DOCSLIB.ORG

Lithic Raw Material Prospects in the Mojave Desert, California

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Lithic Raw Material Prospects in the Mojave Desert, California UC Merced Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology Title Lithic Raw Material Prospects in the Mojave Desert, California Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8np7g12w Journal Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology, 11(2) ISSN 0191-3557 Authors Wilke, Philip J. Schroth, Adella B. Publication Date 1989-07-01 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 146-174 (1989). Lithic Raw Material Prospects in the Mojave Desert, California PHILIP J. WILKE and ADELLA B. SCHROTH, Dept. of Anthropology, Univ. of California, Riverside, CA 92521. A HIS paper discusses lithic raw material THEORETICAL BACKGROUND prospects (or simply "prospects"), places where potentially flakeable tool stone was Acquisition of tool stone by aboriginal assayed or tested for quality. It characterizes peoples was an industry that in terms of scale this site type and contrasts it with quarries, varied greatly from one situation to another. places where stone was obtained consistently The large and well-known quarries of the and in quantity, and places where stone was western United States represent one end of picked up, used, and discarded with little the spectrum. These include the AUbates modification. We believe prospects represent silicified dolomite quarries, Texas; Spanish a major archaeological site type that has re­ Diggings quartzite quarries, Wyoming; ceived inadequate attention in the literature. Tosawihi opalite quarries, Nevada; and Casa We describe here a prospect site (CA- Diablo and Coso obsidian quarries, California, SBr-5872), characterize its assemblage, and to name a few. The thousands of metric tons interpret the behavioral context represented of tool stone that must have been taken from by it. We believe the activities represented at these and other major quarries suggest for­ the site were fully embedded within some pri­ malized acquisition, reduction, and distribu­ mary (probably subsistence-related) strategy, tion of stone, perhaps in some cases by but that the activity was more structured than specialists, throughout much of prehistory. the casual selection of useful pieces of stone. The physical and chemical tracing of stone We also believe the site is typical of many on from such sources to elucidate patterns of the landscape of the western United States prehistoric exchange is a major research effort and that such assemblages can only be in archaeology. interpreted with respect to the behavioral At the other end of the spectrum is non- contexts responsible for them. We also draw quarried stone, that obtained in a casual and comparisons with several other examples of expedient manner as the occasion required by raw material prospects in the Mojave Desert. people engaged in other activities. Few The principal site described here is one at studies have focused on such informal indus­ which people occupied a short-term camp, tries in the aboriginal western United States. probably many times. During such occupa­ Gould (1977) discussed acquisition of non- tions, they tested cobbles and obtained tool quarried stone as a common aspect of Aus­ stone in limited supplies and of varying tralian aboriginal lithic technology. He wrote: quality on the immediately adjacent terrain. Consistent acquisition of high-quality tool At the outset it is important to distinguish between stone materials gathered by the desert stone occurred at actual quarries 1-2 km. away Aborigines from definite quarries, that is where good-quality chert, chalcedony, and specific localities where usable stone is available jasper were obtained in quantity. known to the Aborigines and visited by them LITHIC RAW MATERIAL PROSPECTS 147 [sic], and non-quarried stone, which is obtained schedules. Very rarely, and then only when from the surface of the ground at or near the things have gone wrong, does one go out into the spot where it is needed for a particular task. environment for the express and exclusive purpose In this latter case, the stone comes from a non- of obtaining raw material for tools [Binford localised source which may be visited only once 1979:259, emphasis in original]. [Gould 1977:163]. The extent to which these comments were Gould went on to describe the landscape of intended to be specific to the Nunamiut, or the Western Desert of Australia as one where more generally applicable to interpretation of stone suitable for tool use generally can be archaeological assemblages, is uncertain. obtained from the surface with little search or Binford's ideas may approximate Gould's effort. He (1977:164) then contrasted the description of nonquarried stone in aboriginal behavioral situation at quarries and non- Australia, but we believe his comments were quarried-stone-acquisition localities where directed more at the "hidden agenda" aspect Aborigines obtained stone: of stone acquisition. That is to say that we At quarry sites one sees Aborigines obtaining believe his comments referred to side-trips flakes and small lumps or cores which are made to quarries to obtain stone whUe people carried away and further trimmed for specific were en route to some other destination, such uses. ... At more generalised non-quarry as on some subsistence-related pursuit. What­ localities, however, stones were used for immediate tasks on the spot. ... In every case ever the case, Binford's ideas about raw observed the Aborigines always disposed of the material acquisition are completely at odds tools that were manufactured and used at non- with common sense when one stands on any quarry locations at these same places. They of a hundred renowned aboriginal quarries in were never observed to carry the tools away to a habitation camp or some other locality for the western United States. The number and further retouch and/or use. magnitude of excavated quarry pits at some Having built a convincing case for the expe­ sites (such as Tosawihi and Alibates), the dient acquisition, reduction, use, and on-site standardized approach to cobble/boulder discard of tool stone, Gould (1977:167) con­ reduction, staging of quarry blanks and cores, cluded that actual quarried stone represented and long-distance distributional data all point "only a tiny fraction of the total amount of to formalized, highly structured, and intensive lithic material used within the cultural stone acquisition in prehistory. system." Between these two extremes (organized, Binford (1979:259-261, 270) did not dis­ industrial, primary-strategy quarrying and tinguish raw material extracted for transport distribution vs. casual, expedient, embedded- and use elsewhere from that obtained on the strategy picking up of stone off the land­ landscape for immediate use. He did say that scape), and certainly closer to the latter, was among the Nunamiut Eskimo, with whom he another strategy by which stone was acquired conducted ethnoarchaeological research, most in prehistory. This strategy was one of inten­ raw material was obtained in the context of an tionally prospecting for stone at places that extractive strategy embedded within some sometimes yielded useful material but that primary subsistence-related strategy: never did so consistently or in sufficient quantity to result in what most archaeologists Raw materials used in the manufacture of would call aboriginal quarries. We doubt implements are normally obtained incidentally anyone consistently went to such places to get to the normd execution of basic subsistence tasks. Put another way, procurement of raw tool stone, but people did try to find useful materials is embedded in basic subsistence material on occasion when they happened to 148 JOURNAL OF CALIFORNIA AND GREAT BASIN ANTHROPOLOGY be at the spot for other reasons. In other thereby better understand these data. cases, they may have located outstanding veins or nodules of material and returned with CA-SBR-5872: A LITHIC RAW appropriate tools and attempted, successfully MATERIAL PROSPECT or otherwise, to remove such material. We SBr-5872 is located at the south end of the refer to these places as lithic raw material Castle Mountains, a small Tertiary volcanic prospects, or simply/»TO.spec^s. range in eastern San Bernardino County, Tool stone seldom was quarried at California, and adjacent parts of Clark prospects, and it never was quarried at County, Nevada (Fig. 1). The geologic history nonquarry sites of the kind described by of the range is complex, and involved exten­ Gould. Therefore, a clear terminology is sive volcanism and geothermal activity (Linder needed to distinguish the two site types. We 1989). Deposits of siliceous sedimentary are satisfied with the term "lithic raw material stone, apparently formed through geothermal prospect" because it clearly describes the activity by replacement of existing rhyolite behavior that occurred at such sites. We with chalcedonic quartz, outcrop along the believe, however, that nonquarried-stone- eroded base of the range. Flanking alluvial acquisition sites of the kind discussed by fans contain chert and chalcedony clasts, Gould should be identified by a label that which vary widely in occurrence and quality. more satisfactorily describes the ephemeral Extensive use was made of these materials for and nonredundant activities that occurred at tool stone by the prehistoric inhabitants of the them. Toward that end, we term such places region. Rhyolite and other rocks suitable for ephemeral stone acquisition and use sites. use in tool manufacture occur also, but were In the context of the above-referenced sought less often for tool stone. discussions, it should be pointed out that The site is located on a low ridge (eleva­ neither Gould nor Binford commented on the tion 1,275 m.) that extends south from the difficulty of pressure flaking most raw cherts, range, and consists of a highly discontinuous, chalcedonies, and jaspers, and the degree to light scatter of tested cobbles, cores, debitage, which the flakeabiHty of such stone is and other artifacts. To the east and west are improved by careful heat treatment.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Ra Ising the Ba R
    12 Ra ising the Ba r Lithic Analysis and Archaeological Research in the Southeast William Andrefsky Jr. When I was asked to provide comments on the collection of lithic analysis pa- pers presented at the Southeastern Archaeological Conference (included within this volume), I did not realize the extent to which lithic tools and debitage had been overlooked in the region as a medium for interpreting past aboriginal practices and behaviors. According to the session abstract, the goal of the lithic symposium and this volume is to highlight contemporary methods and theory in lithic analysis to encourage researchers in the Southeast to integrate lithic data into their site interpretations. After a quick perusal of the literature for the region, it was apparent that very few Southeast lithics-related publications have appeared in the national peer-reviewed literature (Daniel2001; Shott and Ballenger 2007); slightly more lithic research occurs in regional journal venues (Carr and Bradbury 2000; Franklin and Simek 2008; Peacock 2004); and other contributions are found in edited volumes not necessarily focused specifically on lithics in the region (Anderson and Sassaman 1996; Carr 1994a; Henry and Odell1989; Johnson and Morrow 1987). Similar to the case of Mesoamerica and the American Southwest, there is a relatively low proportion of lithics- based research relative to ceramics and architecture. Such a trend comes as a surprise to me. However, I have been hooked on stone tool technology since the sixth grade when I first began looking at Louis Leakey's Oldowan pebble tools and wondering whether the broken cobbles in my local creek could have been made by Australopithecus.
    [Show full text]
  • Skill and Cognition in Stone Tool Production F 695
    Current Anthropology Volume 43, Number 5, December 2002 ᭧ 2002 by The Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research. All rights reserved 0011-3204/2002/4305-0001$3.00 Assessing mental activity from the material residues of Skill and Cognition in behavior is a central problem for archaeologists working in any time period. In the case of Paleolithic archaeology, the endeavor is further weighted with evolutionary im- Stone Tool Production plications (e.g., Holloway 1969, Parker and Gibson 1979, Isaac 1986, Wynn 1993, Gowlett 1996, Ambrose 2001). Because of their persistence in the archaeological record An Ethnographic Case Study and because they provide evidence of individual tech- nical acts, knapped stone artifacts are commonly used from Irian Jaya1 as a source of information about prehistoric and pre- modern mental abilities. Although stone tools do not necessarily provide evidence of the full range of their makers’ mental abilities, they do indicate certain min- by Dietrich Stout imum required competences (Gowlett 1996). In order to assess these competences, we must ultimately rely upon models developed from actualistic research in the mod- ern world. Since it is impossible to observe the evolving Stone tools represent some of the best remaining evidence of pre- technological behaviors of extinct hominid species di- historic behavior and cognition. Interpreting this evidence prop- rectly, our reconstructions should at least be able to draw erly requires models based on observable phenomena in the mod- upon an understanding of the modern human condition. ern world. For this reason, ethnographic research was undertaken In order to contribute to the development of such among the adze makers of the village of Langda in Indonesian Irian Jaya.
    [Show full text]
  • Ohio Archaeologist 26 3
    OHIO ARCHAEOLOGIST VOLUME 26 SUMMER 1976 i I • • The Archaeological Society of Ohio Officers—terms expire 1978 Robert Harter, 1961 Buttermilk Hill, Delaware, Ohio President—Jan Sorgenfrei, Jeff Carskadden, 2686 Carol Drive, Zanesville, Ohio 2985 Canterbury Drive, Lima, Ohio 45805 Associate Editor, Martha P. Otto, Vice President—Steve Fuller, Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, Ohio 4767 Hudson Drive, Stow, Ohio 44224 All articles, reviews and comments on the Ohio Archae­ Executive Secretary—Dana L. Baker, ologist should be sent to the Editor. Memberships, re­ West Taylor St., Mt. Victory, Ohio 43340 quests for back issues, changes of address, and other Treasurer—Don Bapst, matter should be sent to the business office. 2446 Chambers Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43223 Recording Secretary—Mike Kish, PLEASE NOTIFY BUSINESS OFFICE IMMEDIATELY 39 Parkview Ave., Westerville, Ohio 43081 OF ADDRESS CHANGES. BY POSTAL REGULATIONS Editor—Robert N. Converse, SOCIETY MAIL CANNOT BE FORWARDED. P.O. Box 61, Plain City, Ohio 43064 Editorial Office Trustees P. O. Box, Plain City, Ohio 43064 Terms expire Ensil Chadwick, 119 Rose Ave., Business Office Mount Vernon, Ohio 1978 Summers Redick, 35 West River Glen Drive, Wayne A. Mortine, Scott Drive, Worthington, Ohio 43085 Oxford Heights, Newcomerstown, Ohio 1978 Charles H. Stout, 91 Redbank Drive, Membership and Dues Fairborn, Ohio 1978 Annual dues to the Archaeological Society of Ohio are Max Shipley, 705 S. Ogden Ave., payable on the first of January as follows: Regular mem­ Columbus, Ohio 1978 bership $7.50; Husband and wife (one copy of publication) William C. Haney, 706 Buckhom St., $8.50; Contributing $25.00. Funds are used for publish­ Ironton, Ohio 1980 ing the Ohio Archaeologist.
    [Show full text]
  • Quartz Technology in Scottish Prehistory
    Quartz technology in Scottish prehistory by Torben Bjarke Ballin Scottish Archaeological Internet Report 26, 2008 www.sair.org.uk Published by the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, www.socantscot.org.uk with Historic Scotland, www.historic-scotland.gov.uk and the Council for British Archaeology, www.britarch.ac.uk Editor Debra Barrie Produced by Archétype Informatique SARL, www.archetype-it.com ISBN: 9780903903943 ISSN: 1473-3803 Requests for permission to reproduce material from a SAIR report should be sent to the Director of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, as well as to the author, illustrator, photographer or other copyright holder. Copyright in any of the Scottish Archaeological Internet Reports series rests with the SAIR Consortium and the individual authors. The maps are reproduced from Ordnance Survey material with the permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of The Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office. ©Crown copyright 2001. Any unauthorized reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. Historic Scotland Licence No GD 03032G, 2002. The consent does not extend to copying for general distribution, advertising or promotional purposes, the creation of new collective works or resale. ii Contents List of illustrations. vi List of tables . viii 1 Summary. 1 2 Introduction. 2 2.1 Project background, aims and working hypotheses . .2 2.2 Methodology . 2 2.2.1 Raw materials . .2 2.2.2 Typology. .3 2.2.3 Technology . .3 2.2.4 Distribution analysis. 3 2.2.5 Dating. 3 2.3 Project history . .3 2.3.1 Pilot project. 4 2.3.2 Main project .
    [Show full text]
  • Lithic Debitage Alaskan Blade Cores As Specialized Components of Mobile Toolkits: -·
    5 Lithic Debitage Alaskan Blade Cores as Specialized Components of Mobile Toolkits: -·. CONTEXT, FORM, M-EANING Assessing Design Parameters and Toolkit Organization through Debitage Analysis JEFFREY RA.SIC AND WILLIAM ANDREFSKY JR. Bifaces, used as specialized tools and as cores, were a primary component ofthe mobile tooiJcits employed by prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups in North America. In some toolkits, however, particularly those in the Edited by American Arctic, prepared blade cores were also common. The 'USe of blade core technologies has generally been explained in cultural historical WILLIAM ANDREFSKY JR. terms (e.g., Paleoindian versus Paleo-Arctic) or in.terms ofa simple functional argument-blade cores offer a more efficient means ofutt1izing lithic raw materials. Through analysis ofdebitage assemblages produced from bifacial and prepared blade core reductiott experiments, we show that blade cores and bifacial cores are botlt efficient means ofutilizing lithic raw materials, yet they differ in a variety ofother W!lJS. These differences are discussed in terms ofthe costs and benefits presented to prehistoric toolmakers and users. Given this set ofcosts and benefits, the technological choices favored by prehistoric people·may shed light on the situational and organfzational contexts in which these technologies were used. ithic analysts typically measure a variety of flake attributes and assemblage Lcharacteristics in an attempt t9 understand prehistoric technological behav­ ior. Many of these studies seek to identify processes that prehistoric individuals may have been aware of but to which they gave little attention. For example, orir interest in discovering stages of reduction, types of percussors, or reduction strategies would probably have been quite amusing to a prehistoric knapper.
    [Show full text]
  • BRIAN G. REDMOND, Ph.D
    BRIAN G. REDMOND, Ph.D. Dept. of Archaeology The Cleveland Museum of Natural History 1 Wade Oval Dr., University Circle Cleveland, Ohio 44106 PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS 1994-present: Curator and John Otis Hower Chair of Archaeology, The Cleveland Museum of Natural History (C.M.N.H). 2010-2011: Interim Director of Science, Collections and Research Division, C.M.N.H. 2001-2006: Director of Science, Collections and Research Division, C.M.N.H. 1992-94: Acting Assistant Director for Research, Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Indiana University, Bloomington. 1992: Visiting Research Associate, Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Indiana University, Bloomington. 1990-91: Associate Faculty, Dept. of Anthropology, Indiana University, Indianapolis. PROFESSIONAL APPOINTMENTS Current: Adjunct Associate Professor, Dept. Of Anthropology, Case Western Reserve University. Adjunct Faculty, Dept. of Anthropology, Cleveland State University. Research Associate, Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Indiana University, Bloomington. PROFESSIONAL SERVICE POSITIONS Current: Chair, Ohio Archaeological Council Publications Committee; Website Editor. 2002-2003 President of the Ohio Archaeological Council. 2000-2001 President-elect of the Ohio Archaeological Council. EDUCATION 1990: Ph.D. in Anthropology, Indiana University, Bloomington. 1984: Masters of Arts and Education in Anthropology, University of Toledo, Ohio. 1980: Bachelor of Arts (cum laude) in Anthropology, University of Toledo, Ohio. 1 PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS 2015 Redmond, B.G. and Robert A. Genheimer (editors) Building the Past, An Introduction. In Building the Past: Prehistoric Wooden Post Architecture in the Ohio Valley-Great Lakes Region. University Press of Florida. 2015 Redmond, B. G. and B. L. Scanlan Changes in Pre-Contact Domestic Architecture at the Heckelman Site in Northern Ohio.
    [Show full text]
  • The Meronomic Model of Cognitive Change, and Its Application to Neolithic C¸Atalh¨Oy¨Uk
    The meronomic model of cognitive change, and its application to neolithic C¸atalh¨oy¨uk Chris Thornton University of Sussex Brighton UK [email protected] August 29, 2019 Abstract The attempt to relate changes in human cognition to changes in human behaviour can be fruitful for cognitive science and archaeology alike. The process has the potential to enrich both our understanding of cognition, and interpretations of the archaeological evidence. A practical difficulty is the lack of clarity as to what cognitive change refers to. Characterisations vary considerably, even in regard to locus. Use of broad-brush termi- nology (e.g., ‘higher levels of consciousness’) can add to the uncertainty. The present chapter argues that an effective way to understand cognitive change is in terms of conceptual structure, and the meronomic processes that apply. Building on the ontological distinction between meronomy and taxonomy, this approach allows cognitive change (by conceptual innova- tion) to be modeled precisely, while opening the way for quantification of conceptual creativity. This chapter shows how the model is derived, and explores some of the ways it might be connected with data from C¸atalh¨oy¨uk. 1 Introduction There is a natural desire to explain the development of cognitive phenomena that seem particularly characteristic of the human mind. Creativity is a case in point, consciousness another. A recent archaeological project has attempted to understand evidence from the neolithic site of C¸atalh¨oy¨uk in relation to emergence of both consciousness and creativity at the dawn of settled life. This project faces the need to settle on a precise understanding of what is meant by the terms in question.
    [Show full text]
  • Archaeology at Lewistown Narrows
    CONNECTING PEOPLE AND PLACES The Archaeology of Transportation at Lewistown Narrows For thousands of years before the first European settlers arrived, Pennsylvania Department people were moving along the rivers and valleys of central of Transportation Pennsylvania. Their movements were channeled through gaps cut by rivers in the long parallel ridges of the region, such as the Lewistown Narrows, where the Juniata River has carved a six-mile- long gorge through the mountains. Archaeological investigations at site 36Ju104 revealed evidence of nearly 9,000 years of human use. Temporary camps contained the traces of small groups moving across central Pennsylvania’s landscape in search of food and other resources, a pattern continued in the roads, railroads, and canals that passed through the Lewistown Narrows in the historic period. ® ISBN 0-89271-121-3 Paul A. Raber CONNECTING PEOPLE AND PLACES The Archaeology of Transportation at Lewistown Narrows Paul A. Raber Heberling Associates, Inc. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation 2007 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Edward G. Rendell, Governor Federal Highway Administration-Pennsylvania Division James A. Cheatham, Division Administrator Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Allen D. Biehler, Secretary Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission Wayne S. Spilove, Chairman Barbara Franco, Executive Director Joe Baker, Series Editor The archaeological studies for the U.S. Route 22/322 Lewistown Narrows highway improvements project received the 2006 Federal Highway Administration/ Pennsylvania Division Transportation and Historic Preservation Excellence Award. Photographs courtesy of Heberling Associates, Inc., except as noted. Layout and design by Christopher Yohn Digital edition ©2019 Cover: “Lewistown Narrows, On The Juniata River” by John Hows, Robert E.
    [Show full text]
  • Major Fallacies Surrounding Stone Artifacts and Assemblages Harold Dibble University of Pennsylvania, [email protected]
    University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Anthropology Faculty Publications Anthropology, Department of 2017 Major Fallacies Surrounding Stone Artifacts and Assemblages Harold Dibble University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Simon J. Holdaway Auckland University, [email protected] Sam C. Lin University of Wollongong, [email protected] David R. Braun Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, [email protected] Matthew .J Douglass University of Nebraska—Lincoln, [email protected] See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/anthropologyfacpub Part of the Archaeological Anthropology Commons, and the Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons Dibble, Harold; Holdaway, Simon J.; Lin, Sam C.; Braun, David R.; Douglass, Matthew J.; Iovita, Radu; McPherron, Shannon P.; Olszewski, Deborah I.; and Sandgathe, Dennis, "Major Fallacies Surrounding Stone Artifacts and Assemblages" (2017). Anthropology Faculty Publications. 150. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/anthropologyfacpub/150 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Anthropology, Department of at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Anthropology Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Authors Harold Dibble, Simon J. Holdaway, Sam C. Lin, David R. Braun, Matthew J. Douglass, Radu Iovita, Shannon P. McPherron, Deborah I. Olszewski, and Dennis Sandgathe This article is available at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/anthropologyfacpub/ 150 Published in Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory doi: 10.1007/s10816-016-9297-8 Copyright © 2016 Springer Science+Business Media New York. Used by permission. digitalcommons.unl.edu Published online August 8, 2016.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Experimental Knapping in Empirically Testing Key Themes in the Evolution of Lithic Technology: Reduction Intensity, Efficiency and Behavioural Complexity
    The role of experimental knapping in empirically testing key themes in the evolution of lithic technology: reduction intensity, efficiency and behavioural complexity Antoine Muller BA (archaeology) BA Honours (archaeology) A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2017 School of Social Science Abstract Experimental knapping has complimented and stimulated lithic analyses for over a century. Throughout this period, the discipline has witnessed an increase in the scientific rigour and theoretical grounding with which these studies are conducted. This thesis charts these key trends and in doing so establishes a best-practice model of experimental knapping, the veracity of which is in turn tested using four new lithic experiments. These case-studies employ experimental knapping to advance our understanding of flake platform measurement, reduction intensity, technological efficiency, and behavioural complexity. The first case-study, Chapter 3, offers a more accurate and precise calliper-based method of flake platform measurement that relies on simple geometric approximations of platform shape rather than the inflexible and unreliable existing method of multiplying platform width by thickness. In Chapter 4, a new reduction intensity metric for backed blades, a hitherto overlooked tool-type, is developed and tested on the backed blades from an early Neolithic site in Turkey. This new metric allows a reconstruction of the raw material consumption patterns at the site, finding that the backed blades likely contributed to conserving the inhabitants’ scarce lithic raw material. Meanwhile, Chapter 5 outlines the results of a comparison of the raw material efficiency of eight different lithic technologies, finding that lithic technological efficiency was a generally ascending trend over the last 3.3 million years and that the main transition in efficiency occurred between the Lower to Middle Palaeolithic.
    [Show full text]
  • Article Info Abstract
    Journal of Archaeological Science 53 (2015) 550e558 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jas Neutron activation analysis of 12,900-year-old stone artifacts confirms 450e510þ km Clovis tool-stone acquisition at Paleo Crossing (33ME274), northeast Ohio, U.S.A. * Matthew T. Boulanger a, b, , Briggs Buchanan c, Michael J. O'Brien b, Brian G. Redmond d, * Michael D. Glascock a, Metin I. Eren b, d, a Archaeometry Laboratory, University of Missouri Research Reactor, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA b Department of Anthropology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA c Department of Anthropology, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, 74104, USA d Department of Archaeology, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, OH, 44106-1767, USA article info abstract Article history: The archaeologically sudden appearance of Clovis artifacts (13,500e12,500 calibrated years ago) across Received 30 August 2014 Pleistocene North America documents one of the broadest and most rapid expansions of any culture Received in revised form known from prehistory. One long-asserted hallmark of the Clovis culture and its rapid expansion is the 1 November 2014 long-distance acquisition of “exotic” stone used for tool manufacture, given that this behavior would be Accepted 5 November 2014 consistent with geographically widespread social contact and territorial permeability among mobile Available online 13 November 2014 hunteregatherer populations. Here we present geochemical evidence acquired from neutron activation analysis (NAA) of stone flaking debris from the Paleo Crossing site, a 12,900-year-old Clovis camp in Keywords: Clovis northeastern Ohio. These data indicate that the majority stone raw material at Paleo Crossing originates Colonization from the Wyandotte chert source area in Harrison County, Indiana, a straight-line distance of 450 Long-distance resource acquisition e510 km.
    [Show full text]
  • Extensive Paleolithic Flint Extraction and Reduction Complexes in the Nahal Dishon Central Basin, Upper Galilee, Israel
    J World Prehist (2016) 29:217–266 DOI 10.1007/s10963-016-9097-9 Extensive Paleolithic Flint Extraction and Reduction Complexes in the Nahal Dishon Central Basin, Upper Galilee, Israel Meir Finkel1 · Avi Gopher1 · Ran Barkai1 Published online: 17 September 2016 © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016 Abstract Recently found open-air flint extraction and workshop sites in the Eastern Galilee, Israel, are the focus of this paper. Lithic assemblages from among a few of the thousands of tailing piles documented in a field survey, indicate mostly late Lower Palaeolithic/Middle Palaeolithic and rarely Neolithic/Chalcolithic affinities. These dis- coveries substantially increase our knowledge of the scope of lithic extraction and reduction in northern Israel in these periods. The new sites are located on a 25 km2 outcrop of flint-bearing Eocene limestone indicating intensive extraction of large amounts of flint, possibly beyond immediate local consumption requirements. After describing the new sites, we discuss their relation to nearby Middle and Lower Palaeolithic sites; possible resource management scenarios; chronology and duration of the extraction and reduction activity; and the sites as possible landmarks. A key question is the extent of the flint distribution area, or, more precisely, whether this region was a dominant mega-quarry for northern Israel and/or Southern Lebanon in the periods discussed. Keywords Palaeolithic · Acheulean/Mousterian · Flint extraction · Quarry sites · Galilee · Israel אבסטרקט מאמר זה מתאר מרחב רחב-היקף של אתרי חציבה וסיתות צור מהתקופות הפרהיסטוריות שנמצא לאחרונה בגליל המזרחי, ישראל. ממצאי תעשיית הצור שתועדו במסגרת הסקר, בדגימה של מספר ערמות פסולת סיתות מתוך אלפים רבים של ערימות, מלמדים כי עיקר פעולות החציבה והסיתות בוצעו בתקופה הפלאוליתית התחתונה והתיכונה, ובחלק מהמקרים יש גם עדויות לפעילות בתקופה הניאוליתית-כלכוליתית.
    [Show full text]