de mão, núcleos, utensíliossobre lasca, etc.). Inicialmente, estes artefactos foram correlacionados com um depósito marinho,possivelmente de idade eemiana, existente na área dos achados. Porém, trabalhos de campo subsequentespermitiram constatar que essa correlação não é segura uma vez que os artefactos líticos detectados insitu surgem num depósito com caraterísticas diferentes das observadas na formação atribuída à últimainterglaciação. Na impossibilidade, até ao momento, de se proceder a uma caraterização sedimentológicado depósito onde ocorrem os artefactos e de se estabelecer qualquer correlação estratigráfica entre este ea praia fóssil do Eemiano, equacionam-se algumas hipóteses relativamente à génese do sítio arqueológicoe à sua cronologia relativa.
The existence of Palaeolithic stone tools on the coast of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia has been knownfrom at least the late nineteenth century. In 1987, survey investigations in the latter municipality led tothe discovery of the site of Cerro (Madalena), excavated in 1989 and 1992. These excavations produceda collection of lithics that are techno-typologically related to the Acheulian. The Palaeolithic site of Praiada Aguda (Arcozelo), now published for the first time, was identified in 2004. Shortly after its discovery,more than one hundred macrolithic artefacts were found. The presence of hand-axes and cleavers suggestsa Lower Palaeolithic chronology. Initially, these artefacts were associated with a marine deposit,possibly of Eemian age, which was outcropping in the area of the site. However, subsequent fieldworkshowed that this correlation is not clear since the lithic artefacts that were found in situ were collectedfrom another deposit with features that differ from those observed in the Eemian deposit. So far it hasnot been possible to carry out a sedimentological characterisation of the deposit where the artefacts occur,nor to establish any stratigraphic correlation between this deposit and the Eemian fossil beach. Therefore,our main objective is to draft some hypotheses regarding the site formation processes and its relativechronology.
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Suryatman, Suryatman, Sue O’ Connor, David Bulbeck, Ben Marwick, Adhi Agus Oktaviana, and Unggul Prasetyo Wibowo. "Teknologi Litik di Situs Talimbue, Sulawesi Tenggara: Teknologi Berlanjut dari Masa Pleistosen Akhir Hingga Holosen." AMERTA 34, no. 2 (December 1, 2016): 81. http://dx.doi.org/10.24832/amt.v34i2.146.
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Abstract. The Lithic Technology at Talimbue Site, Southeast Sulawesi: Continuing Technology from Late Pleistocene up to Holocene Periods. The Talimbue site at Southeast Sulawesi is packed with lithic and these offer a new perspective on the lithic technology of Sulawesi. The absence of information on the prehistoric lithic technology of Southeast Sulawesi is a factor of interest that makes research on knowledge of the Talimbue site necessary. Lithic artefacts were manufactured from the terminal Pleistocene to the Late Holocene. This research will disentangle the details of the lithic technology at the Talimbue Site. The analyzed flaked stone artefacts fall into 3 categories, which are retouched flakes, debitage and cores. For its part, debitage was classified into 3 categories, which are complete flakes, broken flakes and debris. The retouch index was also measured so as to provide a quantitative estimate of the level of retouch intensity of the retouched flakes. The results of the analysis indicate changes in the stone flake technology during the period of occupation of the Talimbue Site. The change of technology occurs because the process of adaptation caused by a change of environment. Abstrak. Temuan litik yang sangat padat di Situs Talimbue di Sulawesi Tenggara menunjukkan sebuah persepektif baru dalam kajian teknologi litik di Sulawesi. Kekosongan informasi teknologi litik masa prasejarah di wilayah Sulawesi Tenggara adalah hal yang menarik dikaji dalam penelitian di Situs Talimbue. Artefak litik digunakan dari masa Pleistosen Akhir hingga masa Holosen Akhir. Penelitian ini akan menguraikan secara detail bagaimana teknologi litik di Situs Talimbue. Artefak batu diserpih yang dianalisis menjadi 3 kategori, yaitu serpih diretus, serpihan dan batu inti. Serpihan kemudian diklasifikasi menjadi 3 kategori, yaitu serpih utuh, serpih rusak dan tatal. Pengukuran indeks retus juga dilakukan bertujuan untuk mengestimasi secara kuantitatif tingkat intensitas retus terhadap serpih yang telah diretus. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan perubahan teknologi artefak batu diserpih terjadi selama masa hunian di Situs Talimbue. Perubahan teknologi terjadi karena adanya proses adaptasi yang disebabkan oleh perubahan lingkungan.
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Jacobi, Roger. "The Late Upper Palaeolithic Lithic Collection from Gough's Cave, Cheddar, Somerset and Human Use of the cave." Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 70 (2004): 1–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0079497x00001110.
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A first formal description is given of the largest collection of lithic artefacts from Britain to be clearly dated to the first part of the Late Glacial Interstadial. Much of this material is interpreted as having been left in the cave following hunting of wild horses and red deer in summer and winter. The large total of artefacts is suggested to be a result of small increments over a lengthy period rather than evidence of use of the cave as a base camp or aggregation site. It is possible that the cave took on an additional or alternative function as a funerary site.
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Hiscock, Peter. "Small Signals: Comprehending the Australian Microlithic as Public Signalling." Cambridge Archaeological Journal 31, no. 2 (February 5, 2021): 313–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0959774320000335.
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Signalling is a critical capacity in modern human cultures but it has often been difficult to identify and understand on lithic artefacts from pre-literate contexts. Often archaeologists have minimized the signalling role of lithic tools by arguing for strong form-function relationships that constrained signalling or else imposed ethnographic information on the archaeological patterns with the assumption they assist in defining the signalling carried out in prehistory. In this paper I present a case study for which it can be shown that function does not correlate with form and that the technology fell out of use 1000–1500 years ago. This means that neither presumptions of continuity in social practice nor reference to tool use provide strong explanations for the size, shape standardization and regional differentiation of Australian microliths. Sender-receiver signalling theory is harnessed to motivate a new synthesis of these microliths, and I demonstrate that not only were these artefacts probably key objects used in public signalling but also that sender-receiver frameworks enable us to infer details about the operation of the signalling system.
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Pantoja, Heliana Mendes, Marcondes Lima Da Costa, Maura Imazio Da Silveira, Maria Jacqueline Rodet, Rômulo Angélica, Simone Paz, and Suyanne Flávia Santos Rodrigues. "Mineralogy and chemical composition of lithic artefacts for characterization of raw materials and provenance in archaeological sites of Salobo, Carajás, Pará, Brazil." Boletim do Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi - Ciências Naturais 12, no. 3 (August 19, 2020): 399–409. http://dx.doi.org/10.46357/bcnaturais.v12i3.379.
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The Carajás Mineral Province is home to several archaeological sites, each with numerous stone artefacts elaborated in diferente materials. We studied the morphology, mineralogy, and chemistry of lithic artefacts recovered at the archaeological sites in the impacted area of the Solobo copper and gold mine in the Carajás Mineral Province. The results obtained from XRD, XRF and SEM/EDS analyses show that the starting material used was a semi-hard kaolin (semi-flint) that consisted of kaolinite, cryptocrystalline quartz, florencite, sericite, and hematite. This suggests that the same source of raw materials was involved and that this possibly reflected preference for this material. Additionally, the hardness of this raw material probably allowed the artefacts to be elaborated with ease. The mineralogical and chemical results, combined with characteristics of the artefacts' morphology and texture, indicate a relation among the archaeological sites. Similar material to that used in the production of the Solobo artefacts was found in the Alto Bonito amethyst mines that are located 40 km to the north. This site is therefore considered as the source of the raw material used for these artefacts. Finally, this indication is supported by the association of the abundant rock crystal chips and amethyst with the semi-hard kaolin present at the Alto Bonito mine.
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Mallory-Greenough, Leanne M., and John D. Greenough. "Whole-rock trace-element analyses applied to the regional sourcing of ancient basalt vessels from Egypt and Jordan." Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 41, no. 6 (June 1, 2004): 699–709. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/e04-013.
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"Fingerprinting" lithic artefacts using whole-sample geochemistry is a simple, inexpensive, technique that can supply archaeologists with important provenance and trade information. To demonstrate its utility, it is applied here to basalt vessels produced by Near East societies encompassing the millennia and geographic areas where civilization arose and writing developed. Using published whole-sample geochemical data for bedrock samples, exploratory statistical techniques show that Jordanian and Egyptian basalts are fundamentally distinct. Petrogenetically significant plots (VTi) and element ratios (Rb/Sr, Nb/Y, Sr/Zr) efficiently "fingerprint" and separate Jordanian and Egyptian bedrock basalt samples and Levantine and Egyptian basaltic artefacts. The results show that most basalt artefacts were manufactured and used within the geographic regions and culture areas where they were produced. However, a representative sample of some typologically distinct basaltic artefacts from Maadi, Egypt, geochemically resembles Palestinian basalts and quantitatively confirms archaeological evidence that trade interactions between Egyptian and Jordanian Neolithic societies were established early. Thus, knowledge of the bedrock source of raw materials used in the manufacture of basaltic artefacts is useful for inferring trade and social interaction between and within these cultures.
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Araújo, Ana Cristina. "Changing the Perspective, Adapting the Scale: Macro- and Microlithic Technologies of the Early Mesolithic in the SW Iberian Peninsula." Open Archaeology 8, no. 1 (January 1, 2022): 873–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/opar-2022-0248.
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Abstract What determines the choice of a particular lithic solution from among the set of knowledge and skills that are part of the cultural background of a group? The Early Mesolithic of the SW Iberian Peninsula shows a high diversity of lithic solutions considering the various aspects of the manufacturing process. At each site, the group selects the most adequate solution to respond efficiently to the needs. Contemporary sites may document quite different lithic components; there are no recurring patterns. Macrolithic and microlithic technologies were adopted, depending on the site, but the selection of one rather than another seems to be independent of the function of the site. Then, what does dictate the choice? A number of factors come to mind such as environmental contingencies, purpose, ability, and ethnicity. This Early Mesolithic defining trait diverges from the pattern observed for the final Upper Palaeolithic, where the same constellation of tools is systematically represented in the archaeological record, as well as flint, even in regions where flint as a natural resource is absent. Macrolithic technologies directed towards the massive production of cutting edges and heavy-duty tools produced from medium coarse-grained rocks co-exist, in SW Iberian Early Mesolithic, with microlithic technologies focused on the production of small bladelets made from good quality chert types and transformed into tiny armatures. Although contemporaneous, each lithic solution has its own geographical identity. How should we study these distinctive productions while at the same time respecting their diversity? No analytical template is sufficiently comprehensible to enable us to understand the multitude of “memories” that lithics carry. However, some approaches can help us to overcome the impasse by letting us read the hidden histories that lie behind lithic artefacts.
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KIM, Eun jeong, Jung jin LEE, and Won chul PARK. "An analysis of lithic artefacts on Whaseong Chenchen-ri Site(2021 excavation)." Journal of Korean Palaeolithic Society 46 (December 31, 2022): 37–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.52954/kps.2022.1.46.37.
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The investigation of a site for the new building of a factory in Cheoncheon-ri, Maesong-myeon, Hwaseong City, Gyeonggi-do, a paleolithic cultural layer was excavated. At the distance of around over 50m on the other side of a lane on the northwestern side of this point, the Hwaseong Cheoncheon-ri Paleolithic Site that had been excavated in 2014 is located. At the time, as a result of the excavation that had been limited to 60㎡, it has been reported that the site was formed from the Late Middle Paleolithic to the Early Upper Paleolithic. It was also estimated that the Paleolithic cultural layer had been distributed widely around this area. We had analyzed with lithic artefacts on Hwaseong Cheoncheon-ri Paleolithic Site had been excavated in 2021. Even though It had been excavated a small scale with a total of 200㎡, 125 pieces of the lithic astefacts had been yielded including the sample investigation while showing a degree of concentration. Excavated lithic artefacts are classified into 4 groups; 96 pieces of the primary products derived from the tool-manufacturing process, 23 pieces of tools, 3 pieces of striking tools for the edged tool-manufacturing, 3 pieces of the raw materials, etc. A total of 102 pieces of artefacts that can be interpreted as the tool-manufacturing process are about 82% of the total. Considering that had been excavated only a small part of the cultural layer of the entire at the present, it is difficult to understanding of the clear and definite personalities of the site. When seen with the investigation performance until now, a part of the lithic workshop that had a scale was revealed. In addition, it can be seen that a point where the specific tools, including end-scraper, awl, bec, etc., had been used more emphatically had been excavated. Indeed, It can be assumed as a base-camp where regarding the production of tool-manufacturing and use. A total of 23 tools were excavated from the cultural layer, the kinds are the following: Hand axe(1), large end-scraper(2), end-scraper(6), awl(4), scraper(2), bec(3), retouched debris(4), utilized debris(1), etc. Especially, compared with the curvature of the edge from the end-scraper, it can be seen that the 3 groups including the large, the middle, and the small-sized. Indeed, it is estimated that the handling of the leather by using the end-scraper and a series of the work that were related to the processing had been materialized. In the case of the awl, an edge was simply retouched at the distal part of the flake. It can be seen as a retouch method that had utilized the form of the blank well. A total of 18 pieces of flakes were excavated. Among these, it is characteristic that the traces of the reshaping of the flakes of the 7 pieces had remained. The reshaping is distinguished into 2 kinds of methods. One is the method of flaking in the width direction of the flake. And another thing is flaking in the direction of the thickness. With the wide direction flaking get formed the slanting facet and the edge. And with the thickness direction flaking gets a facet. Each is distinguished into 3 pieces and 4 pieces. In relation to the tool-manufacturing, it is presumed to be an edge or a holder for each. Also, if the following are synthesized; an aspect that the length of the flakes are shorter than the length of debitage surfaces of cores, an aspect that the frequency of the punctiform or the linear butt of flakes are high, an aspect that the reshaping of the flakes are confirmed as 7 pieces, etc., we can infer that with the original flakes as the blank, it was flaked once again at the lithic workshop. To speak differently, it directly shows that the case in which a smaller flake was flaked again from the original flake had been frequent. And regarding this, instead of using as a blank that smaller flake, it can be seen as a retouch technuque that is related to the tool-manufacturing. In conclusion,
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Sztáncsuj, Sándor József, Katalin Biró, Zsolt Kasztovszky, Sándor Józsa, and Boglárka Maróti. "Lithic implements at Ariuşd (Erősd). A preliminary report." Communicationes Archaeologicae Hungariae 2014 (December 7, 2015): 19–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.54640/cah.2014.19.
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Ariuşd (Erősd) is the eponym site of the Copper Age Ariuşd group. The systematic investigation of the site has begun over a hundred years ago. Recent archaeological studies could clarify the layer sequence and the artefacts of the site, especially the pottery finds. Our current paper is aiming at presenting the chipped lithic industry, the largest of its kind within the Ariuşd group. Though this study is a work in progress with several open questions, we hope to contribute to a more profound knowledge on the material culture of the Ariuşd group.
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David, A., G. Williams, David Jenkins, Ian Rigby, and Olwen Williams-Thorpe. "Stone Axe-head Manufacture: New Evidence from the Preseli Hills, West Wales." Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 61 (1995): 433–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0079497x00003169.
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Fieldwork by the Dyfed Archaeological Trust during 1989–92 has identified clear evidence for the manufacture of stone axeheads at two locations on the eastern flanks of the Preseli Mountains, Dyfed: at Glyn-y-Fran, Llanfyrnach (SN 186 307) and near Glandy Cross (SN 143 266). At both sites, small quantities of lithic debris were collected from field surfaces after cultivation; unfortunately, no contemporaneous features were found by subsequent, very limited, trial trenching. In this report we describe the fieldwork at these two sites, and the resulting lithic collection, concluding that the latter represents evidence for small-scale and opportunistic exploitation of locally abundant erratics during the Neolithic. The Glandy Cross area was later a focus for the construction of ritual monuments during the Bronze Age, and there is also some evidence for continuing activity at Glyn-y-Fran at this time.Petrological thin section analysis of some of the artefacts is reported and demonstrates a probable identity with petrological Group VIII; geochemical analysis of some of the same artefacts places the likely geological origin of these at local igneous exposures also in the Preselis. These conclusions are reviewed in the light of current discussion on the usage and origins of raw materials in later prehistory.
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Ballin, Torben Bjarke. "Re-examination of the quartz artefacts from Scord of Brouster." Scottish Archaeological Internet Reports, no. 17 (2005): 1–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.9750/issn.2056-7421.2005.17.1-36.
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In the late 1970s, a substantial quartz assemblage was recovered from the Neolithic settlement at Scord of Brouster, Shetland (NGR: HU 2560 5165) . At the time, bipolar technique (which is responsible for a substantial proportion of the assemblage), as well as quartz technology in general, were poorly understood, and it was not possible to fully make use of the assemblage in the interpretation of the site, the region, or the period. With our expanded understanding of bipolar approaches and quartz technology, this is now possible, and, in the present paper, the assemblage is re-examined, re-classified and re-interpreted. The quartz assemblage is used to gain a deeper insight into the site itself, and its lithic component and a first sketch of the territorial structure of Neolithic Scotland is presented.
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Mena, F., J. F. Blanco, F. Mariani, and A. Román. "Thermoluminescence Dating of Surface Lithic Artefacts from the Chacabuco Valley, Chilean Patagonia." Archaeometry 56, no. 5 (October 30, 2013): 898–911. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/arcm.12065.
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Sánchez de la Torre, Marta, Cynthia Belén González Olivares, Bernard Gratuze, François-Xavier Le Bourdonnec, and Xavier Mangado. "Geochemical Study of Chert Artefacts from Xicotó Rockshelter (NE Iberia) Archaeological Site. New Data on Neolithic and Mesolithic Human Occupations." Interdisciplinaria Archaeologica Natural Sciences in Archaeology XIII, no. 2 (November 2, 2022): 99–115. http://dx.doi.org/10.24916/iansa.2022.2.1.
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Xicotó Rockshelter (Alòs de Balaguer, Lleida, Spain) is located in the eastern Pre-Pyrenean range in north-east Iberia, in the middle Segre River Basin. Since 2013, archaeological works have been developed by a team from the Prehistoric Studies and Research Seminar (SERP) at the University of Barcelona and up to three sedimentary levels have been identified. The preserved archaeological remains have allowed determining that the site was occupied during at least two different periods: the Ancient Neolithic and the Middle Mesolithic. The relative chronology given by the archaeological assemblage has been confirmed by several radiocarbon dates that place the occupations of the site to be during the VI and VII millennia cal BC. This paper presents the results obtained after the analysis of lithic raw materials from the entire lithic assemblage. The analysis was performed using the classic petroarchaeological approach, comprising textural and micropalaeontological descriptions, combined with the application of geochemical methods, using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) and laser-ablation inductively-coupled-plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The results show that several rock types were selected for confectioning the lithic tools, among which chert was the preferred. Different types and origins have been identified, with similar sourcing strategies that involved local and regional procurement.
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Brumm, Adam. "‘The Falling Sky’: Symbolic and Cosmological Associations of the Mt William Greenstone Axe Quarry, Central Victoria, Australia." Cambridge Archaeological Journal 20, no. 2 (June 2010): 179–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0959774310000223.
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This article examines the roles of socio-symbolic practices and cosmological beliefs in the production and exchange of stone artefacts in an ethnohistorically documented context in Australia. Isabel McBryde's petrological and ethnohistorical analysis of greenstone axe distribution patterns in central Victoria provides a key example of social factors overriding technological concerns in the production and exchange of lithic artefacts. Her research shows that greenstone axes from Mt William quarry were distributed further than axes from equivalent sources. This suggests that Mt William stone axes had symbolic values that cannot be appreciated from straightforward economic perspectives – the aim of this article is to investigate why. A detailed consideration of the ethnohistorical evidence highlights the embeddedness of axe technology in cultural perceptions of landscape and the belief systems of Aboriginal people.
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Markó, András. "Considerations on the lithic assemblages from the Szeleta cave." Communicationes Archaeologicae Hungariae 2016 (December 6, 2016): 5–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.54640/cah.2016.5.
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The Szeleta cave was the first excavated Palaeolithic site in Hungary. The artefacts were scattered along the layer sequence and very few of them were excavated in thin, discrete layers. After the general review of the available documentation and some questions of site formation, four assemblages are analysed in the present paper, all excavated in the so-called hearth levels in the entrance and the main hall of the cave. The variability of the used raw materials and the typological differences makes possible to describe several types of industries, but none of these was a typical Szeletian assemblage.
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Clarkson, Chris, Michael Petraglia, Ravi Korisettar, Michael Haslam, Nicole Boivin, Alison Crowther, Peter Ditchfıeld, et al. "The oldest and longest enduring microlithic sequence in India: 35 000 years of modern human occupation and change at the Jwalapuram Locality 9 rockshelter." Antiquity 83, no. 320 (June 1, 2009): 326–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x0009846x.
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AbstractThe Jwalapuram Locality 9 rockshelter in southern India dates back to 35 000 years ago and it is emerging as one of the key sites for documenting human activity and behaviour in South Asia. The excavated assemblage includes a proliferation of lithic artefacts, beads, worked bone and fragments of a human cranium. The industry is microlithic in character, establishing Jwalapuram 9 as one of the oldest and most important sites of its kind in South Asia.
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Key, Alastair, Tomos Proffitt, and Ignacio de la Torre. "Raw material optimization and stone tool engineering in the Early Stone Age of Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania)." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 17, no. 162 (January 2020): 20190377. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2019.0377.
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For more than 1.8 million years hominins at Olduvai Gorge were faced with a choice: whether to use lavas, quartzite or chert to produce stone tools. All are available locally and all are suitable for stone tool production. Using controlled cutting tests and fracture mechanics theory we examine raw material selection decisions throughout Olduvai's Early Stone Age. We quantify the force, work and material deformation required by each stone type when cutting, before using these data to compare edge sharpness and durability. Significant differences are identified, confirming performance to depend on raw material choice. When combined with artefact data, we demonstrate that Early Stone Age hominins optimized raw material choices based on functional performance characteristics. Doing so flexibly: choosing raw materials dependent on their sharpness and durability, alongside a tool's loading potential and anticipated use-life. In this way, we demonstrate that early lithic artefacts at Olduvai Gorge were engineered to be functionally optimized cutting tools.
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Libois, Timothée. "Molodovo V (Ukraine): spatial and contextual study of Gravettian levels 10, 9 & 8." Materials and studies on archaeology of Sub-Carpathian and Volhynian area 25 (December 28, 2021): 11–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.33402/mdapv.2021-25-11-39.
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Molodovo V is one of Ukraine’s key-sites for the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. Since its excavation in the 1950’s and 1960’s, this sequence has been a cornerstone for the chrono-cultural framework in the Dniestr valley and adjacent areas. The site is also an important contributor to the issue of the Gravettian emergence. With radiocarbon dates around 29–28 ka uncal BP, its cultural levels 10 and 9 stand as the first Gravettian occurrence in this region, and as one of the earliest in Europe. However, this early presence of the Gravettian is relatively questionable, as it is challenged by the late Aurignacian presence in the neighbouring site of Mitoc-Malu Galben (Romania) which extends until 27.7 ka BP. Despite the consistency of the sedimentary and paleoenvironmental studies at Molodovo V, the archaeological artefacts did not benefit from extensive studies since the excavations – except for typological classification. This paper thus aims at clarifying the association of the lithic materials with the sedimentary stratigraphy and associated dates. Three types of analyses have been realized to check the conditions in which the cultural levels 10, 9 and 8 were excavated, labelled and attributed: a spatial analysis of the lithic artefacts, a refit analysis focused on inter-levels connexions and a spatial study of the position of the Upper Palaeolithic combustion features. Consequently, it appears that most artefacts from levels 10 and 9, and a majority of materials from level 8, are not reliably associated to the sedimentary stratigraphy and dates. Thus, there is no ascertained Gravettian presence in Molodovo V before its level 8, imprecisely dated between 27.000 and 25.000 uncal BP. Key words: Upper Palaeolithic, Gravettian, Ukraine, spatial analysis.
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Hivernel, F. "The UNESCO Libyan Valleys Survey XI: Preliminary Lithic Report." Libyan Studies 16 (1985): 29–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0263718900007275.
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AbstractThis interim report describes a representative sample of the lithic material recovered during the fieldwork of the UNESCO Libyan Valleys Survey. Some of the problems relating to the dating of prehistoric artefacts in Libya are described (lack of detailed regional studies, patination). Material from three areas is described in detail; these areas being Wadi Tabunia near Gheriat el-Garbia, the Wadi N'f'd system (including its tributaries, the Wadis N'fed and Umm el-Kharab) and part of the Mizda corridor between Mizda and Gharian. Some preliminary comments are made on the date of certain sites and on the possible implications in relation to the prehistoric pattern of settlement.
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Fiedler, Lutz, Christian Humburg, Horst Klingelhöfer, Sebastian Stoll, and Manfred Stoll. "Several Lower Palaeolithic Sites along the Rhine Rift Valley, Dated from 1.3 to 0.6 Million Years." Humanities 8, no. 3 (July 31, 2019): 129. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/h8030129.
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The important discoveries of Lower Palaeolithic artefacts in stratigraphical context within Lower and early Middle Pleistocene deposits in the western continental part of Europe along the rift systeme of the Rhine Valley are pointing at the possible continuous presence of hominins since the Lower Pleistocene. This paper reports on lithic industry from its early appearance at around 1.3 million years (Ma) at the site of Münster-Sarmsheim to the latest pre-Elsterian period at around 0.6 Ma at Mauer, Mosbach, and Miesenheim.
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Conolly, James. "Technical strategies and technical change at Neolithic Çatalhöyük, Turkey." Antiquity 73, no. 282 (December 1999): 791–800. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00065534.
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Analysis of knapped obsidian and flint artefacts from the early ceramic Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük has shown that there were several strategies used for the production of knapped-stone tools, and that there was a profound change in the character of lithic production occurring approximately during the middle of the occupation sequence. This paper outlines the details of this technical change and, with reference to possible changes in subsistence strategies and the organization of production, offers some explanations for its occurrence.
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Barker, Graeme, Annita Antoniadou, Simon Armitage, Ian Brooks, Ian Candy, Kate Connell, Katerina Douka, et al. "The Cyrenaican Prehistory Project 2010: the fourth season of investigations of the Haua Fteah cave and its landscape, and further results from the 2007–2009 fieldwork." Libyan Studies 41 (2010): 63–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0263718900000273.
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AbstractThe paper reports on the fourth (2010) season of fieldwork of the Cyrenaican Prehistory Project, and on further results of analyses of artefacts and organic materials collected in the 2009 season. Ground-based LiDar has provided both an accurate 3D scan of the Haua Fteah cave and information on the cave's morphometry or origins. The excavations in the cave focussed on Middle Palaeolithic or Middle Stone Age ‘Pre-Aurignacian’ layers below the base of the Middle Trench beside the McBurney Deep Sounding (Trench D) and on Final Palaeolithic ‘Oranian’ layers beside the upper part of the Middle Trench (Trench M). Although McBurney referred to the upper part of the Deep Sounding as more or less sterile, the 2010 excavations found evidence for small-scale but regular human presence in the form of stone artefacts and debitage, though given the sedimentary context the latter are unlikely to represent in situ knapping. The excavations of Trench M extended from the basal Capsian layers investigated in 2009 through Oranian layers to the transition with the Dabban Upper Palaeolithic. Some 17,000 lithic pieces have been studied from the Capsian and Oranian layers excavated in Trench M, in an area measuring less than 2 m by 1 m by 1.1 m deep, along with numerous animal bones, molluscs, and macrobotanical remains, as well as occasional shell beads. Preliminary studies of the lithics, bones, molluscs, and plant remains are revealing the changing character of late Pleistocene (Oranian) and early Holocene (Capsian) occupation in the Haua Fteah. Alongside the work in the Haua Fteah, the project continued its assessment of the Quaternary and archaeological sequences of the Cyrenaican coastland and completed a transect survey of surface lithic materials and their landform contexts from the pre-desert across the Gebel Akhdar to the coast, with a new focus on the al-Marj basin. Significant differences are emerging in patterns of Middle Palaeolithic and later hominin occupation and palaeodemography.
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Reilly, Paul, and Ian Dawson. "Track and Trace, and Other Collaborative Art/Archaeology Bubbles in the Phygital Pandemic." Open Archaeology 7, no. 1 (January 1, 2021): 291–313. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/opar-2020-0137.
Full textAbstract:
Abstract This paper describes our creative responses to a surface assemblage (a scatter) of lithic artefacts encountered on either side of a worn track across a field early on in the pandemic. Our art/archaeology response takes place within a phygital nexus in which artefacts or assemblages can be instantiated either physically or digitally, or both. In the nexus we create, connect and explore an ontological multiplicity of – more or less – physical and digital skeuomorphs and other more standard forms of records for sharing (i.e. Latour’s immutable mobiles, such as photographs), but rendered with radically different properties and affordances, at different scales, with different apparatus. These include interactive Reflectance Transformation Images, graphical surface models, machine intelligence style transfer, and 3D prints, all of which were produced in a variety of isolated analytical “bubble” settings and transmitted to and from (both digitally and physically) a home office in an isolated Hampshire village and a home studio in a London suburb. Our approach is to describe, diffractively, the ontological shifts and itineraries associated with some of these objects and assess how this assemblage came to matter as an art/archaeology installation. Ultimately, some of these deterritorialised, (re)colourised, affective, biodegradable, and diffractively born metamorphic instars, now inscribed with new meanings, are returned to the original findspot of the lithics to be (re)discovered.