DOCSLIB.ORG

LITHIC ANALYSIS (01-070-391) Rutgers University Spring 2010

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

SYLLABUS
LITHIC ANALYSIS (01-070-391)

Rutgers University
Spring 2010

Lecture days/hours: Thursday, 2:15-5:15 PM Lecture location: BioSci 206, Douglass Campus

Instructors:

  • Dr. J.W.K. Harris
  • J.S. Reti, MA

Office: BioSci, Room 203B Office Hours: Friday 11:00 – 1:00
Office: BioSci, Room 204C Office Hours: Thursday 1:00 – 3:00

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This course is an integrated course that incorporates theoretical, behavioral, and practical aspects of lithic technology. Lithic Analysis is an advanced undergraduate course in human and non-human primate stone technology. Each student is expected to already have taken an introductory course in human evolution, primatology, and/or archaeology.

Lithic Analysis is a sub-discipline of archaeology. The focus is on the inferential potential of stone tools with regard to human behavior. Early human ancestors first realized the utility of sharp stone edges for butchery and other practices. Arguably, without the advent of stone tools human evolution would have taken a different path. Stone tools allowed early hominins efficient access to meat resources and provided as avenue for cognitive development and three-dimensional problem solving.

This course will provide a three-fold approach to lithic analysis: 1) study of archaeological sites and behavioral change through time relative to lithic technological changes, 2) insight into the art of laboratory lithic analysis and methods employed to attain concrete, quantitative behavioral conclusions, and 3) extensive training in stone tool replication. Such training will provide students with both an appreciation for the skills of our ancestors and with personal skills that will allow for further research into replication and human behavior.

Each week the course will be structured with an introductory lecture, which may include or be followed by a lab demonstration by the instructor(s) and a concluding practical component involving all students. Therefore, this course builds on the rudimentary knowledge of students to focus on hands-on laboratory analysis and focused research projects. Instructors and student interns are conducting original research in this subject area and all enrolled class members will participate in this research seminar (both in seminar presentations, research design and implementation). This course format allows students to participate in actual experimental studies and to learn research design. Experimental work will be designed to learn more about the structure and function of the hand, arm, and shoulder and how that anatomy impacts stone tool function and design. Stone tools of differing size, weight, and shape will be utilized in experimental archaeological projects so that the influences of these different attributes can be quantified and recorded.

Required and Recommended Texts - Supplemental Readings

Required Text Flint Knapping by J.S. Whittaker
This text is at the Campus Bookstore and can also be ordered from Amazon

Recommended Supplementary Text

  • 1)
  • Making Silent Stones Speak, by Kathy Schick and Nick Toth (1993)

There is one required text for this course. The text is very hands-on and gives a through background for the laboratory portion of the course. In addition to the required text there are several recommended books that we will be using during the semester. Copies of the books will be available for students to borrow short-term or to be read in the Holt Lab. Each of the recommended texts has important information to contribute to the course. One of the recommended texts is Making Silent Stones Speak, by Kathy Schick and Nick Toth (1993). This text explores in more depth the archaeological record for Human origins.

In addition, there will be a series of published papers that comprise essential readings. In many instances, we will post these readings on the SAKAI web site for students’ convenience. Otherwise the readings will be placed in the Holt Laboratory for students to read. The readings are important as they supplement student’s readings from the required text in constructing essays as part of the mid-term exam (see below).

Course and Student Objectives

•

To expand on student’s basic paleoanthropology knowledge by providing students with compressive knowledge of stone tool technology and stone tool analyses from a hands-on actualistic and experimental approach.

•

To enable students to produce and manufacture the basic tool types in the lithic sequence – Early Stone Age, Middle Stone Age, and Late Stone Age. Students should be able to describe general attributes, functional utility, and to quantify variables relating to various stone tools. Additionally students should be able to record and describe reduction sequences, thereby providing insight into technological approaches to stone tool usage. These technological classifications should supplement and provide students with insights that are different from the typological approaches students study in their introductory courses.

•

To introduce students to laboratory and hands-on analyses of archaeological materials, to teach through actualistic and experimental work the basic tenants of research design, methodology, and the communication of research results through the final term paper and presentation.

••

To undertake an experimental and actualistic approach to the uses and functions of tool technology for the performance of different tasks, such as chopping, pounding, etc. and for students to develop the ability to relate differing technology and functional usage to differing resource exploitation those gaining insight into changing diets of non-human primates and in human past. To replicate, as well as study non-human primate (particularly chimpanzees and capuchin monkeys) use of tools (both stone and non-stone) as analogs useful for the acquisition and consumption of various nut and plant foods

Course Requirements

Evaluation Scheme: Midterm 20%, Final Term Paper 40%,
Labs/Assignments/Notebooks/Quizzes 40%

Students are expected to read all of the assigned readings. There will be a mid-term and a final term paper as well as ongoing laboratory assignments. Students must maintain a research notebook that includes class notes, lab notes, lab drawings and lab results. The mid-term exam will be comprised of multiple choice, short answer and essay-type questions. The essay titles will be given out in advance of the exam date but the exam is “closed book.” The term paper will take the form of an experimental research paper with a previous research review, development of a testable hypothesis, experimental methodology and design. A bibliography and research design outline will be reviewed and approved mid-semester.

Because this is a hands-on class and we will be working with stone material and doing experimental work, students are required to purchase some additional equipment. Safety goggles and leather gloves must be worn during knapping exercises and an injury waiver must be completed before participating in labs. Safety goggles and Melvic Vernier calipers can be purchased from the instructors. A materials fee for stone may be assessed and students may need to assist in the collection of stone materials. Extra access time to Lab 315 will be provided as necessary to allow students to complete labs and special projects.

Course Rules

Attendance: Because this is an upper-level course, attendance and participation are required. You are expected to attend all class meetings. We cover a lot of material in class, all of which may appear on the exams and quizzes. You are allowed two excused absences during the semester; thereafter, you are required to have a Dean’s absence note for each subsequent absence (each unexcused absence will lower your grade by 10 points). If you know now that you will be missing a class because of a prior commitment, see me during the first week of classes. This will count towards your two excused absences. Make-ups for missed exams and quizzes will only be permitted with a Dean’s absence form. Policy on Religious Holidays: If you will be observing any religious holidays this semester which will prevent you from attending a regularly scheduled class or interfere with fulfilling any course requirement, I will offer you an opportunity to make up the class or course requirement if you make arrangements by informing me of the dates of your religious holidays during the first week of the semester.

Academic Integrity: The Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences mandates that instructors immediately report all cases of suspected plagiarism and cheating to the Dean of Douglass College. All students must strictly adhere to the Rutgers Academic Integrity

Policy For details see: http://ctaar.rutgers.edu/i.ntegrity/policy.html#Integrity

Safety and Laboratory Housekeeping: Students must maintain a high level of safety while working in the lab. Students are not permitted to work alone on any flint knapping projects, must wear safety goggles and may only do experimental work when one of the course instructors or student teaching interns is present. Students must follow the instructors’ guidelines for bagging, labeling and data recordation. Students are also responsible for maintaining a clean working environment in the lab.

Classroom expectations: • All cell phones must be turned off • No headphones or listening to music
• Read the assigned readings before the class • Arrive on time

Lithic Analysis: Course Outline

Week 1

Jan. 21

Introduction

- Syllabus: introduction to the course - Requirements - Safety - Texts /Reading List
- Discussion of Readings for next week
- Glossary Handout

Week 2

Jan. 28

Conchoidal Fracture Mechanics

---
Introduction Flaking and Diagrams Morphology and Diagnostics

Chaine Operatoire

---
Life History Models Stage Approaches Behavioral Reconstruction

Evolution of Manipulation

  • -
  • Hand, power and precision grip

Modeling Non-Human Primate Behavior

  • -
  • Tool Use

Lab Activity

  • -
  • Introduction to lithic manufacture techniques

Reading:

- Sellet, F. (1993). Chaine Operatoire. - Whittaker, J. (1994). Flintknapping: Basic
Principles.
- Trinkhaus, E. Evolution of Manipulation article - Haslam et al. (2009). Primate Archaeology.

Week 3

Feb. 4

Pounding

- Pounding industry (Pre-Oldowan)
- Role of non-human primates as models for early hominin tone tool use and resource acquisition
- Nature and Character - Lab Demonstration - Digging Sticks (Haslam Article)

Case Studies: Apes and Monkeys using Stone Tools

- Background and description of the Rutgers
Pounding Tool Project

Lab Activity

- Anvil and Pounding: Nut cracking

Readings:

- Marchant, L and McGrew, W. (2005) – Chapter
23: Percussive Technology
- Boesch and Boesch (2000). Chapter 9. - Schick and Toth (1993). Pan the Toolmaker, p.
134-140.

Week 4

Feb. 11

Procurement

  • Foraging Models
  • -

  • -
  • Preferences

--
Relation to hominin evolution Examples: Olduvai Gorge

Typologies

---
F. Bordes and French History Binford debates Culture vs. Function vs. Technology

Oldowan Industry

---
Sites Behavioral Inferences Technological Reconstruction

Reduction Sequences

--
Toth vs. Leakey Typologies Oldowan Application

Lab Activity

  • -
  • Oldowan Reduction sequences: Choppers,

bifaces, discoids, polyhedrons

Reading:

Toth, N. (1987). Behavioral inferences from Early
Stone artifact assemblages: an experimental Model.
Delagnes, A. and Roche, H. (2005). Late Pliocene hominid knapping skills: The case of Lokalalei 2C, West Turkana, Kenya.

Week 5

Feb. 18

Transport

  • -
  • Exponential Decay

--
Behavioral Implications Comparative discussion of Oldowan Sites: Gona, W. Turkana, E. Turkana, Olduvai, Swartkrans

Hominin Producers

---

A closer look at Homo habilis

Morphology Hunting vs. Scavenging

Technological and Behavioral Replication

Models and application

Lab Activity

Controlled Oldowan production
--

  • -
  • Lab analysis of flakes

Reading:

Blumenschine, R., Cavallo, J. and Capaldo, S.
(1994). Competition for carcasses and early hominid behavioral ecology: A case study and conceptual framework. Blumenschine, R., Masao, F., Tactikos, J. and Ebert, J. (2008). Effects of distance from stone source on landscape-scale variation in Oldowan artifact assemblages in the Paleo-Olduvai Basin, Tanzania. Semaw, S. et al. (1997). 2.5-million-year-old stone tools from Gona, Ethiopia. Potts, R. (1991). Why the Oldowan? PlioPleistocene toolmaking and the transport of resources.

Week 6

Feb. 25

Manufacture

  • -
  • Changes in production techniques

o Movements toward Developed Oldowan technology
-

Timing: H. erectus?

Developed Oldowan

  • -
  • Production techniques

o Olduvai o Koobi Fora
-

Status: H. habilis vs. H. erectus

o Site associations and behavior
Bipolar manufacture

Utils ecailles

--

  • -
  • Spheroids

Measurements and Theory

---
Selecting variables Making hypotheses and predictions Testing these hypotheses

Lab Activity

  • -
  • Butchery practice:

o Skinning, de-fleshing and cracking o Assemblage composition

  • -
  • Measurement practice of previously produced

assemblages

Reading:

Rogers, M., Harris, J.W.K. and Feibel, C. (1994). Changing patterns of land use by Plio-Pleistocene hominids in the Lake Turkana Basin. Kimura, Y. (2002). Examining time trends in the Oldowan technology at Beds I and II, Olduvai Gorge. Mora, R. and de la Torre, I. (2005). Percussion tools in Olduvai Beds I and II (Tanzania): Implications for early human activities. Dominguez-Rodrigo, M. et al. (2001). Woodworking activities by early humans: a plant residue analysis on Acheulian stone tools from Peninj (Tanzania).

Week 7

March 4

Tool Use

- Traces and Usewear - Traditional and Modern lab approaches - Middle Range Research

Early Acheulian and Pounding Tools

- Earliest Stone Tools: pounding tools (reading discussion)
- Experimental Studies: Quantifying traces o Kanzi o Lab Studies at Rutgers: pounding, usewear and traces o Gesher Benot Ya’aqov: pounding tools o Technology of Fire: Koobi Fora, Gesher
Benot Ya’aqov

Lab Activity

--
Pounding Experiments Developed Oldowan manufacture: technological recording of flake morphology and differences from Oldowan assemblages

Reading:

- Gowlett, J. (1988). A case of Developed
Oldowan in the Acheulean?
- Mora and de la Torre (2005). Olduvai Gorge - Goren-Inbar et al. (2002). Gesher Benot
Ya’aqov
- Schick and Toth (2006). Oldowan Overview (p.
24-26)

Week 8

March 11

Resharpening/Retouch

  • What happens after tool use?
  • -

  • -
  • Application to butchery experiments

o Condition of tools? o Options…

Rise of the Acheulian

-

H. erectus behavioral changes

o Landscape usage including raw material selection
-

-
Theories regarding body changes and possible effects on lithic manufacture Out of Africa: a technological process?

Handaxe Production: Initial Stages and Refining

--
Flake blanks and boulder spalling Physics of bifacial thinning o Midline and Convexity
--
Platform preparation: abrasion Softhammer billet usage and physics

Lab Activity

  • -
  • Spalling and initial bifacial preparation

Handout MIDTERM REVIEW SHEET Reading:

Whittaker, J. (1994). Soft-hammer percussion and bifaces. Aiello, L. and Wheeler, P. (1995). The expensive tissue hypothesis: The brain and the digestive system in human and primate evolution. Gabunia, L. et al. (2001). Dmanisi and Dispersal. Goren-Inbar, N. et al. (2000). Pleistocene milestones on the out-of-Africa corridor at Gesher Benot Ya’aqov. Bar-Yosef, O. and Belfer-Cohen, A. (2001). From Africa to Eurasia – early dispersals.

Week 9

March 18 March 25

NO CLASS: SPRING BREAK

  • Week 10
  • MIDTERM EXAM

- REVIEW SESSION: TBD either March 23 or 24

Week 11

April 1

Discard

---
Site formation processes Stone and bone preservation/context Effects: edge-wear, size sorting

Middle Stone Age and Middle Paleolithic

  • -
  • Hominin producers: geographical expansion and

exposure

  • -
  • MSA vs. MP: why?

Production Techniques

---
Levallois and prepared core technologies: growth out of handaxes The “muffin top” technique: production methods of tortoise shell Levallois The “Y” scar pattern: production methods

Mousterian Technology

  • -
  • Loaded terms and cultural sequences

o Back to the Bordian paradigm…
“Neandertal” technology: brutish and primitive or efficient and refined?
-

Lab Activity

  • -
  • Levallois core manufacture: Tortoise shell and

Y scar techniques

Reading:

Goren-Inbar, N. and Saragusti, I. (1996). An Acheulian Biface Assemblage from Gesher Benot Ya'aqov, Israel: Indications of African Affinities Kuman, K. (2001). An Acheulean factory site with prepared core technology near Taung, South Africa. Dibble, H. (1987). The interpretation of Middle Paleolithic scraper morphology. Dibble, H. (1991). Mousterian assemblage variability on an interregional scale. Lycett, S. (2009). Are Victoria West cores ‘‘protoLevallois’’? A phylogenetic assessment.

Week 12

April 8

Recycling

--
Parsimonious procurement Evidence of recycling

Fishing Technology

- Barbed harpoons, nets and weights

Late Stone Age and Upper Paleolithic

--
Rise of Homo sapiens and the advent of “advanced” technology o Controversies: teaching the Neanderthals or learning from them? Who reigns in efficiency?
Geographical discussion of technology o Similarities, differences and the name game

Production Techniques

--
Blade cores and raw material Hammerstones, soft hammers and punches o Accuracy of blows and erasure of mistakes o Wooden billets?

  • -
  • Long distance, light weight spears

Lab Activity

  • Blade cores and obsidian
  • -

  • -
  • Fashioning spearpoints

Reading:

Kusimba, S.B. (1999). Hunter-gatherer land use patterns in Later Stone Age East Africa. Eren, M. et al. (2008). Are Upper Paleolithic blade cores more productive than Middle Paleolithic disoidal cores? A replication experiment. Bar-Yosef, O. (2002). The Upper Paleolithic revolution. McBrearty, S. and Brooks, A. (2001). The revolution that wasn’t (excerpt).

Week 13

April 15

Excavation

  • -
  • Techniques and Recording of artifact

provenience

  • -
  • Typologies, correlation and relative

chronologies: historic aspects of archaeology

Pottery

- Implications for lifestyle change - Proxy for movements/migrations of populations

Neolithic Technology

  • Modern human behaviors
  • -

  • -
  • Implementation of more complex lithic

technological complexes o Rise of microliths and compound tools o Agricultural applications

  • -
  • Metallurgy and effects on lithic manufacture

Recommended publications
  • Microlith® T Stir-In Pigment Preparations for Solvent-Based Coatings with High Transparency

    Microlith® T Stir-In Pigment Preparations for Solvent-Based Coatings with High Transparency

    Microlith® T Stir-in pigment preparations for solvent-based coatings with high transparency Key features Wood coating with ® ▪ Organic pigments Microlith T predispersed in a modified ▪ Easily incorporated into a rosin ester resin variety of solvents with ▪ Dry powder, low dust dissolvers or high-shear processing mixers without preliminary milling ▪ Small particle size and extremely narrow particle size ▪ Suitable for wood stains, distribution glazes and lacquers ▪ Excellent color strength, ▪ Combination with effect gloss, light fastness and pigments offers endless transparency, as well as styling opportunities outstanding dispersion Microlith® T Ideal for solvent-based coating systems Pigment Fastness to light Resistance to overlacquering Colour Product name Chemical type content Index Oak with Oak without Poly- Acid Nitro- [%] NC [3%]* NC [3%]* urethane curing cellulose Microlith® Black 0066 T P.Bk.7 Carbon black 33 7 7 5 5 5 Microlith® Yellow 2040 T P.Y.110 Isoindolinone 33 7 7 5 5 5 Microlith® Brown 3001 T P.BR.23 Azo condensation 30 7 7 5 5 5 Microlith® Red 3890 T P.R.144 Azo condensation 33 6 6 5 5 5 Microlith® Blue 7080 T P.B.15:3 Cu-phthalocyanine (β) 34 7 7 5 5 5 Cu-phthalocyanine Microlith® Green 8750 T P.G.7 33 7 7 5 5 5 halogenated * Concentration of the pigment preparation in the applied stain Guidelines for incorporation An important factor in the incorporation of Microlith® T pigment preparations into surface coatings is the solubility of the carrier resin in the various types of solvents normally used. Microlith® T pigment preparations have: ▪ very good dispersibility in aromatic hydrocarbons and chlorinated hydrocarbons ▪ good dispersibility in esters, ketones and glycol ethers ▪ limited dispersibility in aliphatic hydrocarbons and higher alcohols ▪ no dispersibility in water, methanol and ethanol Compatibility with solvents and binders Formulation guidelines for the preparation The carrier resin in Microlith® T pigment preparations has of a wood stain good compatibility with many binders and additives.
  • Ch. 4. NEOLITHIC PERIOD in JORDAN 25 4.1

    Ch. 4. NEOLITHIC PERIOD in JORDAN 25 4.1

    Borsa di studio finanziata da: Ministero degli Affari Esteri di Italia Thanks all …………. I will be glad to give my theses with all my love to my father and mother, all my brothers for their helps since I came to Italy until I got this degree. I am glad because I am one of Dr. Ursula Thun Hohenstein students. I would like to thanks her to her help and support during my research. I would like to thanks Dr.. Maysoon AlNahar and the Museum of the University of Jordan stuff for their help during my work in Jordan. I would like to thank all of Prof. Perreto Carlo and Prof. Benedetto Sala, Dr. Arzarello Marta and all my professors in the University of Ferrara for their support and help during my Phd Research. During my study in Italy I met a lot of friends and specially my colleges in the University of Ferrara. I would like to thanks all for their help and support during these years. Finally I would like to thanks the Minister of Fournier of Italy, Embassy of Italy in Jordan and the University of Ferrara institute for higher studies (IUSS) to fund my PhD research. CONTENTS Ch. 1. INTRODUCTION 1 Ch. 2. AIMS OF THE RESEARCH 3 Ch. 3. NEOLITHIC PERIOD IN NEAR EAST 5 3.1. Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) in Near east 5 3.2. Pre-pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) in Near east 10 3.2.A. Early PPNB 10 3.2.B. Middle PPNB 13 3.2.C. Late PPNB 15 3.3.
  • Managing Lithic Scatters and Sites

    Managing Lithic Scatters and Sites

    Managing Lithic Scatters and Sites Archaeological guidance for planning authorities and developers 0 Managing Lithic Scatters and Sites: Archaeological guidance for planning authorities and developers Summary Lithic scatters and sites are an important archaeological resource that can provide valuable insights into prehistory. Most commonly found as scatters of worked stone, usually suspended in modern ploughsoil deposits, which have been disturbed from their original archaeological context through ploughing. Undisturbed lithic sites can also be found through further evaluation and excavations, where lithics have been sealed by cover deposits or preserved in sub-surface features/horizons. Lithic scatters can represent a palimpsest of activity, sometimes containing several technologies from different archaeological periods. Consequently, the value of lithic scatters as a source for investigating past behaviour has often been undervalued. However, in many cases, especially for sites dating from the Palaeolithic period through to the Bronze Age, lithic scatters are likely to represent the only available archaeological evidence of past human activity and subsistence strategies. By studying and understanding their formation, spatial distribution and technological attributes, we can get closer to understanding the activities of the people who created these artefacts. Lithic scatters are often perceived as being particularly problematic from a heritage resource and development management perspective, because the standard archaeological methodologies presently employed are often not sufficiently subtle to ensure their effective identification and characterisation (Last 2009). This can either lead to an unquantified loss of important archaeological evidence, or the under-estimation of the magnitude of a site’s scale and importance, leading to missed research opportunities or, in a planning/development context, potentially avoidable expense, delay and inconvenience.
  • A Lesson in Stone: Examining Patterns of Lithic Resource Use and Craft-Learning in the Minas Basin Region of Nova Scotia By

    A Lesson in Stone: Examining Patterns of Lithic Resource Use and Craft-Learning in the Minas Basin Region of Nova Scotia By

    A Lesson in Stone: Examining Patterns of Lithic Resource Use and Craft-learning in the Minas Basin Region of Nova Scotia By © Catherine L. Jalbert A thesis submitted to the School of Graduate Studies for partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. Department of Archaeology Memorial University of Newfoundland May 2011 St. John’s Newfoundland Abstract Examining the Late Woodland (1500-450 BP) quarry/workshop site of Davidson Cove, located in the Minas Basin region of Nova Scotia, a sample of debitage and a collection of stone implements appear to provide correlates of the novice and raw material production practices. Many researchers have hypothesized that lithic materials discovered at multiple sites within the region originated from the outcrop at Davidson Cove, however little information is available on lithic sourcing of the Minas Basin cherts. Considering the lack of archaeological knowledge concerning lithic procurement and production, patterns of resource use among the prehistoric indigenous populations in this region of Nova Scotia are established through the analysis of existing collections. By analysing the lithic materials quarried and initially reduced at the quarry/workshop with other contemporaneous assemblages from the region, an interpretation of craft-learning can be situated in the overall technological organization and subsistence strategy for the study area. ii Acknowledgements It is a pleasure to thank all those who made this thesis achievable. First and foremost, this thesis would not have been possible without the guidance and support provided by my supervisor, Dr. Michael Deal. His insight throughout the entire thesis process was invaluable. I would also like to thank Dr.
  • Exploring the Concept of Home at Hunter-Gatherer Sites in Upper Paleolithic Europe and Epipaleolithic Southwest Asia

    Exploring the Concept of Home at Hunter-Gatherer Sites in Upper Paleolithic Europe and Epipaleolithic Southwest Asia

    UC Berkeley UC Berkeley Previously Published Works Title Homes for hunters?: Exploring the concept of home at hunter-gatherer sites in upper paleolithic Europe and epipaleolithic Southwest Asia Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9nt6f73n Journal Current Anthropology, 60(1) ISSN 0011-3204 Authors Maher, LA Conkey, M Publication Date 2019-02-01 DOI 10.1086/701523 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Current Anthropology Volume 60, Number 1, February 2019 91 Homes for Hunters? Exploring the Concept of Home at Hunter-Gatherer Sites in Upper Paleolithic Europe and Epipaleolithic Southwest Asia by Lisa A. Maher and Margaret Conkey In both Southwest Asia and Europe, only a handful of known Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic sites attest to aggregation or gatherings of hunter-gatherer groups, sometimes including evidence of hut structures and highly structured use of space. Interpretation of these structures ranges greatly, from mere ephemeral shelters to places “built” into a landscape with meanings beyond refuge from the elements. One might argue that this ambiguity stems from a largely functional interpretation of shelters that is embodied in the very terminology we use to describe them in comparison to the homes of later farming communities: mobile hunter-gatherers build and occupy huts that can form campsites, whereas sedentary farmers occupy houses or homes that form communities. Here we examine some of the evidence for Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic structures in Europe and Southwest Asia, offering insights into their complex “functions” and examining perceptions of space among hunter-gatherer communities. We do this through examination of two contemporary, yet geographically and culturally distinct, examples: Upper Paleolithic (especially Magdalenian) evidence in Western Europe and the Epipaleolithic record (especially Early and Middle phases) in Southwest Asia.
  • Current Approaches to the Analysis and Interpretation of Small Lithic Sites in the Northeast the UNIVERSITY of the STATE of NEW YORK

    Current Approaches to the Analysis and Interpretation of Small Lithic Sites in the Northeast the UNIVERSITY of the STATE of NEW YORK

    Current Approaches to the Analysis and Interpretation of Small Lithic Sites in the Northeast THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK Regents of The University ROBERT M. BENNETT, Chancellor, B.A., M.S. Tonawanda MERRYL H. TISCH, Vice Chancellor, B.A., M.A. Ed.D. New York SAUL B. COHEN, B.A., M.A., Ph.D. New Rochelle JAMES C. DAWSON, A.A., B.A., M.S., Ph.D. Peru ANTHONY S. BOTTAR, B.A., J.D. Syracuse GERALDINE D. CHAPEY, B.A., M.A., Ed.D. Belle Harbor ARNOLD B. GARDNER, B.A., LL.B. Buffalo HARRY PHILLIPS, 3rd, B.A., M.S.F.S. Hartsdale JOSEPH E. BOWMAN,JR., B.A., M.L.S., M.A., M.Ed., Ed.D. Albany JAMES R. TALLON,JR., B.A., M.A. Binghamton MILTON L. COFIELD, B.S., M.B.A., Ph.D. Rochester ROGER B. TILLES, B.A., J.D. Great Neck KAREN BROOKS HOPKINS, B.A., M.F.A. Brooklyn NATALIE M. GOMEZ-VELEZ, B.A., J.D. Bronx CHARLES R. BENDIT,B.A. ............................................................................ NewYork President of The University and Commissioner of Education RICHARD P. MILLS Deputy Commissioner for Cultural Education JEFFREY W. CANNELL Director of the New York State Museum CLIFFORD A. SIEGFRIED Director, Research and Collections Division JOHN P. HART The State Education Department does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, religion, creed, disability, marital status, veteran status, national ori- gin, race, gender, genetic predisposition or carrier status, or sexual orientation in its educational programs, services and activities. Portions of this pub- lication can be made available in a variety of formats, including braille, large print or audio tape, upon request.
  • Bladelet Polish: a Lithic Analysis of Spracklen (33GR1585), an Upland Hopewell Campsite

    Bladelet Polish: a Lithic Analysis of Spracklen (33GR1585), an Upland Hopewell Campsite

    Illinois State University ISU ReD: Research and eData Theses and Dissertations 5-19-2018 Bladelet Polish: a lithic analysis of Spracklen (33GR1585), an upland Hopewell campsite Tyler R. E. Heneghan Illinois State University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons, and the History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons Recommended Citation Heneghan, Tyler R. E., "Bladelet Polish: a lithic analysis of Spracklen (33GR1585), an upland Hopewell campsite" (2018). Theses and Dissertations. 928. https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/928 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by ISU ReD: Research and eData. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ISU ReD: Research and eData. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BLADELET POLISH: A LITHIC ANALYSIS OF SPRACKLEN (33GR1585), AN UPLAND HOPEWELL CAMPSITE TYLER R. E. HENEGHAN 107 Pages This thesis builds upon recent investigations at Spracklen (33GR1585), a small upland site in Greene County, Ohio. The presence of non-local cherts, bladelets, and bladelet cores indicates a Middle Woodland Ohio Hopewell occupation. Raw material sourcing, debitage analyses, and a use-wear analysis uncovered that Spracklen functioned as a logistical hunting campsite. Its people utilized bladelets for butchery and hide-working processes. This information provides new insights into Hopewellian life in the uplands and its place within Hopewell community organization. KEYWORDS: Settlement patterns, Hopewell, Bladelets, Use-wear, GIS BLADELET POLISH: A LITHIC ANALYSIS OF SPRACKLEN (33GR1585), AN UPLAND HOPEWELL CAMPSITE TYLER R.
  • Establishing a Methodology for Determining Handedness in Lithic Materials As a Proxy for Cognitive Evolution

    Establishing a Methodology for Determining Handedness in Lithic Materials As a Proxy for Cognitive Evolution

    EXPERIMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY AND HOMINID EVOLUTION: ESTABLISHING A METHODOLOGY FOR DETERMINING HANDEDNESS IN LITHIC MATERIALS AS A PROXY FOR COGNITIVE EVOLUTION by Lana Ruck A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL December 2014 Copyright 2014 by Lana Ruck ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my thesis committee members, Dr. Douglas Broadfield, Dr. Clifford Brown, and Dr. Kate Detwiler, for their constant support and help with developing this project, as well as the head of the Department of Anthropology, Dr. Michael Harris, for his insights. This project would not have been possible without the help of my volunteer flintknappers: Ralph Conrad, Mike Cook, Scott Hartsel, Ed Moser, and Owen Sims, and my raw materials suppliers: Curtis Smith and Elliot Collins. I would also like to thank Miki Matrullo and Katherine Sloate for cataloging my handaxes and flakes and aiding me in creating a blind study. Special thanks to Justin Colón and Dr. Clifford Brown for assessing a random sample of my flakes, adding objectivity to this study. Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Natalie Uomini for her constant help and support of my project. iv ABSTRACT Author: Lana Ruck Title: Experimental Archaeology and Hominid Evolution: Establishing a Methodology for Determining Handedness in Lithic Materials as a Proxy for Cognitive Evolution Institution: Florida Atlantic University Thesis Advisor: Dr. Douglas Broadfield Degree: Master of Arts Year: 2014 Human handedness is likely related to brain lateralization and major cognitive innovations in human evolution.
  • Homes for Hunters? Exploring the Concept of Home at Hunter-Gatherer Sites in Upper Paleolithic Europe and Epipaleolithic Southwest Asia

    Homes for Hunters? Exploring the Concept of Home at Hunter-Gatherer Sites in Upper Paleolithic Europe and Epipaleolithic Southwest Asia

    Current Anthropology Volume 60, Number 1, February 2019 91 Homes for Hunters? Exploring the Concept of Home at Hunter-Gatherer Sites in Upper Paleolithic Europe and Epipaleolithic Southwest Asia by Lisa A. Maher and Margaret Conkey In both Southwest Asia and Europe, only a handful of known Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic sites attest to aggregation or gatherings of hunter-gatherer groups, sometimes including evidence of hut structures and highly structured use of space. Interpretation of these structures ranges greatly, from mere ephemeral shelters to places “built” into a landscape with meanings beyond refuge from the elements. One might argue that this ambiguity stems from a largely functional interpretation of shelters that is embodied in the very terminology we use to describe them in comparison to the homes of later farming communities: mobile hunter-gatherers build and occupy huts that can form campsites, whereas sedentary farmers occupy houses or homes that form communities. Here we examine some of the evidence for Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic structures in Europe and Southwest Asia, offering insights into their complex “functions” and examining perceptions of space among hunter-gatherer communities. We do this through examination of two contemporary, yet geographically and culturally distinct, examples: Upper Paleolithic (especially Magdalenian) evidence in Western Europe and the Epipaleolithic record (especially Early and Middle phases) in Southwest Asia. A comparison of recent evidence for hut structures from these regions suggests several similarities in the nature of these structures, their association with activities related to hunter-gatherer aggregation, and their being “homes” imbued with quotidian and symbolic meaning. All of this is my home temporary, yet geographically and culturally distinct, exam- these fjords rivers lakes ples: the EP record (especially Early and Middle phases) in the cold the sunlight the storms Southwest Asia and the UP (especially Magdalenian) evidence The night and day of the fields in Western Europe.
  • Chronology and Evolution in the Mesolithic of North-West Europe

    Chronology and Evolution in the Mesolithic of North-West Europe

    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Ghent University Academic Bibliography CHAPTER SIX TOWARDS A REFINEMENT OF THE ABSOLUTE (T YPO ) CHRONOLOGY FOR THE EARLY MESOLITHIC IN THE COVERSAND AREA OF NORTHERN BELGIUM AND THE SOUTHERN NETHERLANDS PHILIPPE CROMBÉ, MARK VAN STRYDONCK , MATHIEU BOUDIN Abstract In this paper the abundant Early Mesolithic dating evidence from Sandy Flanders, situated in NW Belgium, is presented and discussed in terms of typo- chronology. Based exclusively on dates from short-lived materials, in particular carbonised hazelnut shells, it is currently possible to prove the contemporaneity of several microlith assemblage types within the Pre-boreal and first part of the Boreal. Several hypotheses, taking into consideration technological, functional, social and ethnic arguments, are formulated in order to explain this co-existence. Résumé Dans cette contribution une abondance d’éléments de datation du Mésolithique ancien provenant de la Flandre sablonneuse au Nord-Ouest de la Belgique est présentée et discutée du point de vue de la typo-chronologie. Grâce à des dates retirées exclusivement de matériaux à vie courte, plus particulièrement des coquilles de noisettes brûlées, il est possible maintenant de démontrer la contemporanéité de plusieurs types d’assemblages de microlithes au Préboréal et dans la première moitié du Boréal. En tenant compte d’arguments d’ordre 95 Chapter Six technologique, fonctionnel, social et ethnique, plusieurs hypothèses sont émises pour expliquer cette simultanéité. Keywords : Early Mesolithic, radiocarbon dates, hazelnut shells, typo-chronology, cultural identity Mots-clés : Mésolithique ancien, dates radiocarbones, coquilles de noisettes, typo- chronologie, identité culturelle 1.
  • LITHIC ANALYSIS of the JOT-EM-DOWN SHELTER (15Mcy348) COLLECTION: SETTLEMENT PATTERNS, RAW MATERIAL UTILIZATION, and SHELTER ACTIVITIES ALONG the CUMBERLAND PLATEAU

    LITHIC ANALYSIS of the JOT-EM-DOWN SHELTER (15Mcy348) COLLECTION: SETTLEMENT PATTERNS, RAW MATERIAL UTILIZATION, and SHELTER ACTIVITIES ALONG the CUMBERLAND PLATEAU

    University of Kentucky UKnowledge Theses and Dissertations--Anthropology Anthropology 2014 LITHIC ANALYSIS OF THE JOT-EM-DOWN SHELTER (15McY348) COLLECTION: SETTLEMENT PATTERNS, RAW MATERIAL UTILIZATION, AND SHELTER ACTIVITIES ALONG THE CUMBERLAND PLATEAU Mary M. White University of Kentucky, [email protected] Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation White, Mary M., "LITHIC ANALYSIS OF THE JOT-EM-DOWN SHELTER (15McY348) COLLECTION: SETTLEMENT PATTERNS, RAW MATERIAL UTILIZATION, AND SHELTER ACTIVITIES ALONG THE CUMBERLAND PLATEAU" (2014). Theses and Dissertations--Anthropology. 12. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/anthro_etds/12 This Master's Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Anthropology at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations--Anthropology by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STUDENT AGREEMENT: I represent that my thesis or dissertation and abstract are my original work. Proper attribution has been given to all outside sources. I understand that I am solely responsible for obtaining any needed copyright permissions. I have obtained needed written permission statement(s) from the owner(s) of each third-party copyrighted matter to be included in my work, allowing electronic distribution (if such use is not permitted by the fair use doctrine) which will be submitted to UKnowledge as Additional File. I hereby grant to The University of Kentucky and its agents the irrevocable, non-exclusive, and royalty-free license to archive and make accessible my work in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known.
  • Human Origin Sites and the World Heritage Convention in Eurasia

    Human Origin Sites and the World Heritage Convention in Eurasia

    World Heritage papers41 HEADWORLD HERITAGES 4 Human Origin Sites and the World Heritage Convention in Eurasia VOLUME I In support of UNESCO’s 70th Anniversary Celebrations United Nations [ Cultural Organization Human Origin Sites and the World Heritage Convention in Eurasia Nuria Sanz, Editor General Coordinator of HEADS Programme on Human Evolution HEADS 4 VOLUME I Published in 2015 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France and the UNESCO Office in Mexico, Presidente Masaryk 526, Polanco, Miguel Hidalgo, 11550 Ciudad de Mexico, D.F., Mexico. © UNESCO 2015 ISBN 978-92-3-100107-9 This publication is available in Open Access under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC-BY-SA 3.0 IGO) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content of this publication, the users accept to be bound by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Access Repository (http://www.unesco.org/open-access/terms-use-ccbysa-en). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors; they are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. Cover Photos: Top: Hohle Fels excavation. © Harry Vetter bottom (from left to right): Petroglyphs from Sikachi-Alyan rock art site.