Journal of Lithic Studies
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Differential etching after lithic heat treatment: First results of an experimental study
Get PDFThe practice of lithic heat treatment creates a combination of initial dull flake scars and subsequent smooth flake scars when the implement is finished after heating. Experiments were done to test the susceptibility of dull and smooth flake scars to etching. The points were etched in 40% hydrofluoric acid for either 40 or 60 seconds. In the 40 seconds experiment, the smooth flake scars of 9 (out of 25) heated points showed less etching than the dull flake scars or no etching at all. These artefacts formed a weathering pattern that is similar to double patina in reworked flints. Ten unheated control samples did not form differential weathering between different generations of flake scars. In the 60 seconds experiment 4 (out of 25) heated points showed some parts of the smooth surface to be less affected. Ten unheated control samples did not form differential weathering. The experiments show that sometimes smooth flake scars are more resistant to etching initially.
In Scanning Electron Microscopy, flint artefacts are sometimes pre-treated with hydrofluoric acid. Heat treated flints are susceptible to differential weathering by hydrofluoric acid. Thus, pre-treatment with hydrofluoric acid of heat treated SEM samples can lead to surfaces that are etched to a different extent.
The chemical etching in this study does not replicate any natural patination process. How heat treated lithics respond to natural weathering processes cannot be predicted. Further studies should produce natural patination and test selected artefacts in contexts of intentional heat treatment for signs of heating
Technological change during final Mid-Holocene and early Late Holocene (ca. 5000-2000 years BP) in Barrancas (Jujuy province, Argentina)
Get PDFThe archaeological evidence from the end of the Middle Holocene and the beginning of the Late Holocene (ca. 5000-2000 years BP) shows a period of great changes. These appear to be the main result of low residential mobility occupations and subsistence strategies based in the specialized hunting of camelids, their domestication and further herding. Even though there is no consensus over the relative importance of each adopted strategy (hunting vs. herding) during this temporal sequence, several and relevant changes can be observed, related to many social spheres. In this paper, we present the particular changes over lithic technology during the temporal sequence proposed through two sites analysed from Barrancas: Laguna Media 7 and Morro Blanco. First, we will clarify the concept of technical system and describe the operative chains observed in both sites. This context is suitable for the topic addressed in this paper, since the chronological difference between both sites (ca. 3400-3200 years BP) is almost contemporary with the appearance in the region of the domesticated camelid Lama glama. Thus, we explain the changes in lithic technology and their relation with the other raw materials used in different technologies from a qualitative characterization. Afterwards this change is characterized by performing separate Chi square analysis from the quantification between both sites of: transformative and prehensile techno-units, shaping and knapping methods. We detect some continuities related to the operative chains, but some changes as well, with the disappearance of blade knapping. Finally, we conclude that the changes during this time period are mainly related with the prehensile and hafting system, associated to a broader regional technological change, influenced by the circulation and exchange of goods, knowledge and people
New evidence for the Palaeolithic in Attica, Greece
Get PDFDespite Greece’s key geographic position between southeast Europe and southwest Asia, and its potential for documenting hominin dispersals, Lower and Middle Palaeolithic sites are rare. This suggests the need for research to identify deposits that may contain Palaeolithic artefacts. Here we describe 165 quartz and quartzite artefacts with Palaeolithic characteristics (based on technical and morphotypological definitions) from a private collection that was made from erosional lag deposits on the southeastern slopes of Mt. Pendeli and the northern edge of the Spata polje (a large karstic depression filled with terra rossas) in northeast Attica. Artefacts of the same type occur in the region of Ano Souli, another karstic depression. These karstic depressions are of interest because they resemble artefact-bearing deposits found at similar features such as Kokkinopilos in Epirus that have provided datable geologic contexts for Lower and Middle Palaeolithic artefacts. Our study suggests that Attica was frequented by hominins in the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic and that Pleistocene deposits in karstic depressions in Attica may preserve datable contexts for documenting early human activity. The lithic collection described here provides a glimpse of the potential of the region, and we recommend continued archaeological efforts in Attica to investigate the likelihood for buried Palaeolithic sites
Grand-Pressigny was not alone: Acquiring and sharing data about raw materials in the collective research project “Réseau de lithothèques en région Centre-Val de Loire” (France)
Get PDFIn the wake of the discovery of numerous large blade workshops at Le Grand-Pressigny site (Indre-et-Loire, France), which initially aroused great interest, the mid-Loire Valley region became central to studies of flint diffusion. Despite the quality of the initial work, the widely shared view now is that the capacity for this concept to continue to provide useful archaeological modelling has diminished. Establishing real and actual correlations between archaeological objects and geological samples remains difficult, making it almost impossible to determine the source of certain materials represented in an archaeological series. In response to this problem, the French collective research project "Réseau de lithothèque en région Centre-Val de Loire" assembled about 30 amateur and professional researchers from various European institutions to work on three strategic missions:
Mission 1: establish a list of current lithotheques (“rock-libraries” or comparative collections), verify their contents and complete them if necessary;
Mission 2: link the major types of depositional environments with the properties acquired by flint through its life;
Mission 3: spread knowledge and information both within the project and to all interested persons.
The project is closely associated with similar French programs already in place in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Aquitaine regions. The ultimate objective is to build a national and international community around a common project, bringing participants together regularly to share knowledge and technical expertise
Microwear analysis of small recycled flakes and recycling products from the Ein-Zippori site, Lower Galilee, Israel
Get PDFA microwear analysis of recycled lithic artefacts from late Pottery Neolithic Wadi Rabah and Early Bronze Age layers at Ein-Zippori, Israel included cores-on-flakes (COFs) which are discarded blanks made into cores, and the flakes detached from them. COFs may have microwear traces that formed before they were recycled. The focus here is on how blanks removed from recycled COFs were used. Discarded flakes were not used as cores to produce small blanks at Ein-Zippori because lithic raw material was scarce, but were COFs recycled so that small tools could be produced for specific tasks? Visible wear traces were present on 19 of 44 blanks produced from COFs. Microwear traces were similar to use wear Lemorini et al. (2015) observed on much older Lower Paleolithic recycled flakes from Qesem Cave, Israel. Most flakes struck from COFs had been used to cut and scrape meat and fresh hide (42%, n=8), but four were used to work wood (21%) and four others were used to cut, scrape, or whittle bone and wood (21%), and two were used for butchering and wood working (11%). One flake only had generic weak microwear traces (5%). These were expedient flake tools, made and used in an ad hoc fashion. Specific blanks do not seem to have been used for distinct tasks
First results of the hunter-gatherer weapon system studies in the middle basin of the Salado creek (Pampas Region, Argentina)
Get PDFIn this paper we present the results of the study of 32 projectile points from Hangar site, located in the Salado creek basin (centre of the province of Buenos Aires). Archaeological materials recovered from the site include some isolated human remains, several potsherds, faunal materials, and lithic artefacts. The presence of pottery and small triangular points, together with the radiocarbon dating results, indicate that the main occupations occurred during the end of the Late Holocene. Methodology used included the techno-typological study of the lithic assemblage. Results showed that the outcrops of some rocks present in the sample are found in the Humid Pampas (100-190 km distant from the site) and the Dry Pampas (400-530 km distant from the site). The projectile points show variability in design and size, attributes that have implications for distinguishing different weapon systems (e.g., arrow and dart). In the Pampas region, the Late Holocene is a period characterized by an increasing complexity in hunter-gatherer societies, as it is indicated by long-distance exchange networks and different strategies of intensification and diversification on faunal resources. In accordance with this scenario, we propose that the variability that is observed in the lithic points is a reflex of an increase in the amount of the hunted species in relation with technological innovations such as the introduction of the bow and arrow
LegioLit: Knappable material lithotheque in the Prehistory Laboratory at the University of León, Spain
Get PDFThis work introduces a comparative collection located in the Prehistory Laboratory at the University of León (Spain) specialised in knappable raw materials, mainly comprising radiolarite and black chert (micro-crypto crystalline quartz), from the western Cantabrian Mountains (north of Iberian Peninsula). A standardised protocol of sample collection and data organisation was developed, which includes the use of several methodologies. First, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) for referencing lithic sources. Second, direct observation of the sample for the macroscopic characterization, both de visu and stereomicroscope. Third, petrographic microscopy for a description of main petrological, and palaeontological features, complemented with the identification of the different minerals that make up the samples by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Forth, X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) and Thermogravimetry – Differential Scanning Calorimetry (TG-DSC) for geochemical and thermal features of the samples. Finally, the results of these analyses were entered in a database. All this information is contributing towards the creation of a physical reference collection specialised in local Palaeozoic formations (mostly from Devonian to Carboniferous) that outcrop in the western Cantabrian Mountains, a region whose potential resource base was previously not very well known. This collection would allow to compare archaeological lithic remains from different sites inside and outside the Cantabrian Mountains
The introduction of the bow and arrow in the Argentine Andes (29–34º S): A preliminary metric approximation
Get PDFThe study size patterns in projectile points (n=39) from six sites in the Argentine Andes (29–34°S) associated with 17 radiocarbon dates with medians spanning 3080–470 cal BP. This is the region’s first attempt to metrically distinguish arrows and darts, which is based on shoulder or maximum width, following Shott. The northern part of the study area (29°S) includes the earliest arrow point, slightly after 3080 cal BP. This suggests a rapid spread of this technology from the central Andes 16–26°S, where early arrows are dated ~3500–3000 cal BP. However, at 32 and 34°S, arrows are not clearly present until 1280 cal BP. For 1280–400 cal BP (European contact), 96% of points were identified as arrows, suggesting the bow and arrow replaced spear-based weapon systems. A single late dart from 34°S may reflect a late use of this space by hunter-gatherers. The predominance of arrows beginning at 1280 cal BP is associated with broader changes such as demographic growth, reduced mobility, low-level food production, and herding economies, following similar trends in other regions
Recycling in the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age: evidence of flint recycling at Ein-Zippori, Israel
No full textThis paper presents a new techno-typological analysis of a sample of small flakes that were produced through recycling from discarded blanks at the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age site of Ein-Zippori, Lower Galilee, Israel. This study shows that the systematic production of small flakes from previously discarded blanks was not related to a scarcity in raw materials, but rather to specific decisions concerning the types of tools needed to complete necessary tasks. These results are supported by use-wear analysis noted briefly here and presented in more detail in a separate paper. The results indicate that recycling was a significant lithic production trajectory during the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. Recycling also contributes to the variability in lithic assemblages from those cultural periods
The Study of lithic assemblages on deflation surfaces. The case study of Arroyo Verde, Northern Patagonia coast, Argentina
Get PDFThis paper focuses on surface lithic artefacts from Holocene coastal hunter gatherer occupations of Arroyo Verde archaeological locality (Rio Negro province, Northern Patagonia, Argentina). The study of lithic assemblages collected at a deflation surface surrounded by stabilised sand dunes near the coastline, shows that wind produce significant corrasion (wind abrasion) of artefacts and affects preservation of small and medium size artefacts. The sample is mainly composed of chert knapping debitage with abraded and polished edges and surfaces. The artefact size distribution suggests that a subset of the assemblage exhibits good preservation, possibly due to the recent subaerial exposure. Furthermore, carbonate and mould coatings were recorded over the artefacts surface in contact with the ground, which indicates the presence of humid conditions in the sand dunes deflation area. In order to explore the factors that affected assemblage stability conditions in the locus, a machine learning based decision tree was applied. The model predicts and defines a threshold at which the occurrence of instability conditions may appear. Also, it suggests that relative altitude of artefacts within the deflation hollow is the primary variable explaining the exposure conditions recorded in the artefacts and it points out processes of differential deflation over time. The data presented here illustrates how wind alters local surface materials and emphasizes that a taphonomic perspective is needed to assess the formation processes within northern Patagonia coastal archaeological assemblages.Este trabajo se enfoca en los estudios de artefactos líticos de superficie correspondientes a ocupaciones de cazadores-recolectores del Holoceno en la localidad arqueológica de Arroyo Verde (provincia de Río Negro, Patagonia Norte, Argentina). Se realizó una recolección en una superficie de deflación rodeada por dunas de arena estabilizadas cerca de la costa. Los resultados sugieren que el viento provoca alteraciones significativas, como corrasión (abrasión eólica) de los artefactos y preservación de piezas pequeñas y medianas en el conjunto. La muestra está compuesta principalmente de desechos de talla sobre sílice con abrasión y pulido sobre los bordes y las superficies de los artefactos. El tamaño de la distribución artefactual sugiere buena conservación o exposición sub aérea reciente. Además, se registraron recubrimientos de carbonato y moho sobre la cara del artefacto de contacto con el suelo, lo que sugiere la existencia reciente de condiciones de humedad en la duna. Para explorar bajo qué condiciones los conjuntos presentan estabilidad, se utilizó el aprendizaje automático de los árboles de decisión. El modelo predice y define un umbral para la aparición de condiciones inestables. La altitud relativa a la que se encuentran las piezas es una de las variables que explicarían su exposición sub aérea diferencial. Se sugieren procesos de deflación diferencial en el tiempo. Estos datos demuestran que el viento altera los materiales de superficie y se necesita una perspectiva tafonómica para evaluar los procesos de formación en las localidades arqueológicas costeras