ABSTRACTS VOLUME - UBABSTRACTS VOLUME INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON KNAPPABLE MATERIALS Barcelona, 7-12 september 2015 University of Barcelona Edited by Xavier Mangado, Otis …

ABSTRACTS VOLUME

INTERNATIONAL

SYMPOSIUM

ON KNAPPABLE

MATERIALS

Barcelona, 7-12 september 2015

University of Barcelona

Edited by

Xavier Mangado, Otis Crandell, Marta Sánchez, Manuel Cubero

Published by

SERP - Universitat de Barcelona, 2015

President:

Xavier Mangado (University of Barcelona. SERP, Spain)

Vice-president:

Otis Crandell (Babes Bolyai University, Romania)

Members:

Adrian Burke (University of Montreal, Canada)

Andoni Tarriño (University of the Basque Country, Spain)

Antonio Morgado (University of Granada, Spain)

Christophe Delage (Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, France)

Didac Roman (University of Barcelona. SERP, Spain)

Estela Mansur (Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas, Argentina)

Françoise Bostyn (Inrap. France)

George 'Rip' Rapp (University of Minesota, United States of America)

Ignacio Clemente (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. IMF, Spain)

Josep Bosch (Museum of Gavà, Spain)

Josep Maria Fullola (University of Barcelona. SERP, Spain)

Juan Gibaja (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. IMF, Spain)

Juanjo Ibañez (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. IMF, Spain)

Katalin Biro (Hungarian National Museum, Hungary)

Killian Driscoll (University of Montreal, Canada)

Manuel Vaquero (University Rovira i Virgili, Spain)

Mariuca Vornicu (Muzeal National Moldova, Romania)

Patrick Julig (Laurentian University, Canada)

Paul Fernandes (Université de Bordeaux 1. PACEA, France)

Thierry Aubry (IGESPAR, Portugal)

Vanessa Lea (Université de Toulouse II. TRACES, France)

Xavier Terradas (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. IMF, Spain)

Yoshihiro Nishiaki (Tokyo University, Japan)

Scientific Committee

Layout designer: Manuel Cubero

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ISKM 2015 - Table of Contents

Table of Contents

- Foreword ...........................................................................................................................15

S1 - Raw material exploitation strategies – mining and surface collecting .............................17

- Raw material procurement and land use in the northern Mediterranean Arc during theMousterian, Proto-Aurignacian and Gravettian at Riparo Mochi (Balzi Rossi, Italy).GRIMALDI, Stefano; SANTIANELLO, Fabio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

- Raw material exploitation strategies on the flint mining site of Spiennes.COLLET, Hélène; LAVACHERY, Philippe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

- Quarry tools at the Naparutalik quarry, Nunavik (Quebec Arctic, Canada).BURKE, ADRIAN L.; DESROSIERS, PIERRE M. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

- Variability of lithic sites north of Melbourne, Victoria: A case study.MURPHY, Andrea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

- In quartz we trust, when on high. Techcnological analysis of the lithic assemblage fromSub-Alpine sites in Victorian Alps, Australia. Challenge the predicted model of lithic resourceexploitation for Australia.MUHLEN-SCHULTE, Roark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

- The chert workshop of Tozal de la Mesa (Alins del Monte, Huesca, Spain) and its exploitationin historical times.SÁNCHEZ DE LA TORRE, Marta; GARCIA SIMÓN, Luis Miguel; DOMINGO, Rafael; MANGADO,Xavier; MONTES, Lourdes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

- Prehistoric chert mining evidence in Serra Llarga (Castelló de Farfanya, Spain).MANGADO, Xavier; SÁNCHEZ DE LA TORRE, Marta; MARTÍNEZ-GRAU, Héctor;GONZÁLEZ-OLIVARES, Cynthia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

- "Mons Basin Flint Cie": A status report on the flint mining sites of the Mons Basin during theNeolithic.COLLIN, Jean-Philippe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

- Where's the right rock? Locating and identifying lithic raw materials in secondary 30 sourcesin a postglacial landscape in Southern Patagonia (~ 47°S).FERNÁNDEZ, Maria Victoria; FIGUERERO TORRES, María J.; PEREYRA, Fernando X. . . . . . . . .27

- Shape evaluation in lithic analysis.ZARINA, Liga; SEGLINS, Valdis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

- Nubian Levallois production system, raw material availability, and variability in Arabia.YAMANDU, Hilbert; CRASSARD, Remy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

- Using Airborne Laser Scanning data for mine surface relief studies: Results from the"Borownia" prehistoric flint mine, Central Poland.RADZISZEWSKA, Katarzyna; BUDZISZEWSKI, Janusz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

- Geomorphological context and middle Palaeolithic procurement strategies for surface out-crops of Serreta Flint, Serpis River Basin (Alicante, Spain).MOLINA, Fco. Javier; TARRIÑO, Antonio; HERNÁNDEZ-GÓMEZ, Cristo; GALVÁN, Bertila . . . . .31

- Young knappers in the mine: The transmission of technological knowledge at the flint mine ofCasa Montero (Madrid, Spain), c. 5300-5200 cal. BCE.CASTAÑEDA, Nuria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

'On the Rocks' - International Symposium on Knappable Materials / University of Barcelona / 7-12 September 2015

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- Local lithic raw material procurement in Mousterian times: Roca San Miguel campsite(North-Eastern Iberia).DOMINGO, Rafael; MONTES, Lourdes; CUCHÍ, José Antonio; GARCÍA-SIMÓN, Luis Miguel;SÁNCHEZ, Marta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

- Chocolate Flint mine in Orońsko (Southern Poland): New approaches.KERNEDER-GUBAŁA, Katarzyna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

- Contrasting Middle and Upper Palaeolithic raw material sourcing in the Central LimestoneMassif (Estremadura, Portugal).MATIAS, Henrique; AUBRY, Thierry; GAMEIRO, Cristina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

- Raw material sourcing in the Middle Palaeolithic site of Gruta da Oliveira (Central LimestoneMassif, Estremadura, Portugal).MATIAS, Henrique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

- Is there a socio-economic interpretation for the sustained exploitation of flint and the diver-sity of raw material sources used during the Middle Palaeolithic in the south-eastern MassifCentral and adjacent Rhone Valley?FERNANDES, Paul; DELVIGNE, Vincent; MONCEL, M.H.; DAUJEARD, C.; GUADELLI,J.L.;SANTAGATA, C.; BERNARD-GUELLE, S.; WRAGG-SYKES, R.; LE CORRE, M.; LIABEUF, R.; BINDON,P.; RAYNAL, J.P. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

- Siliceous raw material of Barranco Leon (Orce, Granada, Spain).CÁNOVAS CALLE, Isabel; TARRIÑO, Antonio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

- Introduction to the study of siliceous raw materials, morphotechnical and functional analysisat the cave site of El Pirulejo.CÁNOVAS CALLE, Isabel; CALLE ROMÁN, Lidia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

- Extraction sites at Vaucluse (France) between myth to reality: An initial approach.DE LABRIFFE, Pierre-Arnaud; REGGIO, Adrien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41

- Technological strategies and use of provisioning space in quarries of volcanic rocks(Antofagasta de la Sierra, Puna de Catamarca, Argentina).BOBILLO, Federico. M. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

- Neolithic surface collecting strategies in the Kyoto basin, Japan.TAKAGI, Yasushiro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43

S2 - Ancient lithic trade and economic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

- Lithic movement and exchange across the Adriatic: pXRF analysis and interpretation of prehis-toric obsidian and chert in Italy and Croatia.TYKOT, Robert; FREUND, Kyle P.; BROWN, Keri A.; FORENBAHER, Stašo; MUNTONI, Italo M.PERHOC, Zlatko . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46

- Exchange networks from close-up: The case of Lipari obsidian.VIANELLO, Andrea; TYKOT, Robert; FREUND, Kyle P. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

- The specialized Canaanean blade production and distribution system: A technological perspec-tive of the economics of Early Bronze Age societyMANCLOSSI, Francesca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48

- Characterization of the lithic resources of the Picamoixons site (Tarragona, NE IberianPeninsula): Catchment and mobility during the Pleistocene-Holocene boundary.SOTO, Maria; VALLVERDÚ, Josep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

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- New data concerning "large blades" in Catalonia: Apt-Forcalquier flint in the Gran Penedès(South of Barcelona) during the Final Neolithic and Chalcolithic.MANGADO, Xavier; VAQUER, Jean; GIBAJA, Juan; OMS, Xavier; SÁNCHEZ DE LA TORRE, Marta;CEBRIÀ, Artur; GONZÁLEZ, Cynthia; MARTÍN, Araceli . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51

- Kura-Araxes obsidian: Sources and trade in the Early Bronze AgeSELVI, Bengi Basak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52

- Obsidian in Patagonia: A social map of a long distance rock in hunter-gatherer contexts.FERNÁNDEZ, María Victoria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53

- Difficulties and results in the assessment of lithic raw material availability: Two cases fromSouth Patagonia (Argentina).FRANCO, Nora Viviana; VETRISANO, Lucas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54

- Late Glacial and early Holocene raw material economies at the Helga-Abri rockshelter site inAch Valley.HESS, Thomas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55

- Chalcolithic raw material economy in light of new data from the "Przyjaźń" mining field inRzeczkowo (Central Poland).BUDZISZEWSKI, Janusz; GRUŻDŹ, Witold; JAKUBCZAK, Michal; SZUBSKI, Michal . . . . . . . . . . .56

- Local or imported raw material? The study of the distribution of flint and chert in DynasticEgypt (from the Middle Kingdom to the end of Roman Period).BULAWKA, Sylwia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57

- The export of Heligoland Flint in prehistory with special focus on Danish finds.HIRSCH, Klaus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58

- Radiolarite in Poland: Occurrence and distribution during the Stone Age and Early Bronze AgeKERNEDER-GUBAŁA Katarzyna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

- New challenges in the study of lithic raw materials in central Italy at the dawn of metal wor-king societies: The case of La Pietra and other radiolarite quarry-workshops in Tuscany.SCARAMUCCI, Sem; BERTOLA, Stefano; COSTANTINI, Armando; GIAMELLO, Marco; VOLPI,Vanessa; MORONI, Adriana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60

- Lithic raw material procurement strategies and exchange in the La Plata Basin, Argentina.SILVESTRE, Romina; ACOSTA, Alejandro; LOPONTE, Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62

- Moving stones: First hypothesis about flint management in several Neolithic sites of centralApulia (South-East Italy).SIVILLI, Sandra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63

- Lithic raw material resources at the Bronze Age site of Outeiro do Circo, Beja (South Portugal).SOARES, Sofia; REIS, Helena; SERRA, Miguel; PORFÍRIO, Eduardo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64

- Upper Palaeolithic social networks in Central and Northern Portugal as revealed by lithic rawmaterial sourcing.AUBRY, Thierry; GAMEIRO, Cristina; MANGADO LLACH, Javier; LUÍS, Luís; MATIAS, Henrique;Do PEREIRO, Tiago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65

- Flints in Iron Age graves: Flint from the cemetery at Weklice, Elblag County, Elblag District,Northern Poland.WERRA, Dagmara H.; NATUNIEWICZ-SEKULA, Magdalena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66

- An overview of the knapped stone economy at the Tărtăria site (Romania).CRANDELL, Otis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67

- Processing Techniques of the Knapped Stone Production at Yurac Corral Archaeological Site(Ayacucho – Peru): Relationships between the Geology, the Regional Volcanism and StoneTool Production at the end of the Middle Holocene.VALENZUELA, Leslye; VALENZUELA, Christian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68


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S3 - Stone tool production and processing techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

- Raw material choice matters – obsidian vs. chert lithic technology at Neolithic Çukuriçi Höyükin Western Anatolia.BOGDANA, Milić; HOREJS, Barbara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70

- Early Harappan disc beads and stone knapping innovations.POTTENTAVIDA, Ajithprasad; Madella, Marco; GADEKAR, Charusmita . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71

- A comparison of lithic assemblages belonging to economically diverse settlements flourishingduring mid-third millennium BCE Gujarat.GADEKAR, Charusmita; POTTENTAVIDA Ajithprasad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72

- Breaking rocks: configuration systems of lithic tools in recent prehistory.LÓPEZ RODRÍGUEZ, Mª Cristina; GUTIÉRREZ SÁEZ, C.; MARTÍN LERMA, I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73

- Lithic debitage study and organization of settlement in Neolithic Western Japan.UEMINE, Atsushi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74

- Stone tools have traces of the knappers' habit.ASAI, Takua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75

- The Barranco Cardones workshop (Arucas, Gran Canaria). An example of knapping vesicularbasalt for making rotary quernsNARANJO MAYOR, Yurena; FRANCISCO ORTEGA, Isabel; RODRÍGUEZ RODRÍGUEZ, Amelia . . .76

- From Acheulean to MSA stone tool production and processing techniques changes in theSudan, from the eastern desert of lower Atbara River.NASSR, Ahmed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77

- Variability in Middle Stone Age core reduction in Southern Africa.HISCOCK, Peter; MACAKAY, Alex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78

- Raw material procurement and its consequences for knapping technology in the MiddlePalaeolithic site of Katta Sai, western Tian Shan piedmonts (Uzbekistan).KOT, Malgorzata; KRAJCARZ, Maciej T.; PAVLENOK, Konstantin; KRAJCARZ, Magdalena; LAZA-REV, Sergei Yu; RADZHABOV, ?lisher; SNEIDER, Svetlana; SZYMCZAK, Karol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79

- Late Middle Paleolithic industries of Grotte de la Verpillière II (Saône-et-Loire, France).FRICK, Jens Axel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

- Import – export and production: Middle Paleolithic technical behavior at the Su 13 ofOscurusciuto Rock Shelter, Southern Italy.MARCIANI, Giulia; SPAGNOLO, Vincenzo; AURELI, Daniele; RANALDO, Filomena; BOSCATO,Paolo; RONCHITELLI, Annamaria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81

- Technical ruptures in Abric Romaní Middle Palaeolithic site: a multidisciplinary approach toidentify Neanderthal technology and socio-economic organisation.ROMAGNOLI, Francesca; BARGALLÓ, Amelia; CHACÓN, Maria Gema; VAQUERO, Manuel . . .82

- The exploitation of obsidian in the Central Plateau of Santa Cruz, Argentina.GODER GOLDBERGER, Mae; BOARETTO, Elisabetta; MCPHERRON, Shannon P; BARZILI, Omry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83

- Technological variability in late Pleistocene - early Holocene lithic assemblages at the Imilac-Punta Negra basins (Atacama desert, South America)KELLY, Patricia; CARTAJENA, Isabel; MÉNDEZ , César; FAÚNDEZ , Wilfredo; NÚÑEZ, Lautaro;LOYOLA, Rodrigo; SIERRALTA, Simón . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84

- Flintknapping in the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. Hammerstones from SpanishMediterranean region.VADILLO-CONESA , Margarita; JARDÓN GINER, Paula; AURA TORTOSA , J.Emili . . . . . . . . . . . .85

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- Stone tool production in Northwestern Spain: some insights on the specifics of the quartzgroup.RODRÍGUEZ-RELLAN, Carlos; DE LOMBERA HERMIDA, Arturo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86

- Knappers of the Bajo Deba. The Upper Magdalenian lithic production dynamics at theAizkoltxo Cave (Mendaro-Gipuzkoa).GARCIA-ROJAS, Maite; MUJIKA ALUSTIZA, José Antonio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87

- A technological overview of the Noaillian Gravettian of Riparo Mochi (Balzi Rossi, Italy).SANTANIELLO, Fabio; GRIMALDI, Stefano . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88

- Acheulean lithic technology and raw materials in Southern Iberia.JIMÉNEZ-COBOS, Francisca; MORGADO, Antonio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89

- Life without chert. The use of vein quartz in the prehistory of Piedmont (North-western Italy).DAFFARA, Sara; BERRUTI, Gabriele L.F.; BERTÈ, Davide F; CARACAUSI, Sandro) . . . . . . . . . . . .90

- The lithic material of the Inhazinha and Rodrigues Furtado archaeological sites, municipality ofperdizes/MG: an analysis of cultural dynamics.CABRAL DE MEDEIROS, Joao; BELTRAO, M.C.M.C.; VERGNE M.C.; PEREZ DA PAZ, R.A. . . . . . .91

- Preliminary technological comparison between chert and quartz splintered pieces from theUpper Palaeolithic of Vale Boi (Southwestern Iberia).HORTA, Pedro; CASCALHEIRA, João; MARREIROS, João; BICHO, Nuno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92

- Chaînes opératoires and blade technology from the Upper Palaeolithic site of Marchales(Granada, Spain).GARCÍA FRANCO, Alejandro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93

- Giant cores and large flakes in the high elevation desert of Southern Argentine Puna.HOCSMAN, Salomón; BOBILLO, Federico Miguel; ESCOLA, Patricia Susana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94

S4 - Use-wear analyses - signs of usage on stone tools (a.k.a. traceology) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95

- User wear analisys of quartzite lithic implements From the MiddlePaleolithic site of Lagoa doBando (Central Portugal).BERRUTI GABRIELE, luigi Francesco; CURA, Sara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96

- Toolkits, chaînes opératoires and cross craft interaction in the domestic Single Grave Culture:and approach through functional analysis.GARCÍA-DIAZ, Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97

- An archaeological experiment and new knowledge about the chipped stone industry fromVinča culture.BOGOSAVLJEVIC PETROVIĆ, Z. Vera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .98

- The Spike scraper of the Guadiana valley, Durango (Mexico): use and function in theChalchihuites culture.ANDRADE GONZÁLEZ, Israel; CABADAS BAÑEZ, Héctor Víctor; PUNZO DIAZ, José Luis; LAILSONTINOCO, Becket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100

- Tool function and human behaviour in Fuente del Trucho (Huesca, Spain).DOMINGO, Rafael . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101

- Greywacke Vs. Quartzite: an experimental program to compare Ground Stone raw-materials.PEREIRA,Telmo; PAIXÃO, Eduardo; MARREIROS,João; GIBAJA,Juan; CASCALHEIRA,João;BICHO,Nuno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103

'On the Rocks' ‐ International Symposium on Knappable Materials / University of Barcelona / 7‐12 September 2015

8

‐ Using texture quantification of sickle gloss through confocal microscopy to study the origins ofagriculture in the Near East.IBAÑEZ, Juan José; ANDERSON, Patricia; GONZÁLEZ URQUIJO, Jesús; GIBAJA, Juan . . . . . . .104

‐ What is a nice flake like you doing in a place like this? Use‐wear and refit analysis join to studythe quartzites of Middle Pleistocene Td10.1 level of Gran Dolina site (Sierra de Atapuerca,Burgos, Spain).LÓPEZ‐ORTEGA, Esther; PEDERGANA, Antonella; OLLÉ, Andreu; RODRÍGUEZ, Xosé Pedro . . .105

‐ Functional approach to the rock crystal technology in high mountain environments. The caseof Montlleó (Prats i Sansor, La Cerdanya, Cataluña).FERNÁNDEZ MARCHENA, Juan Luis; OLLÉ, Andreu; MANGADO, Xavier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106

‐ Traceological analysis of a singular artifact. The rock crystal point from O Achadizo (Boiro, ACoruña, Galicia).FERNÁNDEZ MARCHENA, Juan Luis; OLLÉ, Andreu; SEOANE NOVO, Cristina; RODRÍGUEZNÓVOA, Alba Antía; AMADO RODRÍGUEZ, Estevo; PÉREZ TENORIO, R. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107

‐ Functional analysis of lithic pointed elements of El Salt.JARDON GINER, Paula; HORTELANO, Laura; GALVÁN, Bertila . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108

‐ Use wear and haft evidences on quartz tools from Vale da Pedra Forada site (Piaui, Brazil).CLEMENTE‐CONTE, Ignacio; BOËDA, Eric; FARIAS, María . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

‐ A palaeoeconomic perspective on lithic assemblages: the traceological analysis of flaked stonetools from early‐middle neolithic context in the n‐ne of the Iberian PeninsulaMAZZUCCO; Niccolò; GIBAJA, Juan Francisco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .110

S5 ‐ Microcrystaline quartz as a geological material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111

‐ Determining chemical characteristics and markers of Neolithic quartz artifacts and debitageusing portable XRF: Results from the Kuivaniemi Mustamaa site in Northern Finland.OKKONEN, Jari; PANTTILA, Hannu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112

‐ Main features of microcrystalline quartz from Miocene igneous rocks from the North West ofAnnaba (Algeria).DAIF, Menana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113

S6 ‐ Characterising lithic sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115

‐ Chert characterization using reflectance spectroscopy.PARISH, Ryan M. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116

‐ Heterogeneity of Knappable raw material used for chipped stone artefact production at themesolithic site of Lepenski vir (Serbia)ŠARIĆ, Kristina; ŠARIĆ Josip; CVETKOVIĆ , Vladica; GAJIĆ, Violeta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117

‐ The Irish lithic landscape project: Chert provenancing research in prehistoric IrelandDRISCOLL, Killian; BURKE, Adrian; BARON, Anne; WARREN, Graeme ; BERGH, Stefan . . . . . .118

‐ Raw material sources of knapped stone tools from the excavation of the prehistoric site atToumba Thessaloniki, GreeceKARAGEORGIOU, Stamatia; KOSTAKI, Aikaterini; VAVELIDIS, Michail; ANDREOU, Stelios . . . .119

‐ From the source to the object: An interdisciplinary approach to tracing the origin of steatiteornaments made by the Iroquoians of the Saint Lawrence Valley (Quebec, Canada).BARON, Anne; BURKE, Adrian L.; GRATUZE, Bernard; CHAPDELAINE, Claude . . . . . . . . . . . .121

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- Cherty rocks from the territory of Serbia as potential raw material for knapped stoneartefacts.ŠARIĆ, Kristina; ERAMO, Giacomo; DE BENEDETTO, Giuseppe; PENNETTA, Antonio; GAJIĆ,Violeta; JOVANOVIĆ, Divna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122

- Compositional analysis of the chert industry at the Palaeolithic site of Giurgiu-Malu Roşu(Romania) by vibrational spectroscopy.ALEXANDRESCU, Emilian Dumitru; STANCULESCU, Ioana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123

- Gargano cherts: Multiparametric protocol for provenance determination.ERAMO, Giacomo; MUNTONI, Italo M.; TARANTINI, Massimo; MONNO, Alessandro; DE BENE-DETTO, Giuseppe; PENNETTA, Antonio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124

- Lithic arrowheads: Siliceous raw material sources and technology in Central Alentejo,Portugal.MIRAO, Jose; COSTA, Mafalda; BARRULAS, Pedro; OLIVEIRA, Jorge; ROCHA,Leonor . . . . . . .125

- First archaeopetrological approximation of the provenance of the Neolithic axes and otherartifacts from the Can Sadurní cave (Begues, Baix Llobregat).REY-SOLE, Mar; ACHE, M.; FIERRO, E.; EDO, M.; ALÍAS, G.M.; MANGADO, X. . . . . . . . . . . . . .126

- Characterizing Jurassic cherts as a lithic raw material in the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic ofSouthern Burgundy.SIEGERIS, Markus; FLOSS, Harald . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127

- The mineral composition of “Chocolate Flint” compared to other varieties of chert from cen-tral and southern Poland used by prehistoric communities.WERRA, Dagmara H.; SIUDA, Rafał . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128

- Chert in its diverse natural occurrences: Geo-tools for a better definition of the sourcing ofsecondary outcrops.FERNANDES, Paul; PIBOULE, Michel; THIRY, Médard; LEANDRI, Céline; LE BOURDONNEC,François-Xavier;TALLET, Pascal; RAYNAL, Jean-Paul . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129

- Sourcing of North American Huron Great Lakes Basin Early Holocene chert artifacts byLA-ICP-MS.JULIG, Patrick; PETRUS, Joe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .130

- Middle Palaeolithic Discoid technology backed tools: An assessment of technology, shapingand functional destination.BUXEDA i GARRIGÓS, Jaume; KILIKOGLOU, Vassilis; RODRÍGUEZ RODRÍGUEZ, Amelia delCarmen; NARANJO MAYOR, Yurena; DEL PINO CURBELO, Miguel; MADRID i FERNÁNDEZ,Marisol; GALVÁN SANTOS, Bertila . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .131

- Provenance and macroscopic analysis of the chert assemblage from Layer D of Lapa doPicareiro (Portugal).ANDRADE, Catarina; FARIAS, Anne; PEREIRO Telmo; HAWS, Jonathan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .132

- Mineralogy and chemical composition of lithic artifacts for identification of provenance inSalobo archaeological sites, Carajás mineral province, Pará, Brazil.COSTA, M. Lima; PANTOJA, Heliana; SILVEIRA, Maura I.; RODET, Maria J.; ANGELICA, R.S.; PAZ,Simone P.A.; RODRIGUES, Suyanne F. S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133

- The Vegamian Formation: Characterization of a source of supply of potential lithic raw mate-rial during prehistory in the Cantabrian Mountains.HERRERO ALONSO, Diego; NEIRA CAMPOS, Ana; TARRIÑO VINAGRE, Antonio; FUERTES PRIE-TO, Natividad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .134

-


10

- Geostatistical models of artifact relative frequency data and the sourcing of knappable mate-rials: Two case studies from Patagonia and the Pampas of Argentina.BARRIENTOS, Gustavo; BELARDI, Juan Bautista; CARBALLO MARINA, Flavia; CATELLA, Luciana;OLIVA, Fernando . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135

- Monegros-type chert: Petrographic characterization and prehistoric usage.GARCÍA-SIMÓN, Luis M. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137

- The Escalada Formation: Characterization of a potential supply source of chert during prehis-tory in Cantabrian Mountains (NW Spain).FUERTES, Natividad; FERNÁNDEZ, Esperanza; GÓMEZ, Fernando; ALONSO Eduardo; HERRERO,Diego; NEIRA, Ana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .138

- Territorial chert abundance: a statistical approach to determinate provisioning areas.SOTO, Maria; GÓMEZ DE SOLER, Bruno; VALLVERDÚ, Josep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139

- Chalcedony from the tolfa volcanic district (Latium, Italy): petrogenesis and archaeologicalpotential.SCARAMUCCI, Sem; MODESTI, Valerio; AURELI, Danile; CONTARDI, Antonio; ROCCA,Roxane 140

- The marine chert from las Lezas (Biel, Zaragoza) and its prehistoric exploitation.DOMINGO, Rafael; GARCÍA-SIMÓN, Luis M.; MONTES, Lourdes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141

S7 - Lithotheques - collections of comparative raw materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143

- A textual survey of different raw materials utilized in the manufacturing of prehistoric polis-hed stone tools in Eastern India.BOSE, Paromita . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .144

- Flint sources and their usage in Sardinia: Recent advances.BRESSY-LEANDRI, Céline; MELOSU, Barbara; LUGLIÈ, Carlo; FERNANDES, Paul . . . . . . . . . . . .145

- Towards 'Lithotheca III'.BIRÓ, Katalin T. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .146

- Lithic raw material sources of Southern Germany.SIEGERIS, Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147

- The Irish Lithic Landscapes lithotheque.DRISCOLL, Killian; BURKE, Adrian; WARREN, Graeme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148

- Presenting LUSOLIT: The Portuguese lithotheque of knappable raw materials.PEREIRA, Telmo; FARIAS, Anne; ANDRADE, Catarina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149

- Evaluating lithic raw material potential in a context of geological complexity: The case of thelithic raw material reference collection from the Monte Amiata and Mount Cetona ridges(Southern Tuscany, Italy).SCARAMUCCI, Sem; MODESTI, Valerio; PERESANI, Marco; PIERUCCINI, Pierluigi; ROLFO, MarioFederico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150

- Informatics Systems in archaeology: Databases in the study of lithic industry.JURADO CORTÉS, Andrés; LÓPEZ-RODRÍGUEZ, Mª Cristina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .152

11


S8 - Gemology – obsidian and quartz as gemstones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153

- Sorcery and ceremony and the association with quartz.EDMONDS, Vanessa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .154

- Knapping metamorphic dolomite to make bracelets: methods and techniques of knapping inthe bracelets quarry of Cortijo Cevico (Loja, Granada).MARTÍNEZ-SEVILLA, Francisco; MORGADO, Antonio; JIMENEZ COBOS, Francisca; GUTIÉRREZRODRÍGUEZ, Mario; LÓPEZ GARCÍA, Antonio; LOZANO RODRÍGUEZ, José Antonio . . . . . . . . .155

S9 - Experimental flint knapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157

- Experimental insights into differential heat impact among lithic artifacts.BUSTOS PÉREZ, Guillermo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158

- Experimental study on flint hammers use in Acheulean and Mousterian workshop assembla-ges in the center of the iberian Peninsula.LAMAS NAVARRO, Víctor; TORRES NAVAS, Concepción; BAENA PREYSLER, Javier; CUARTEROMONTEAGUDO, Felipe; DIAZ, Sara; DE LA SOTA, Paloma; MICHOS, Foivos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .159

- Experimental investigation of fluting technology in Southern Arabia.CRASSARD, Rémy; VOSGES, Jérémie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .160

- A few good blades: experimental tests on productivity of blade cores from the CasaMonteroEarly Neolithic flint mine (Madrid, Spain).CASTAÑEDA, Nuria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .162

- Practical applications of Dekton artificial rock for experimental archaeology and traditionallithic technology.HARWOOD, Ray; CRANDELL, Otis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163

- Experimental approaches to investigating the chaîne opératoire of a gravettian pendant fromMitoc – Malu Galben, Romania.VORNICU, Diana-Mariuca; CHIRICA, Vasile; BODI, George . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165

- Impact fractures: an experimental procedure.SENATORE, Grabiele; CURA, Pedro; GRIMALDI, Stefano . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .166

- Water and flint - “water treatment” and “Fresh Flint”, two contradictory concepts?ELBURG, Rengert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .167

S10 - Stirring the wheel on human behaviour: Mechanical devices for testing material performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169

- The Equotip Hardness Tester: An unaggressive method for assessing the homogeneity of lithicraw materials.RODRÍGUEZ-RELLAN, Carlos; LANTES SUÁREZ, Oscar; FEAL-PÉREZ, Alejandra; BLANCO-CHAO,Ramón; DE LOMBERA HERMIDA, Arturo; FÁBREGAS VALCARCE, Ramón . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .170

- Evaluating the feasibility of robot-aided microwear analysis: Preliminary results of theRoboCut project.PFLEGING, Johannes; IOVITA, Radu; STÜCHELI, Marius; BUCHLI, Jonas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171

- Edge reduction variability in quartzite and chert: Experimental results using a mechanicaldevice to control multiple variables.MARREIROS, Joao; PEREIRA, Telmo; MARTINS, Rui . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173


12

- Experimental design and inference in lithic studies: A controlled experiment perspectiveLIN, Sam C.; REZEK, Zeljko; DIBBLE, Harold L. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .174

- The role of quality in raw material choice: Chert of Central (Estremadura) and Southern(Algarve) Portugal.FARIAS, Anne; ANDRADE, Catarina; PEREIRA, Telmo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175

S11 - Gunflints: Production, distribution and use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177

- Gunflints from the fortress of Zamość: Accessories for obtaining mechanically producedsparks.MĄCZYŃSKI, Piotr; LIBERA, Jerzy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .178

- Gunflint oriented flint mines in southern Poland revealed by airborne laser scanning: Firstapproach to the study of modern flint mining in Poland.BUDZISZEWSKI, Janusz; SZUBSKI, Michal; JAKUBCZAK, Michal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179

- Gunflints in colonial archaeological sites in Patagonia (Argentine Republic): An approach totheir origins and use.BUSCAGLIA, Silvana; ÁLVAREZ, Myrian; ALBERTI, Jimena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .180

S12 - Silcrete as a lithic raw material in global context: geology, sourcing andtechno-economics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .181

- What factors govern the procurement and use of silcrete during the Middle Stone Age of theWestern Cape in SouthAfrica?WILL, Manuel; MACKAY, Alex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .182

- The exploitation of silcretes during the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic in the Massif Central,France: Rare silicified materials in a volcanic context.WRAGG SYKES, Rebecca; DELVIGNE, Vincent; FERNANDES, Paul; LAFARGE, Audrey; PIBOULE,Michel; LIABEUF, Rene; RAYNAL, J.P. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183

- Silcrete reduction processes in the Australian Desert.HISCOCK, Peter; TABRETT, Amy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .184

- The use of bipolar percussion to detach Levallois flakes at Howiesons Poort Shelter, SouthAfrica.TABRETT, Amy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .185

- Heat treatment of silcrete: Thermal transformations, heating parameters and implications forthe South African MSA.SCHMIDT, Patrick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186

- Australian silcretes: Geological and archaeological variation in procurement and manufacture.DOELMAN, Trudy; WEBB, John . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .187

S13 - Obsidian – methodological issues of obsidian provenance studies and a new perspectiveof archaeological obsidian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .189

- The exploitation of obsidian in the Central Plateau of Santa Cruz, ArgentinaCUETO, Manuel; FRANK, ARIEL D.; SKARBUN, Fabiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .190

- New study of obsidian blades debitage at Kašov-Čepegov I (Bükk Culture), Slovakia.ALLARD, Pierre; KLARIC, Laurent; HROMADOVA,Bibiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .191

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- Obsidian in the Danube bend: Use of a long distance raw material in the Epigravettian period.MARKÓ, András . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .192

- The obsidian chipped stone industry in the prehistory of Bohemia (Czech Republic, Central Europe).BURGERT, Pavel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .193

- Obsidian in the northern coast of Patagonia (San Matías Gulf, Argentina).CARDILLO, Marcelo; ALBERTI, Jimena; FAVIER DUBOIS, Cristian M.; STERN, Charles . . . . . . .194

- Provenancing of archaeological obsidians from prehistoric Romania: The current state of research.BONSALL, Clive; BORONEANT, Adina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .195

- Characteristics of rock micro-texture of obsidian for some obsidian sources on the Islands ofJapan.WADA, Keiji; SANO, Kyohei; GOTO, Yoshihiko . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .196

- Obsidian provenance during the transition to food production in Antofagasta de la Sierra(Southern Argentinean Puna, South-Central Andes), 4500-1100 BP.HOCSMAN, Salomón; ESCOLA, Patricia Susana; BABOT, María del Pilar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .197

15

ISKM 2015 - Foreword

This present volume gathers together a total number of 152 abstracts, from many coun-tries, across five continents, for presentations at the 10th International Symposium onKnappable Materials in Barcelona (September 2015). As with the previous symposium inIași (2013) the presentations have been organised into topical sections. In addition to thesessions in the Chaîne Opératoire, and Auxiliary Sciences sections, this year we have ope-ned six independent, special topics sessions, bringing the total number of sessions to thir-teen. Indeed this field of lithics studies, even if limited to knapped stone artefacts, has avery wide range of sub-fields of interest.

One of the main aims of the International Symposium on Knappable Materials is to bringtogether scientific researchers from various fields of study. Not only is this field of interestto traditional archaeologists and prehistorians but today there are many researchers focu-sing on lithic artefacts who come from various other backgrounds, such as geology,physics, or chemistry. New methods are constantly being developed in other branches ofscience that have practical applications in archaeology. This is particularly so of a field suchas lithic studies which has always been strongly connected to the earth sciences. Evenamong traditional archaeologists, knapped stone artefacts are common among assembla-ges ranging from the Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age, and even appear at later period sites.Indeed this category of artefact is found not only throughout time, but at sites throughoutthe world. It is hoped that by bringing together researchers from a variety of countries andresearch backgrounds, we can compare our findings, our methods, and our ideas relatingto this topic and thus disseminate our research to a wider pool of minds and inspire eachother in our own research. Likewise, large scale phenomena which extend beyond bordersmay start to become apparent.

One of the difficulties of running a symposium which is of global interest is having peoplefrom all over the world present. For various reasons, it is often difficult people to attendconferences far away, particularly on other continents. To help resolve this obstacle thesymposium will make use of teleconferencing facilities so that participants who could notattend in person can still present, observe, and ask questions to other presenters. Almosta fifth of the presenters will take part in the symposium in this way. In this way a largervariety of research can be presented.

We feel that this symposium, along with those which follow, will help form a point of con-tact or forum for scientific and personal exchange between various types of researchers,presenting to each other their experiences or interests on these various overlapping topicsconnected to knappable materials and archaeology. In other words, the symposium isintended to bring together a large number of colleagues with common interests and givethem an opportunity to meet each other face to face, share their knowledge, and possiblydevelop potential collaborations or future lines of communication.

In addition to the presentations, the Planning Committee has organised various tours,excursions, exhibitions and social events for the participants to both introduce visitor tothe ongoing research taking place in Barcelona but also to welcome them to the city. Wewould like to extend our gratitude to them for their hard work.

FOREWORD


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As organisers of this symposium, we hope that you will find within these pages and duringthe presentations in Barcelona, research topics of which have connections to your ownpast and current work and which you might find applicable to your research in the future.We would like to thank all of you for your interest in the symposium and hope that eachof you will find this scientific meeting to be interesting, informative, and memorable. Welook forward to seeing you in Barcelona.

Xavier MangadoSymposium President

Otis CrandellSymposium Vice-President

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ISKM 2015 - Abstracts

S1 - Raw material exploitation strategies – mining and surface collecting

Xavier Terradas ([email protected])

Françoise Bostyn ([email protected])

Organizers

Session Description

This session will cover research involving mining, quarrying and surface collecting stra-tegies. It will also cover tools and methods used for mining and quarrying knappablestone. Presentations are not limited to prehistoric studies. They may include historical orpresent day mining or quarrying methods, on an industrial scale or by hobbyists.Presentations may also describe research that has been conducted on specific mines orquarries.


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RAW MATERIAL PROCUREMENT AND LAND USE IN THE NORTHERN MEDITERRANEANARC DURING THE MOUSTERIAN, PROTO-AURIGNACIAN AND GRAVETTIAN AT RIPAROMOCHI (BALZI ROSSI, ITALY)

- GRIMALDI, Stefano ([email protected])- SANTIANELLO, Fabio ([email protected])

Università degli studi di Trento, Italy

The relation between lithic assemblage and geological formations is not enough torecognize the mobility patterns of a human group although previous researches highligh-ted the connection between the availability-quality of raw material and the mobility stra-tegies. In this regard, technical features of a lithic assemblage can provide some clues toillustrate strategies - such as, for instance, "embedded procurement", "specific procure-ment", or "exchange". Therefore, instead of focusing on the bare distances between thesite and the supplying areas, it could be interesting to assume a larger point of view inorder to - while taking into account technical aspects and raw materials - try to recalibra-te the analysis scale from a hunter-gatherer prospective rather than from the strictlyarchaeological site. From this perspective we compare three lithic assemblages comingfrom the Mousterian, Proto-Aurignacian, and Noaillian Gravettian layers of the RiparoMochi site (Grimaldi caves, Balzi Rossi area, Liguria), one of the most complete stratigra-phic sequences of the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic in Mediterranean Europe.

The position of Riparo Mochi in the osmotic center of the Liguro-Provencal arc is a keyto defining prehistoric human diffusion and development in this area. The Mousterianlithic assemblage is made from different raw materials, exploited more or less by the sametechnical procedure, and variability is mainly connected with changes in the intensity ofthe use of each raw material, especially when the decreasing presence of regional rawmaterial from the bottom to the top of the sequence is observed. In other words, theanalysed assemblages share a similar adaptive strategy, but natural resources were useddifferently. The territory exploited to collect raw material seems to become more andmore restricted from the bottom to the top of the sequence. The site of Riparo Mochishows that distinct occupation phases of the Proto-Aurignacian "colonisation" took placeover a short time span. It also shows the existence of groups who were exploiting a largeterritory since the earliest occupation of the site. Human groups who inhabited RiparoMochi adapted their raw material provisioning strategies to the geological context, bymoving raw materials over long distances. The Noaillian Gravettian lithic assemblage ischaracterized by pebble morphology that is largely represented when considering the localflint; the block morphology is very common regardless raw material provenance; alloch-thonous blocks were introduced preformed. Finally, flake cores are also a very commontype of blank even if they are more frequent while considering exotic rocks. Similarly to theProto-Aurignacian, the Noaillian, lithic procurement and technological issues demark alarge supplying territory. Where Riparo Mochi was occupied during the colder period ofthe year, within a seasonal long-distance mobility strategy, that interested the whole nor-thern Tyrrhenian area.


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RAW MATERIAL EXPLOITATION STRATEGIES ON THE FLINT MINING SITE OF SPIENNES

- COLLET, Hélène ([email protected])

Service public de Wallonie, Service de l'Archéologie, Spiennes) Mons, Hainaut, Belgium

- LAVACHERY, Philippe ([email protected])

Société de Recherche préhistorique en Hainaut, Spiennes, Haianut, Belgium

The Neolithic flint mines of Spiennes, a registered UNESCO World Heritage Site, com-prise a vast flint extraction and knapping site of some 100 hectares located a few kilome-tres from Mons (Province of Hainaut, Belgium). Its activity covers a long period of timestarting from the end of the 5th millennium BCE and coming to an end in the course of the3rd millennium BCE (4350-2300 cal. BCE). Known since the second part of the 19th cen-tury, the site has been the object of numerous archaeological investigations during the20th century. These allowed the detection of three mining areas on the slope and the pla-teaus near the Wampe and Trouille Valleys as well as the discovery of features illustratingdifferent extraction methods ranging from simple ones (open cast mining) to complex ones(underground mining). The site is particularly famous for its very deep mining shafts up to16 m deep, exploiting large flint slabs of 2 m in length in the underground galleries atCamp-à-Cayaux. The Service Public de Wallonie and the Société de RecherchePréhistorique en Hainaut focused their research mainly on the Petit-Spiennes area wherethey have been conducting continuous archaeological investigations for fifteen years(1997-2015). Several shafts of about 10 m deep have been excavated. Here the extractionof small-sized irregular flint nodules brought to light specific strategies both in mining andin raw material selection. This new research has led to better knowledge about the rawmaterial acquisition strategies, the extraction methods and the raw material selectionimplemented by the miners. They also allowed comparisons with the results obtainedduring earlier excavations. This presentation provides a synthesis of these old and newresearches as well as an attempt to compare extraction methods and strategies developedat Spiennes and important sites like Grime’s Graves (Great Britain) and Rijckholt-St.Geertruid (The Netherlands).


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QUARRY TOOLS AT THE NAPARUTALIK QUARRY, NUNAVIK (QUEBEC ARCTIC, CANADA)

- BURKE, ADRIAN L. ([email protected])Enseignant-chercheur, Prof. Agrégé, Université de Montréal, département d’Anthropologie,Canada

- DESROSIERS, PIERRE M. ([email protected])Avataq Cultural Institute, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

In the summer of 2008, the Avataq Cultural Institute and the Université de Montréalcarried out the first systematic survey of a large prehistoric chipped stone quarry in theQuebec part of the eastern Canadian Arctic known as Nunavik. This quarry provides anexceptional opportunity for the study of extraction and initial transformation techniquesof a medium quality stone raw material. Lack of soil development combined with minimalplant cover and little erosion means that quarrying tools, knapped tool blanks or preforms,as well as flakes and debris, are all found in primary contexts and in direct association withthe bedrock outcrops exploited. Bedrock outcrops show clear evidence of percussion andextraction along bedded layers. Massive amounts of large size debitage demonstrate theextent and intensity of quarrying along this 400 metre bedrock exposure.

In this paper we present results from our analysis of 270 quarrying tools, primarily ham-merstones, that were found in situ, and in direct association with the bedrock outcrops ofsiltstone as well as thousands of tools in various stages of manufacture and debitage. Theselection of certain rock types (granite, arkose, sandstone), forms (ovoid, spherical, discoi-dal, trapezoidal), and sizes (small boulders, large and small cobbles) is striking and pointsto clear technological choices in terms of quarrying tools. The degree of use varies fromminimal (some crushing) to extensive (rounding, splitting, reduction and reshaping).Additional high precision GPS data allows us to look at the distribution of different quarr-ying tools relative to the quarry face or outcrop in order to analyse the organization ofextraction and transformation stages. We present a model that demonstrates the carefulselection of different sizes and types of rocks used as quarrying tools for specific steps inthe raw material extraction and initial transformation stages.

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Figure 1. Outcrop face (chert) at the Naparutalik quarry showing hard hammer impact marks. Scale bar is 5 cm wide.


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VARIABILITY OF LITHIC SITES NORTH OF MELBOURNE, VICTORIA: A CASE STUDY

- MURPHY, Andrea ([email protected])Archaeology at Tardis, Australia

In Australia, each of the States and Territories has different legislation for the identifi-cation and protection of aboriginal cultural heritage. In 2006 Victoria introduced theAboriginal Heritage Act which offers high levels of archaeological identification and mana-gement. Development projects that include ground disturbance of archaeologically sensi-tive land must now be preceded by the preparation and formal approval of a CulturalHeritage Management Plan. This requirement has resulted in vastly more assessmentsbeing undertaken than occurred under previous legislation and as a result both the bodyand quality of data has also increased.

The vast majority of aboriginal heritage sites registered in Victoria are open lithic sitesin a surface context, sub-surface context or both. Whilst it is acknowledged that theseassemblages are biased towards utilitarian activities and reflect only one component ofmaterial culture, the growing data, much of which is obtained by controlled excavations isrevealing local and regional tendencies in relation to manufacturing techniques, raw mate-rial choice and exploitation zones. Although lithics from specific sites are subject to acade-mic dissertations or research projects, detailed comparative analysis of assemblageswithin Victoria is yet to be undertaken on a meaningful level.

This presentation shows the results of a recent consulting project which conducted anarchaeological assessment of a 28 kilometre section of a pipeline route that traverses arange of landforms and ecological vegetation communities north of Melbourne in Victoria.The assessment included a detailed ground surface survey, sub-surface testing of knownsites and areas of potential archaeological deposits as well as larger scale controlled salva-ge excavation of sites prior to pipeline works. This project provides a useful case study inartefact analysis across a broad area and within the 16 sites investigated that were formedduring the late Holocene. The differences between the sites, locations and contents aresubtle but reflect decisions about pre-contact procurement patterns, including possibletrade with adjoining clans, preferences of manufacturing techniques and variation of sitecontents with landform. The field investigations were undertaken with representatives ofthe relevant aboriginal groups, who consider these projects as adding significantly to theirknowledge of traditional occupation of their lands.


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IN QUARTZ WE TRUST, WHEN ON HIGH. TECHCNOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF THE LITHICASSEMBLAGE FROM 19 SUB-ALPINE SITES IN VICTORIAN ALPS, AUSTRALIA. CHALLENGETHE PREDICTED MODEL OF LITHIC RESOURCE EXPLOITATION FOR AUSTRALIA

- MUHLEN-SCHULTE, Roark ([email protected])

AACAI (Australian Association of Consulting Archaelogist Incorporated) Australia

In 2009 Parks Victoria, in conjunction with the Mount Hotham Resort ManagementBoard, commissioned an archaeological investigation of 11 km of a ridgeline, which wasproposed as a multi-purpose trail connecting Mt. Hotham and Dinner Plain in NE Victoria,Australia. During the investigation, 19 archaeological sites were located and documented;these were dominated by quartz artefacts.

The analysis showed that there was variation in the quality of the quartz that aborigi-nal people brought onto the basalt-capped ridge. The artefacts also varied in the knappingtechniques used.

The unique geology of the area was significant to the evaluation of these artefacts;basalt cap on the ridge provided an environment that is naturally quartz free. Directlybelow the basalt however, there were exposed sediments in the slopes and gullies, whichwere rich with quartz. So much so, that in the later part of the 19th century miners wor-ked these deposits of quartz for gold. Quartz material is also available in creek beds proxi-mal to the ridge, which in turn is close to the archaeological sites identified during field-work. The predictive model suggested that these sites would have dominantly functionedas primary or secondary reduction sites, but was this really the case? What did the inves-tigation reflect about the indigenous population who likely knapped and used the mate-rial? Dating of sites identified along the ridgeline recorded indigenous occupation to withinthe last 1000 years.

The ridgeline is situated approximately 1700 metres above sea level in an exposed alpi-ne environmental zone where weather can change exceedingly quickly. It can snow at anytime of the year. Given this it is unlikely that aboriginal people came to this location exclu-sively to mine or collect quartz lithic material.

Hiscock, P. (2008) Archaeology of Ancient Australia, Routledge, Abingdon


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THE CHERT WORKSHOP OF TOZAL DE LA MESA (ALINS DEL MONTE, HUESCA, SPAIN)AND ITS EXPLOITATION IN HISTORICAL TIMES

(1) - SÁNCHEZ DE LA TORRE, Marta ([email protected])

(2) - GARCIA SIMÓN, Luis Miguel ([email protected])

(2) - DOMINGO, Rafael ([email protected])

(1) - MANGADO, Xavier ([email protected])

(2) - MONTES, Lourdes ([email protected])

1.- SERP. University of Barcelona; 2. PPVE. University of Zaragoza, Spain

In 2012, during a field survey to locate primary outcrops of cherts in the CarrodillaMountain Range (Huesca, Spain), abundant remains of chert knapping were found next tonodular cherts in primary and sub-primary positions. Chert knapping evidence was disco-vered in Tozal de la Mesa, near the town of Alins del Monte (Huesca, Spain), in the firstPrepyrenean foothills of the province of Huesca.

These nodular cherts are related to Garum limestone facies from the Tremp formation.Their original environment was an evaporitic lacustrine deposit. These cherts show a highvariability in quality for knapping depending on the nodule. Their use has previously beendocumented in several sites in this region with Palaeolithic and Neolithic levels.

In order to define the features of the workshop and to determine their limits, we con-ducted a field survey. Due to these works, it has been possible to define its perimeter aswell as to collect abundant lithic remains of chert and other rocks (e.g., ophites) that mayhave been directly related to chert exploitation.

The techno-typological and use-wear analyses of blanks and debris allowed us to iden-tify flakes with large smooth butts with cracks at the point of impact. We also observedresidues of iron oxides at the point of impact, being an indication of direct percussion witha metal hammer. In this presentation we show the workshop of Tozal de la Mesa as anexample of the historical exploitation of chert in NE Iberia.


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PREHISTORIC CHERT MINING EVIDENCE IN SERRA LLARGA (CASTELLÓ DE FARFANYA, SPAIN)

- MANGADO, Xavier ([email protected])- SÁNCHEZ DE LA TORRE, Marta ([email protected])- MARTÍNEZ-GRAU, Héctor ([email protected])- GONZÁLEZ-OLIVARES, Cynthia ([email protected])

SERP. University of Barcelona

In 2004 archaeological works were developed in Serra Llarga (Castelló de Farfanya,Spain) due to the construction of an adjustment pool within the Algerri-Balaguer irrigationproject. More than 140 structures from the Final Neolithic to the Middle Bronze Age wereidentified during the archaeological works.

The site is located next to a marl and limestone formation with abundant nodularcherts from the Rupelian (Castelltallat Formation), the nodular cherts being of a high qua-lity for knapping. Among the elements identified during excavation, two types of structu-res predominate. First, buckets between 1.5 and 2 meters in diameter with a depth of 15to 45 cm filled with detrital sedimentary rocks were identified. Lithic tools are the mainarchaeological material represented in these structures, which were interpreted as lithicovens for the heat treatment of chert.

The second type of structure prevailing in the archaeological record was a small cylin-drical deposit with cylindrical section and 0.5 to 1 m depth. These structures presentedceramic materials, lithic industry and faunal remains and were interpreted as provisionsdeposits associated to the ovens. The concentration of ovens for the heat treatment ofchert and provisions deposits was near the mouths of canyons that cut the Serra Llarga, ina place where erosion exposes the geological strata containing chert nodules. The abun-dance of lithic remains at the site contrasts with the lack of subsistence activities (agricul-ture and domestication) or building elements (post holes, levels of use or silos). Thus, thestudy of all lithic materials recovered at the site reveals the existence of an extraordinaryexample of chert mining that took place from the Final Neolithic at Serra Llarga.

In this communication we will delve into the determination of chert acquisition andmanagement strategies which had been developed, as well as into the functionality of thedifferent types of structures determined during the archaeological works.


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"MONS BASIN FLINT CIE": A STATUS REPORT ON THE FLINT MINING SITES OF THEMONS BASIN DURING THE NEOLITHIC

- COLLIN, Jean-Philippe ([email protected])

University of Namur / Pantheon-Sorbonne University

The Mons Basin (Province of Hainaut, western Belgium) is a geologically rich region,particularly from the point of view of Upper Cretaceous sedimentary deposits, conduciveto an important flint gathering activity during prehistory. Focusing on the Neolithic period,indications of flint procurement as early as the end of the 6th millennium BCE have beenrecorded, but there is concrete evidence of mining sites in the region as early as the 5thmillennium BCE. Flint extraction activities lasted at least until the second half of the 3rdmillennium BCE.

Discovered during the second half of the 19th century, when the region is intenselyindustrialized, the flint extraction sites have since been unequally investigated. Some 150years later, research has indeed focused mainly on the mining areas of the site of Spiennes.At a time when research on flint mines emphasizes the geographical distribution of theirend products, lack of knowledge about the activity of the neighbouring extraction sitesand difficulty in the characterization of the raw materials prompted us to extend our inves-tigations to other mining sites located in the Mons Basin. We addressed several key ques-tions. What can we say about suspected or documented sites such as Obourg Le Village,Douvrain Le Temple, Villerot Lambiez, Flénu L’Ostenne, Mesvin Sans Pareil or Saint-Symphorien Le Cerneau, on the basis of literature, survey and study of archaeologicalcollections? Are all these sites archaeologically attested? What were their productions?Which lithostratigraphic formations were exploited? Is it possible to distinguish distinctfacies of raw material from these sites despite their relative proximity?

This status report is a preliminary step to a PhD research project (University of Namurand Pantheon-Sorbonne University) of which one of the main goals is the identification ofeconomic networks resulting from the diffusion of lithic productions, from extraction sitesto Neolithic settlements both within and outside the Mons Basin.


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WHERE’S THE RIGHT ROCK? LOCATING AND IDENTIFYING LITHIC RAW MATERIALS INSECONDARY SOURCES IN A POSTGLACIAL LANDSCAPE IN SOUTHERN PATAGONIA (~ 47°S)

(1) - FERNÁNDEZ, Maria Victoria ([email protected])(1) - FIGUERERO TORRES, María J. ([email protected])(2) - PEREYRA, Fernando X. ([email protected])

1-. Instituto de Arqueología, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires; 2.IGRM - SEGEMAR

Knowledge of the availability and types of raw materials are required in order to cha-racterize lithic resources and analyse potential exploitation strategies in the past but thisis difficult where secondary deposits dominate in addition to other geomorphological pro-cesses operating in the landscape. Past exploitation strategies observed at site level couldbest be understood by means of a reliable model predicting where lithic resources areavailable in the regional landscape. The Jeinemeni River flows north into lake BuenosAires, Argentina (~47°S) through a deep fault valley dotted with several geological out-crops and cutting through mountain and continental glacial deposits. Human occupationin this cordilleran region of Southern Patagonia dates from approximately 7500 years B.P.

Extant geological information on rock diversity and quality was digitized as well as aspecially drawn up geomorphological map. An additional map evaluating of the degree ofpresent day transportation of geological materials was all combined within a GIS. Thisresulted in the definition of units expressing the greater or lesser chance of finding knap-pable lithic resources. Field samples and petrographic lab determinations of the rockscollected confirmed the validity of the GIS predefined units. The resulting model shows alandscape with ubiquitous knappable raw materials but mostly of a medium quality andavailable in sizes too small to reduce without resorting to bipolar reduction techniques.This model was used to interpret past lithic exploitation as observed in a Late Holocenearchaeological sequence in the same valley. At this location there was only an incidentaluse of local lithic resources and a more frequent usage of superior quality non-local rawmaterials, more abundant but also with more restricted and predictable locations.

The model illustrates the location of knappable rocks based on indicators sensitive tothe sources and processes that determine their eventual distribution within the landsca-pe. The scale of the indicators together with the field and lab controls all contribute to themodel's reliability in showcasing regional raw material distribution for interpreting pastlithic resource use and inferring exploitation strategies at the site level.


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SHAPE EVALUATION IN LITHIC ANALYSIS

- ZARINA, Liga ([email protected])- SEGLINS, Valdis ([email protected])

University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia

Stone tools are important evidence of the material culture, characteristic of the StoneAge. Ancient people selected raw materials with specific properties to create tools for per-forming certain functions. Archaeological evidence indicates that flint has been found asone of the most suitable material for stone tools manufacture. Flint characteristics ensureseveral important preconditions for diverse functional tool production, among which themost important are the possibility to obtain sharp edges and the potential with technolo-gical skills to produce a desired shape. What we know so far indicates that flint craftsmenfollowed certain procedures to create various tools. Initially the raw material was collectedfrom known flint mining sites. This means that a potential raw material for tools was selec-ted from the available material according to transportation options and necessity (e.g.,size, volume), and at the same time the quality was evaluated visually (e.g., structure, uni-formity, colour, shape) and by checking sound. These characteristics are associated withthe identification and diagnosis of a set of features which are characteristic of each mate-rial according its origin and quality. From this point, taking into account the specifics of thedesired tool and the technology being applied, flakes are removed, assessing the charac-teristics of their shape, and with gradual processing the stone tool is created. In previousstudies relatively less attention has been paid to the raw material morphometric selectioncriteria, which could also be used for the reconstruction within the context of Stone Ageresearch. Part of such studies would apply to shape evaluation during processing and alsoto the analysis of naturally occurring forms and types of the flint, focusing on the evalua-tion of morphological features that are key for the selection of suitable raw material andwhich depend also on the specifics of the available stone material resource in terms ofquantity, quality and size. In this study, shapes of pebbles as a possible raw material in theStone Age and shapes of certain stone tool types from the Palaeolithic were comparativelyevaluated. Tool shape characteristics - size, proportions, and symmetry properties, wereassessed according to traditional stone tool analysis. Similarly traditional geological studiesof clastic particles include classification by size, proportions, and roundness, which echoswith symmetry properties. Simple shapes, which correspond also to the pebbles and thestone tools, can be aligned and classified according to geometric shapes, such as point,line, curve, plane shapes (e.g., triangle, rectangle, polygon, circle) or three dimensionalforms (e.g., sphere, cube), thereby facilitating evaluation of the shape properties.Regarding the stone tools, the symmetry assessment was expanded by adding the assess-ment of other symmetric transformations - translation, rotation and glide reflection to thetraditional bilateral symmetry evaluation. This study indicates that at the beginning of thePalaeolithic, stone tool proportions were close to natural pebbles proportions. Over time,the allocated proportions become elongated and uncharacteristic compared to naturalstones. In nature, pebble symmetry properties and their accuracy correspond to the levelof roundness, but regarding stone tools, the symmetry properties are diverse and variablethroughout the Palaeolithic.


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NUBIAN LEVALLOIS PRODUCTION SYSTEM, RAW MATERIAL AVAILABILITY, AND VARIA-BILITY IN ARABIA

- YAMANDU, Hilbert ([email protected])- CRASSARD, Remy ([email protected])

‘Archéorient’, Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée, Lyon, France

Archaeological investigations conducted across the Arabian Peninsula have revealed avery specific variation of the Levallois production system - the Nubian Levallois method.Nubian cores (and by extension Nubian Levallois technology) are the hallmark of the Afro-Arabia Nubian complex.

Technological analysis and core reconstructions from lithic samples gathered in Dhofar(Oman), Al Kharj and Al Jawf (Saudi Arabia) help to refine the Nubian chaîne opératoireacross Arabia. Nubian cores are characterized by a particular approach to point productionand Levallois surface convexity preparation or maintenance. Within the Nubian Levalloissystem, three methods have been identified: 1) Nubian Type 1 method, characterized bythe preparation of the distal to medial guiding ridge by two removals coming from the dis-tal platform; 2) Nubian Type 2, marked by either bilateral or distal convergent and bilate-ral preparation; and 3) Nubian Type 1/2 marked by a combination of the two previouslymentioned preparation methods.

This presentation will focus on Nubian Levallois surface sites from Oman and SaudiArabia. In Dhofar, Nubian Complex sites are found on the Nejd, a wide limestone plateauincised by a deep, now dry, fluvial system, which has exposed a great variety of high-qua-lity chert outcrops. The chert found across the Nejd is opaque to slightly translucent andof very fine texture; the raw material exhibits exquisite knapping properties. The Al Jawfquadrangle is characterized by a series of tectonically uplifted ridges and hills at the nor-thern edge of the Arabian Arch, which runs from northern to southern Saudi Arabia. Agreat variety of knappable materials are found in this area, the most common being greyfine grained chert, quartzite and quartz. While the grey chert is of good quality and flakesvery well, the knapping properties of the quartzite and the quartz are more difficult to con-trol. Middle Palaeolithic sites with Nubian Levallois technology in Al Kharj have mainlybeen found in the Rufa Graben area. This beige bioclastic limestone graben bears severalquartzite outcrops. The quartzite is highly variable in quality and ranges from fine grainedand well silicified to course and heterogeneously silicified. Based on technological analysisand core reconstructions the effect of the different available raw materials at each of the


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USING AIRBORNE LASER SCANNING DATA FOR MINE SURFACE RELIEF STUDIES: RESULTSFROM THE “BOROWNIA” PREHISTORIC FLINT MINE, CENTRAL POLAND

- RADZISZEWSKA, Katarzyna ([email protected])- BUDZISZEWSKI, Janusz ([email protected])

Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University

Prehistoric flint mining has been studied for over a century now, but only at a few siteshave analyses of “mine surface relief” been performed to reconstruct the organization andexecution of the underground exploitation.

Until recently, the limitation on this type of study was the lack of a sufficiently accura-te plan showing the topography of the prehistoric sites. In recent years, the situation haschanged. The development of new technologies, especially the dissemination of AirborneLaser Scanning (ALS), has provided archaeologists with a variety of means. As a result, ithas become possible to obtain the actual imaging of the ground surface, exceptionallyaccurately and automatically placed in a global coordinate system.

"Borownia" is a Neolithic and Early Bronze Age complex used for the extraction ofUpper Jurassic banded flints, located about 5 kilometres south-east of the famous“Krzemionki” site, in the north-eastern outskirts of the Holy Cross Mountains. This siteincludes partially preserved “mine surface relief” comprised of traces of subterraneanmining activity discernible on the ground surface. Prehistoric traces visible on the surfaceform a belt which extends to a width of 30-50 m over a distance of 700 m oriented north-west-southeast. New data, obtained from ALS, have made it possible to perform a seriesof spatial analysis, whose results allow us to reconstruct many elements of the prehistoricflint exploitation system. These results, compared to similar analyses performed years agoat the “Krzemionki” mining field, have revealed surprising differences.

The results obtained allow us to propose a method of comprehensive analysis of “minesurface relief” which, combined with the results acquired by other non-destructivemethods, can become a standard way to better understand prehistoric mining sites.


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(1) - TARRIÑO, Antonio ([email protected])(2) - MOLINA, Fco. Javier ([email protected])(3) - HERNÁNDEZ-GÓMEZ, Cristo ([email protected])(3) - GALVÁN, Bertila ([email protected])

1. Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH); 2. Universidad deAlicante, Spain; 3. Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain

The Equotip (Proceq) Hardness Tester (EHT) (or durometer) is a portable device consis-ting of a piston ending in a 3 mm diameter cylinder that impact against the surface of thematerial to be tested. In this sense, the Equotip Hardness Tester operates on the sameprinciples as the Schmidt hammer (SH), which has already been used in several archaeolo-gical studies, including the mechanical characterization of lithic raw materials.

However, the EHT has been considered to have some comparative advantages, such asthe possibility of being applied to smaller samples, its greater accuracy, and a wide mea-surement range, which allows the analysis on those materials too soft or fragile for theSchmidt hammer. However, it is the EHT´s low impact energy, which reduces the damageon the test surfaces, which is one of its main advantages. This low invasiveness has obviousimplications for archaeology and heritage sciences; as a non-destructive measuring devi-ce, the Equotip can be applied directly on archaeological artefacts or monuments, unlikeother analytic methods.

Although the EHT has been designed for measuring the hardness of materials, it canalso be used for assessing the physical or mechanical properties of rocks and minerals,such as the general strength, the Unconfined Compressive Strength, the tensile stress, andweathering degree. In this sense, the Equotip durometer can be used for detecting inter-nal defects in the material (visible on the surface or not): the presence of fissures, inclu-sions or flaws would lead to a reduction in the strength of the material in specific areas,producing a higher dispersion and variability of the readings.

By using the Equotip Hardness Tester, this study objectively assess and quantifies thepossible effects of these specific features of lithic raw material on mechanical forces simi-lar to those acting during knapping. The dispersion and variability of the hardness valuesdetected by this device might be used for assessing and quantifying, in a relatively objec-tive way, the level of continuity, homogeneity and isotropy of lithic raw materials, and the-refore be used for appraising the specific mechanical characteristics (such as elastic res-ponse and fracture toughness) that influence their knapping suitability.


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YOUNG KNAPPERS IN THE MINE: THE TRANSMISSION OF TECHNOLOGICAL KNOWLED-GE AT THE FLINT MINE OF CASA MONTERO (MADRID, SPAIN), C. 5300-5200 CAL. BCE.

- CASTAÑEDA, Nuria ([email protected])

Autonomous University of Madrid

The work at a Neolithic flint mine is a complex phenomenon that involves not only eco-nomic tasks but also social interactions. There is evidence in the lithic record of CasaMontero that supports the hypothesis that the mine was the place where an importantpart of the transmission of technical knowledge took place and this process implied thepresence of children and youth in the mine.

In prehistoric societies, the transmission of knowledge of technical processes grantedthe group survival and the reproduction of social organization and livelihood. These kno-wledge acquisition processes had as proper scenarios those places where certain condi-tions should meet. Regarding knapping apprenticeship, sources of supply such as quarries,mines and outcrops, have abundant raw material and waste and some work processes,such as selection of nodules, initial configuration of the cores and management of waste,took place only at these places. In addition, mines provide social experiences like travellingto a different place and meeting and cooperating with other groups.

Identifying the waste produced by unskilled knappers in the lithic record is critical inorder to discriminate them from the general assemblage. It is important to assume thatCasa Montero’s lithic record is composed then by skilled reduction byproducts and thosegenerated during the learning process. The latter not only reproduced the normalizedreduction schemes but could also eventually have contributed to the final production ofblades.

The siliceous rocks reduction process is the result of the implementation of a complexnetwork of knowledge of different natures: abstract knowledge, mental imagery andmotor experience. Therefore, learning to knap involves not only the proper execution ofgestures, but extends to all aspects of the Reduction Sequence. Learning to knap requiresa long time, so the demonstration that these processes took place at the site implies thatyoung individuals were present at the mine not only as mere observers.


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LOCAL LITHIC RAW MATERIAL PROCUREMENT IN MOUSTERIAN TIMES: ROCA SANMIGUEL CAMPSITE (NORTH-EASTERN IBERIA)

(1) - DOMINGO, Rafael ([email protected])(1) - MONTES, Lourdes ([email protected])(1) - CUCHÍ, José Antonio ([email protected])(1) - GARCÍA-SIMÓN, Luis Miguel ([email protected])(2). - SÁNCHEZ, Marta ([email protected])

1. University of Zaragoza; 2. SERP. University of Barcelona

Roca San Miguel is an open-air Mousterian site recently discovered along the right bankof the Noguera-Ribagorzana River (Huesca province), in the Pre-Pyrenean External Ranges.The site is located in what today is a steeply dipping slope (around 35% incline), with fre-quent outcrops of the local Mesozoic sandstone. The original sedimentary sequence is par-tially preserved throughout the area, and has been identified in an adjacent section of theslope. The site was investigated in October 2013. During July 2014 it was excavated forthree weeks. There are large amounts of lithic and faunal archaeological remains.

The lithic elements were knapped from local cobbles obtained from the river (ophites,basalts, quartzites, etc.) and from a flint of excellent quality that can be found in a localoutcrop (around 7 km north of the site). The Mousterian people employed the usual tool-kit: sidescrapers, denticulates and unretouched flakes. They knapped their retouched pie-ces from both siliceous and non-siliceous rocks, in varied proportions throughout the threetested areas. The flint nodules that they could obtain were small-sized and presented irre-gularities in their form and composition, with many holes and cortical intrusions.

Nevertheless, its fine grain was very appreciated for making tools: although our dataare still provisional, most of the retouched pieces match this flint. On the other hand, non-siliceous rocks allowed for bigger tools, but retouched pieces from these rocks are far lesscommon. In percentages, around 8% of the recovered flint artefacts are transformed tools,versus only a 4% in the case of those made from non-siliceous rocks.

This presentation aims to show both method and results of a selected survey in theriverbed, in order to test the availability of the different types of rocks identified amongthe remains from the Roca San Miguel archaeological layers. An analysis of the size of thecobbles and flakes, discerning siliceous and non-siliceous varieties, will complete the pre-liminary approach.


34


CHOCOLATE FLINT MINE IN OROŃSKO (SOUTHERN POLAND): NEW APPROACHES

- KERNEDER-GUBAŁA Katarzyna ([email protected])

Institute of Archeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Science

Chocolate flint is regarded as one of the most valuable knappable raw materials inPoland. It shows colour diversity, but is generally brown (dark and light, yellowish, reddish,grey, black). Concretions from primary deposits are covered by thin, light limnic cortex.

Orońsko is located in the north-westernmost part of the Chocolate Flint outcrops, onthe border of the north-eastern Mesozoic margin of the Holy Cross Mountains and RadomPlain, in the southern part of Poland (Radom district, Masovian voivodeship). TheChocolate Flint deposits as a whole covere an area of about 90 km2 (with a NW-SE orien-tation). This silicious material is present in the limestones, residual karstic clays, and in theglacial deposits. Its mining exploitation has been confirmed at over a dozen points, con-nected especially with earlier periods of the Stone Age and Bronze Age.

The studied area is covered by extraction points in the western group of the chocolateflint outcrops, where the so called "Orońskie Mines" were discovered and researched by S.Krukowski. The excavations conducted in 1935 exposed extraction shafts 2 - 1.2 m in dia-meter and up to 3.2 m deep in karstic clays. This shaft mine is considered to be one of theoldest in Poland. It is believed to have been exploited by Final Palaeolithic Arched BackedPiece or Tanged Point (Masovian) societies. In the vicinity of this mine, several otherextraction points have been discovered and researched during the surface examinationssince the beginning of the 20th century, also by Krukowski along with other researchers.The excavations, as well as surface examinations, have supplied lithic artefacts in differentstages of exploitation. On this basis, several theses about this mining industry and its chro-nology have been produced. They have been discussed repeatedly in the literature but thecollection as a whole has never been elaborated on or published.

Contemporary extraction points in the north-western part of the Chocolate Flint out-crops are only visible because of the presence of a large number of mixed flint artefactsfrom different chronological periods and stages of exploitation, as well as limestone nodu-les on the surface. No visible mining relief has been preserved. This presentation is basedon the initial studies of the flint materials obtained during the above mentioned research,as well as on the results of initial spatial analysis of this area conducted with the use ofmodern methods.


35


CONTRASTING MIDDLE AND UPPER PALAEOLITHIC RAW MATERIAL SOURCING IN THECENTRAL LIMESTONE MASSIF (ESTREMADURA, PORTUGAL)

(1) - MATIAS, Henrique ([email protected])(2) - AUBRY, Thierry ([email protected])(1) - GAMEIRO, Cristina ([email protected])

1. UNIARQ - Centro de Arqueologia da Universidade de Lisboa; 2.Fundação Côa Parque

The Central Limestone Massif of Estremadura and the adjacent Sedimentary Basin ofthe Tagus River are located in the Meso-Caenozoic Western Border of the IberianPeninsula. This region is rich in outcrops with flint, quartzite and quartz in primary andsecondary positions that were exploited by both Neanderthals and Anatomically ModernHumans. While quartzite and quartz cobles derived from the Hercynian bedrock upstreamare ubiquitous, in secondary position, across the vast Basin of the Tagus River, flint, be itin primary, sub-primary or secondary position, has a more restricted, clustered distribu-tion.

We present the different types of flint and silcrete recognized in primary and secon-dary position, their characteristics and differentiating features. We then look at contrastsbetween the Middle and the Upper Palaeolithic of the region in the mode of exploitationof these raw materials using two assemblages from the Almonda karst system (theMousterian site of Gruta da Oliveira and the Upper Magdalenian site of Lapa dos Coelhos)and one from the Terminal Gravettian open-air site of Terra do Manuel, 40 km to the SW.


36


RAW MATERIAL SOURCING IN THE MIDDLE PALAEOLITHIC SITE OF GRUTA DA OLIVEIRA(CENTRAL LIMESTONE MASSIF, ESTREMADURA, PORTUGAL)

- MATIAS, Henrique ([email protected])

UNIARQ - Centro de Arqueologia da Universidade de Lisboa

The cave site of Gruta da Oliveira is located in the Almonda karst system, at the inter-face between the Central Limestone Massif of Portuguese Estremadura (CLM) and theadjacent Sedimentary Basin of the Tagus River (TSB).

The cave presents a ~9 m-thick archaeological stratification dated to ~35-105 ka contai-ning hearth features, Neanderthal skeletal remains, as well as fauna, microfauna and woodcharcoal. The lithic assemblage is large and displays a diverse range of raw materials.Silicifications in primary, sub-primary and secondary position in the CLM and the TSB weresystematically surveyed and sampled. The petrographic characterization of geological sam-ples was carried out at both the macro- and the microscopic scales and data were syste-matized under the “silica evolutionary chain” approach proposed by Fernandes & Raynal(2006) and adapted by Aubry et al (2012).

Application of petroarchaeological study of the lithic assemblage from layer 14 (datedto ~45 ka by radiocarbon and to the ~61-93 ka interval by TL) led to the conclusion that theGruta da Oliveira Neanderthals exploited quartzite, quartz and flint sources less than 30km away.

AUBRY, T., LUIS, L.; MANGADO LLACH, X; MATIAS, H. (2012) - We will be known by thetracks we leave behind: Exotic lithic raw materials, mobility and social networking amongthe Côa Valley foragers (Portugal). Journal of Anthropological Archaeology. 31:4, Dezembro2012, pp. 528-550.

FERNANDES, P. & RAYNAL, J. (2006) — Pétroarchéologie du silex: un retour aux sources.Comptes Rendus Palevol. 5-6: 829-837.


37


IS THERE A SOCIO-ECONOMIC INTERPRETATION FOR THE SUSTAINED EXPLOITATION OFFLINT AND THE DIVERSITY OF RAW MATERIAL SOURCES USED DURING THE MIDDLEPALAEOLITHIC IN THE SOUTH-EASTERN MASSIF CENTRAL AND ADJACENT RHONEVALLEY?

During the last decade, a methodological re-examination of the petro-archaeology offlint has been undertaken in the south-east Massif Central. This procedure allows prehis-toric raw material gathering activities to be defined and described with precision. Thesources from which raw materials in archaeological sites were obtained, help define thewidespread geographical areas that were exploited. Viewing raw material sourcing activi-ties in conjunction with technological modifications (chaînes opératoires) provides newinsights into hominin behaviour.

The continual occurrence of flint types derived from the same sources during MiddlePalaeolithic times does not appear to be related to site functions. Even though the acqui-sition of raw materials is embedded clearly within other subsistence activities (like hun-ting, for example) and defines a well-traversed and occupied territory, certain raw mate-rials do not seem to have a direct correspondence with specific economic purposes.However, their significance among the lithic assemblages requires discussion. An interdis-ciplinary approach to the question, based on new and revisited field data, allows an apprai-sal to be made about the locational choices for residential and specialized sites and theextent of prehistoric territories. Using as examples sites from Ardèche (Payre cave andshelter, Abri du Maras, Barasses II cave, Abri des Pêcheurs, and the open air site of Saint-Bauzile) and the Haute-Loire (Sainte-Anne I cave, Baume-Vallée rock shelter, Rond-du-Barry cave, and Rond de Saint-Arcons rock shelter), our methodology interprets the roleplayed by geo-materials in structuring prehistoric regional spatial understanding, the choi-ces made for habitation sites and the functions of those sites.


38

- FERNANDES, Paul ([email protected])Paleotime, Villard-de-Lans, France

- DELVIGNE, Vincent ([email protected])PACEA/PPP, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, bâtiment B18, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CS 50023, 33615 Pessac cedex, France

- MONCEL, M.H.Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, CNRS, UMR 7194, département de préhistoire,Institut de paléontologie

- DAUJEARD, C.UMR 7269 CNRS – LAMPEA, MMSH, Université de Provence, BP 647, 5 rue du château del'Horloge, 13094 Aix-en-Provence, Cedex 2, France

- GUADELLI,J.L.PACEA/PPP, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, bâtiment B18, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CS 50023, 33615 Pessac cedex, France

- SANTAGATA, C.PACEA/PPP, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, bâtiment B18, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CS 50023, 33615 Pessac cedex, France

- BERNARD-GUELLE, S.UMR 7269 CNRS – LAMPEA, MMSH, Université de Provence, BP 647, 5 rue du château del'Horloge, 13094 Aix-en-Provence, Cedex 2, France

- WRAGG-SIKES, Rebecca ([email protected])PACEA/PPP, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, bâtiment B18, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CS 50023, 33615 Pessac cedex, France

- LE CORRE, M.Chemin des Méritants, hameau des Dones, 84240 Peypin-d’Aigues, France

- LIABEUF, R.SRA, DRAC Auvergne, Hôtel de Chazerat, rue Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France

- BINDON, P.Australian Ethnographic Institute, 38 Mont Street, 2582 Yass, NSW, Australie

- RAYNAL, J.P.Departement of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.Leipzig, Allemagne


39


SILICEOUS RAW MATERIAL OF BARRANCO LEON (ORCE, GRANADA, SPAIN)

- CÁNOVAS CALLE, Isabel ([email protected])Universidad de Sevilla

- TARRIÑO, Antonio ([email protected])CENIEH

This presentation concerns the study of siliceous raw material from Barranco León(Orce, Granada, Spain). The archaeological samples analyzed are from level D, which isdate on 1.3 Ma. The methodology chosen in order to undertake this work stemmed froma geological investigation of the site’s surrounding area and geological surveys. The collec-tion of geological samples and their geographical cataloguing was therefore important.The next methodological stage was a microscopic investigation, using a binocular loupe, toexamine the material and create a mineral collection, to be used as a point of reference inlater studies. A petrographic investigation was carried out on the archaeological and geo-logical samples using a petrographic microscope. Finally, we compared the analyses of thegeological and archaeological samples. We surveyed the prime outcrops in unit J2, loca-ted in the Sierra de Orce and Maria. It is formed of clayey loams of biomicrite limestonewith filaments and foraminiferans with layers and nodules of flint. The conglomerates orsecondary deposits derive the lithology input from the Sierra de Orce and Sierra de Maria,and they were selected due to their proximity to the site and their chronological similaritywith Barranco Leon. This flint could be described as calcedonic flint with oolites and bio-clasts, having a cryptocrystalline matrix, opaline, having carbonate impurities of sparite,bioclasts and ooids. In order to establish lithological supply areas, it is only possible to dif-ferentiate between the industries which come from primary deposits or from secondarydeposits of conglomerates.

Almost 59% of the industry within the archaeological remains was made from a varietyof flint which clearly comes from conglomerates. For this reason the main supply areamust have been the secondary deposits, which are situated some 720 metres fromBarranco Leon. There is a difference in usage between the industry carried out in limesto-nes and the industry made with flint. We therefore suggest a definite intention in thesearch and exploitation of siliceous rocks by these prehistoric people.


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INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF SILICEOUS RAW MATERIALS, MORPHOTECHNICALAND FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AT THE CAVE SITE OF EL PIRULEJO

- CÁNOVAS CALLE, Isabel ([email protected])- CALLE ROMÁN, Lidia ([email protected])

Universidad de Sevilla

In 2014 the study of industries recovered from the cave site of El Pirulejo (located in thetown of Priego de Córdoba, Andalusia) began. The material selected for this study camefrom level P5 of El Pirulejo, corresponding to a Late Glacial chronology. We present a lithicmaterials study as a whole, encompassing a siliceous raw materials analysis aimed at cha-racterizing its sources and mobility areas, as it pertains to an introduction to the functio-nality and technical use of flint at the site.

The surveyed outcrops correspond to the Southern External Subbaetic zones located inJurassic levels of the Dogger. Using a binocular loupe, these samples can be described astranslucent flint with ooids and bioclasts and having a microcrystalline texture.(Petrographic results have not yet been obtained).

Another line of study is the exploitation of these flints, as represented in the wholesupply chain of the site. The absence of cortical flakes and the presence of Janus flakeslead us to propose an initial hypothesis that hunter-gatherer groups performed tasks ofgrinding and an initial preparation of the cores at the place of acquisition, carrying out theproduction of blades at the site. As a general characteristic of the industry, it counts on thepresence of large numbers of bladelets and microblades.

According to preliminary studies, flint comes from the local area around the site. Theflint outcrops that appear around the site of El Pirulejo, described as Jurassic flint outcrops,have the same macroscopic characteristics as the flint found at the site. However, theseflints from primary outcrops impede the idea of these outcrops nearby as a source forthese human groups. In addition to flint being the main raw material for knapped tools, avariety of raw materials destined for ornament production made from marine molluscsshells have also been found. This study demonstrates that the areas of mobility of thesegroups could be oriented towards the South of Andalusia, where we can find abundantgood quality flint. Consequently, they had to develop coastal-inland mobility networks orexchange that we can assess according to new research and analyses.


41


EXTRACTION SITES AT VAUCLUSE (FRANCE) BETWEEN MYTH TO REALITY: AN INITIALAPPROACH

- DE LABRIFFE, Pierre-Arnaud ([email protected])Ministère de la Culture - Service régional de l'archéologie Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

- REGGIO, Adrien ([email protected])Université d'Aix-Marseille I

Mont Ventoux and Vaucluse have been mentioned for a long time as a large flint dis-trict. From the beginning of the 20th century, the area was mainly known for its stonehammers with grooves. More recently, research has been conducted on flint characterisa-tion (Binder 2004 ; Blet et al. 2000), the knapping of raw material at specialised workshops(Léa 2004a), distribution, and trade over long distanced (Léa 2004b). Paradoxically no onehas done research into the extraction process, flint mines or quarries, except E. Schmidwho conducted investigations on one site in the early sixties (Schmid 1980).

In this presentation, we provide an overview of knowledge about extraction settle-ments today. We will complete this with an estimation of their potential. This first step willallow us to define and present a definite research program on this area, which is still quiteunknown for flint procurement.

BINDER D. (2004) – Matières premières le silex bédoulien, in J. Buisson-Catil, A. Guilcher, C.Hussy, M. Olive, M. Pagni (dir.), Vaucluse préhistorique, le territoire, les hommes, les cultu-res et les sites, Avignon, Barthélemy, 2004, p. 151-152.

BLET M., BINDER D., GRATUZE B. (2000) – Essais de caractérisation des silex bédouliensprovençaux par analyse chimique élémentaire, Revue d'Archéométrie, 2000, 24, p. 149-167.

LEA V. (2004a) – Centres de production et diffusion des sílex bédouliens au Chasséen, Galliapréhistoire, 2004, 46, p. 231-250.

LEA V. (2004b), Les industries lithiques du Chasséen en Languedoc oriental : caractérisationpar l'analyse technologique, Oxford, BAR Int. Series, 1232, 215 p.

SCHMID E. (1980) – Der Silex-Bergbau bei Veaux-Malaucène in •Südfrankreich (F 1a, b), inG. Weisgerber (dir.), 5000 Jahre Feuersteinbergbau; Die Suche nach dem Stahl der Steinzeit,Bochum, Deutschen Bergbau-Museum, 1980, p. 166-178.


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TECHNOLOGICAL STRATEGIES AND USE OF PROVISIONING SPACE IN QUARRIES OF VOL-CANIC ROCKS (ANTOFAGASTA DE LA SIERRA, PUNA DE CATAMARCA, ARGENTINA)

- BOBILLO, Federico. M. ([email protected])

Instituto Superior de Estudios Sociales (CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Tucumán) -Instituto de Arqueología y Museo (Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e I.M.L., UniversidadNacional de Tucumán)

Sourcing areas are not homogeneous in structure or constitution. There are differenttechnological processes developed in quarries (cores reduction, blank extraction, primaryreduction of blanks, bifacial thinning, retouching and maintenance of edge and tips), lin-ked to a differential use of provisioning space and a variety of activities around the appro-priation of lithic resources. This study focuses on two quarries of volcanic rocks -POZACand PPZAC - located in the micro-region of Antofagasta de la Sierra, Puna de Catamarca,Argentina.

In the Pampa Oeste Zona de Aprovisionamiento y Cantera (POZAC), size discrete areasof knapping are irregularly distributed in a wide "plain" of pediments level II. They havesparse and variable concentrations of debitage, cores and stones tools. At this source, vol-canic rock blocks of large size are exploited, from which very large and wide flakes areextracted. These are transported to residential bases and logistics camps close or distantto the area of procurement. Furthermore, analysis of stones tools found in this provisio-ning context indicates that they belong to “situational gear” (Binford 1979), made by theknappers to cover needs arising during rock appropriation activities.

On the other hand, four quarry workshops have been found in the Punta de la PeñaZona de Aprovisionamiento y Cantera (PPZAC). These show similarity in their nature andconstitution. Large blocks of volcanic rock are absent, so small cores are used for extrac-tion of blanks. In quarry workshop 1, the extraction mainly of useful medium to large sizeflakes is observed, which were transported outside to the supply area. Stone tools at thequarry workshop 1 are denser than those found in the “size discrete area of knapping” inPOZAC, with a high and variable number of typological groups. The variability observed inthe stone tools, together with the different functions for which these were made, showsthat this activity area functioned as a site of multiple activities, where the supply of lithicresources is associated with a set of tasks - processing hard materials (e.g., wood, woodyplants, bones) and soft (e.g., non-woody plants, meat, leather, sinew).

In summary, at POZAC and PPZAC, heterogeneous provisioning space is observed, inwhich different technological strategies were developed according to the requirements ofthe knappers in resource extraction or processing of different products in the knappingareas.

Binford L.R. 1979. Organization and Formation Processes: Looking at Curated Technologies.Journal of Anthropological Research 35 (3): 255-273.


43


NEOLITHIC SURFACE COLLECTING STRATEGIES IN THE KYOTO BASIN, JAPAN

- TAKAGI, Yasuhiro ([email protected])

Department of Archaeology, Graduate School of Letters, Kyoto University, Japan

Throughout the prehistoric age in the Kinki region, Japan, sanukite (a kind of andesite)and chert were mainly used to make knapped stone tools. Sanukite is produced at the verylimited volcanic mountains such as Mt. Nijo, and it is thought that in the distant areas fromMt. Nijo sanukite had been indirectly acquired through networks of trade. Chert, on theother hand, is produced in the vast areas such as the Tamba Belt and is distributed in manyrivers as gravels, so chert had been directly acquired in the vicinity of prehistoric settle-ments. Of various materials excavated from archaeological sites, chert may be one of themost effective materials to empirically reconstruct exploitative territories and home ran-ges of prehistoric settlements.

This time, I analyzed the chert artifacts of Neolithic sites of Kitashirakawa located in theKyoto Basin, which have contributed to the progress of chronological study of Jomon pot-tery by providing standard materials for more than 90 years. Firstly, I observed color andsurface feature of cortex of the chert artifacts. Secondly, I surveyed color, surface featureof cortex, and roundness of chert gravels at many points of the following three rivers: theTakano River (running nearby the sites); the Kamo River (running 1.0 to 2.5 km away fromthe sites); the Katsura River (running 9.5 km away from the sites). At the same time, I chec-ked color of outcrops of bedded chert in the river valleys. Thirdly, I compared features ofchert from the sites with those from the rivers and outcrops, and estimated the size of theexploitative territory.

The results are as follows.

(1) Percussion marks were observed on the cortex of the chert artifacts, which showsthe chert was procured not by mining or quarrying outcrops but by surface collectingin rivers.

(2) The colors of the chert artifacts can be divided into 3 groups: Green group; dark red-dish brown group; black group.

(3) The colors of chert gravels of the Takano River consists mainly of black group anddark reddish brown group, and green group is rarely observed. In the Kamo River andthe Katsura River, green group as well as black group and dark reddish group is easilyfound.

( 4) The roundness observed in the chert artifacts ranges from angular to semi-rounded.

(5) Data on the relationship between survey points in the rivers and roundness of chertgravels were obtained.

The results suggest that Neolithic people of Kitashirakawa sites procured chert gravelsin the Takano River and the Kamo River. Although the location of ancient mainstreamsmight be slightly different from those of today, in the Neolithic age the two rivers wereundoubtedly located within a 3 km radius from the sites, and it can be considered thatquite simple strategies were adopted regarding chert procurement in the Neolithic Kyoto.Traditionally the radius of an exploitative territory have been set at 10 km (two hours’walk) for hunter-gatherers. However, by analyzing chert artifacts excavated from sites andsurveying the distribution of chert around the sites, it is possible to reconstruct exploitati-

45


S2- Ancient lithic trade and economics

Katalin Biró ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

This session will look at topics such as trade routes, use of imported vs local materials,different values placed on certain raw materials, specialised occupations related to lithicmaterials in prehistory.


46


LITHIC MOVEMENT AND EXCHANGE ACROSS THE ADRIATIC: PXRF ANALYSIS ANDINTERPRETATION OF PREHISTORIC OBSIDIAN AND CHERT IN ITALY AND CROATIA

- TYKOT, Robert ([email protected])University of South Florida

- FREUND, Kyle P. ([email protected])Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, Florida, USA

- BROWN, Keri A. ([email protected])University of Manchester, United Kingdom

- FORENBAHER, Stašo ([email protected])Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia

- MUNTONI, Italo M. ([email protected])Soprintendenza Archeologia della Puglia. Centro Operativo per l’Archeologia della Daunia

- PERHOČ, Zlatko ( [email protected])Rupprecht-Karls-Universität, Heidelberg, Germany

Studies of the direction of lithic movement may contribute significantly to our unders-tanding of the spread of the Neolithic package (domesticated plants and animals, cera-mics, year-round settlements) from the eastern Mediterranean westward. In the centraland western Mediterranean, the first movement and exchange of obsidian begins at theonset of the Neolithic (ca. 6th millennium B.C.E.), and includes the circulation of these rawmaterials over 1,000 kilometers or more from the Aeolian island of Lipari and from theCarpathian sources in northeastern Hungary and Slovakia. Obsidian artifacts have beenfound at many sites near the coast of Croatia and on many islands in the central Adriatic,suggesting regular maritime transport.

On the Tavoliere agricultural plain (surrounding Foggia, Italy) there are hundreds ofarchaeological sites that suggest a very early introduction of domesticates to peninsularItaly. The nearby Gargano peninsula includes high-quality chert or flint resources, whichwere intensively, mined starting in the Early Neolithic (ca. 6th millennium B.C.E.), and alsothought to have been traded over great distances.

Identification of the geological sources of obsidian artifacts found at Mediterraneanand European sites is well established, using a variety of analytical methods, but it ismostly in the last several years that the use of non-destructive X-ray fluorescence spectro-meters has led to the analysis of large numbers of artifacts in Italy and Croatia. In particu-lar, the use of a portable, hand-held XRF has allowed analyses to be conducted in museumsand storage facilities, thus overcoming limitations on destructive sampling and transportto external laboratories. In addition to Lipari and the Carpathians, obsidian from Sardinia,Palmarola, Pantelleria, and possibly Melos has been found at sites in Italy, and pXRF iscapable of identifying the specific subsources that were utilized. Far fewer studies havebeen done on chert sourcing, yet the use of this material along the Adriatic is greater thanobsidian.

This study combines the analytical results on sourcing obsidian in Croatia and Italy withthose from a pilot study sourcing chert. These results are also combined with techno-typo-logical studies of the lithic reduction sequences. The combination of their pathways withother archaeological data is used to address the economic structure of the Neolithic in thecentral and western Mediterranean


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EXCHANGE NETWORKS FROM CLOSE-UP: THE CASE OF LIPARI OBSIDIAN

- VIANELLO, Andrea ([email protected])Independent researcher

- TYKOT, Robert ([email protected])University of South Florida

- FREUND, Kyle P. ([email protected])Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, Florida, USA

The island of Lipari was a primary source of obsidian in the Neolithic Mediterranean.The particular location of the Aeolian Islands, of which Lipari is one, has been conducivefor the formation of long-distance exchange networks. Indeed, most islands were probablysettled on a temporary basis and visited primarily to acquire artefacts for exchange.

A systematic program of research conducted now in the past few years has attemptedto trace the dispersal of obsidian materials from Lipari and Pantelleria combining typolo-gical data, elemental data from pXRF and the study of prehistoric exchange networks. Themain purpose is to detect differences among local contexts to reconstruct the progressivedevelopment of the networks as well as any local dynamics and constraints. This approachhelps testing network analysis, currently a favoured methodology, which assumes thatsimilar social dynamics were at work along routes recognised by one dominant material.The pXRF has been able to discriminate the procurement of obsidian not only betweenmajor islands, but also among subsources within the islands, allowing for a fine grainedreconstruction of the networks.

Obsidian is the only material that enables rapid scientific testing for provenance witha high probability of locating its source. As a result, we can follow the dispersal of rawmaterials from their geological sources, and through techno-typological analysis we canidentity how they were consequently reduced. Preliminary results for Sicily and Calabriareveal a marked preference for Lipari obsidian. This preference is evident in sites that couldaccess either Lipari or Pantelleria obsidian, and reveals that ancient people were able torecognise the subtle characteristics distinguishing the raw materials, and expressed a clearpreference for specific sources. The study has further revealed differences among macro-areas, demonstrating that obsidian was procured differently region by region according tocultural constraints and local dynamics. The emerging network appears very flexible withthe product ‘adapted’ to suit local needs. It appears that the ability to ‘market’ the productto local cultures was a key component for the success of long-distance distribution alongwith the function, availability and cost of procurement of the materials exchanged. Theresulting networks irradiating from Lipari are fragmented and culturally neutral, and sug-gest that some principles of market economy may have operated from a very earlymoment in time.


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THE SPECIALIZED CANAANEAN BLADE PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM: ATECHNOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE ECONOMICS OF EARLY BRONZE AGE SOCIETY

- MANCLOSSI, Francesca ([email protected])

UMR 7041 ArScAn- AnTET Anthropologie des Techniques, des Espaces et des Territoires auPliocène et au Pléistocène. Université Paris Ouest Nanterre la Défense

One of the characteristic components of 4th-3rd millennium BCE Levantine knappedstone assemblages is the Canaanean blade technology. Recent studies of material from dif-ferent sites offer new insights into the nature of this special large blade technology, thestructure of manufacture, and the place of this sophisticated production system in EarlyBronze Age society. Detailed technological analysis of the entire range of Canaanean pro-duction waste, debitage, and tools permits identification of the lever pressure technique,which required expert knowledge and skills. The special segmentation of the chaîne opé-ratoire among different sites seems to indicate that production was not conducted exclu-sively in workshops: limited evidence for the presence of all the stages of reduction disper-sed over a large area indicates the existence of a specialized production and exchangesystem.

The Canaanean blades were brought into the sites as trade items from off-site works-hops, but were also manufactured on-site on demand. A few expert knappers moved fromone site to another bringing with them not only the blades for trading, but also their knap-ping tools and a few cores, progressively exploited until discard. These specialists wereintegrated into a wider system, in which contacts and exchanges were probably favouredby the structure of the Early Bronze Age society. Even if the Canaanean blade productionand distribution system flourished under the positive effect of urbanism, central authori-ties did not directly control production. The emergence of complex exchange systems,markets, and other public places oriented towards exchange, offered a medium for morespecialized flint knappers, as part of the general system attached to the new urban econo-mic structure.


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CHARACTERIZATION OF THE LITHIC RESOURCES OF THE PICAMOIXONS SITE (TARRAGO-NA, NE IBERIAN PENINSULA): CATCHMENT AND MOBILITY DURING THE PLEISTOCENE-HOLOCENE BOUNDARY

- SOTO, Maria ([email protected])- VALLVERDÚ, Josep ([email protected])

IPHES. Àrea de Prehistòria. Universitat Rovira i Virgili

Picamoixons (Y-Y') site is located at the geographical coordinates 348399.2 E(x);4574166.7 N(y) (ETRS 89) UTM 31N, situated on the left margin of the Francolí River andnear the Riba Strait, which represents a contact area between the Central Depression andthe Camp de Tarragona area (NE of Iberian Peninsula) (Figure 1).

Discovered in 1972, two field seasons were carried out during the years 1988 and 1993,due to extended damage on the surface of the archaeological deposit. These campaignsallowed for the recovery and characterisation of the archaeological material of the firstlevel, and also identified and established the stratigraphical and chrono-cultural context ofthe occupation. The study that we present focusses on the raw material analysis of thelithic assemblage recovered in 1993.

A previous techno-typological study (García Catalán et al., 2009) indicated that theassemblage shows the typical features of the Mediterranean late glacial context, withblade cores, flakes, blades, and retouched instruments, such as endscrapers, sidescrapers,denticulates, burins, backed bladelets, and points. The radiometric dating characterizedthis assemblage as an accumulation resulting from different occupations corresponding tothe Late Upper Palaeolithic and the Denticulates and Notches Mesolithic (13-12 and 11-10ka cal. BP).

A preliminary study identified the use of chert, limestone, schist, quartz, sandstoneand porphyry as raw materials. Here we will present the results of a study on chert, becau-se it is the predominantly used rock in this area, representing 90% of the assemblage.

The macroscopic analysis differentiated nine varieties of chert. Thin-sections analysisindicated that those varieties can be matched to five siliceous rock types (ST), originatingfrom marine carbonated (Triassic), evaporitic lacustrine (Lutetian) and carbonated lacus-trine (Bartonian) deposits. The five STs show characteristics, which converge on silicifica-tions located around the Montsant, Siurana, Francolí and Gaià Basins.

The distribution of the raw materials in the chaîne opératoire categories indicates theexistence of differential management patterns. In addition, the association with their sour-ce areas confirms the frequentation of different outcrops, which implies a displacementradius below 30 kms. The dominant lithic exploitation territory occupied around 60 km2,but it could spans up to 260 kms2, if the longest distances of procurement are taken intoaccount.

- García Catalán, S., Vaquero Rodríguez, M., Pérez Goñi, I., Menéndez Iglesias, L., PeñaGarcía, L., Blasco López, R., Mancha Flores, E., Moreno García, D. y Muñoz Encinar, L.(2009). "Palimpsestos y cambios culturales en el límite Pleistoceno-Holoceno: el conjuntolítico de Picamoixons (Alt Camp, Tarragona)." Trabajos de Prehistoria 66(1): 61-76.


50

Figure 1 . A) Map indicating the location of the Picamoixons site, geological formations with silicifications (in colours)and the sampled outcrops (red dots). B) Chronological position of the 14C AMS dates of the site (IntCal’13), (Reimeret al., 2013). C) Macroscopic appearance of the chert varieties defined D) Thin sections images of chert varieties (Left:Plane Polariser, Right: Crossed Polarisers, except in Tossa 2 [Left: Crossed Polariser, Right: Image with quartz wedgecompensator]). E) Chert varieties distribution in the archaeological assemblage (left) and its distribution in the chaîneopératoire (right). Abbreviations: NB - Natural Base, PB - flake, FPB - Fragmented flake, PBF - Fragment of flake, ENB -Core, CNB. -. Radiocarbon, 55(4): 1869-1887.


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NEW DATA CONCERNING “LARGE BLADES” IN CATALONIA: APT-FORCALQUIER FLINT INTHE GRAN PENEDÈS (SOUTH OF BARCELONA) DURING THE FINAL NEOLITHIC ANDCHALCOLITHIC

(1) - MANGADO, Xavier ([email protected])(2) - VAQUER, Jean ([email protected])(3) - GIBAJA, Juan ([email protected])(1) - OMS, Xavier ([email protected])(1) - SÁNCHEZ DE LA TORRE, Marta ([email protected])(1)- CEBRIÀ, Artur ([email protected])(4) - GONZÁLEZ, Cynthia ([email protected])(5) - MARTÍN, Araceli ([email protected])

1. -SERP. University of Barcelona, Spain; 2. Université de Toulouse, France; 3. CSIC - IMF,Spain; 4. Universitat de Barcelona, Departament de Prehistòria, història Antiga iArqueologia; 5. Departament de Cultura. Servei d’Arqueologia i Paleontologia

The study of large flint blades documented in funerary contexts from the Late Neolithicto the Early Bronze Age in the north-eastern part of Iberia has been addressed in recentworks by the authors in which 49 burial sites have been registered (caves, rock shelters andmegalithic tombs) with more than 200 large flint blades.

In this paper we will present the recent data obtained from the study of five archaeo-logical sites located in the historical region of the Penedès (south-west of Barcelona). Themacroscopic characterization of the knapped stone industries shows their great varietyregarding the origin of the siliceous raw material, often coming from outside the analysedregion. In some cases their macroscopic features link them to Apt-Forcalquier flint(Provence, ), which was widely distributed in the form of large blades during these phasesof Late Catalan prehistory. The absence of evidence of the chaine opératoire production ofthis type of flint in the lithic assemblages in Catalonia lead us to suppose that the disper-sion of the blades was done as trade items, and only in a few cases were highly complextechnological tools of this kind of raw material distributed (e.g., knives).

Use-wear analysis reveals that these blades were not merely luxury items in gravegoods. Far from this idea, they have to be considered as functional, even multifunctional,items.


52


KURA-ARAXES OBSIDIAN: SOURCES AND TRADE IN THE EARLY BRONZE AGE

- SELVI, Bengi Basak ([email protected])

Bitlis Eren University. Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Archaeology

The Early Transcaucasian Culture (ETC) was dominant in Eastern Turkey, Western Iran,the Transcaucasus and Syriao-Palestine during the Early Bronze Age (3500 -2000 B.C.E.).Eastern Turkey and the Caucasus, which have a mountainous landscape and where thewinter conditions are rough, have rich obsidian sources that were probably exploited bythe ETC people.

The spread of the ETC is mostly associated with trade movements or migration. Mostresearchers agree that trade activities gave this culture a chance to spread from theTranscaucasus to the Lake Urmia Basin and to Eastern Turkey, and later to the Amuq Plainand the Levant.

The diffusion of obsidian was mostly shaped by land routes and the regional choices oftoolkits. This presentation presents the sources of the obsidian unearthed at chosen keysites and their proportion compared to the amount of flint collected at each. Unlike flint,obsidian enables the production of small tools, including micro-lithics, and that is probablythe main reason behind the intensive use of this material, which also gives us clues aboutthe prehistoric economic strategies. The workshop areas at and around the key sites wereevaluated, which provided data that can be used to interpret whether raw materials orworked tools were preferred for trade. Different tools manufactured using the raw mate-rial from the same source found at different ETC sites are compared, discussing the possi-bility of ready-to-use tool trade.

In addition to these, possible routes linking the ETC sites to the sources and otherarchaeological evidence for trade will be evaluated. It is known that the Bingöl – MountNemrut, Pasinler-Erzurum and Arteni-Armenian sources were exploited during the EarlyBronze Age, which means that most of the ETC sites were clustered around the major obsi-dian sources. Data coming from the excavations, which we used to identify the sources andhow many sources were used in a particular site, is presented. Various reasons for some ofthe ETC sites to prefer certain obsidian sources to others is also discussed together withthe evidence flint tools can provide. Therefore, possible trade activities related to obsidianbetween the ETC sites and southern contemporary sites is discussed.


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OBSIDIAN IN PATAGONIA: A SOCIAL MAP OF A LONG DISTANCE ROCK IN HUNTER-GATHERER CONTEXTS

- FERNÁNDEZ, María Victoria ([email protected])

Instituto de Arqueología, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras. Universidad de Buenos Aires

In Patagonia, obsidian raw material has been widely used from the beginning of theoccupation of the area - at _10,000 BP - at many sites studied in this region, even in sitesfar from the source. Geochemical analyses carried out to date for archaeological obsidianindicate that multiple sources were used to procure this raw material. The identified pro-venience sites include ca. 20 sources, but there are still some unknown and there is one –and probably more - geological outcrop that has no evidence of use. The more importantsources, with high quality rocks, and abundance and wide dispersion, were used since thefirst peopling of the area. The sources with limited availability or accessibility constraintswere gradually incorporated into the range of resources used.

We attempt to assess the mechanisms of acquisition of this rock, its patterns of use,the relation with others resources and the implications of the different kinds of sourcesand rock quality for the provisioning. To achieve this goal, we present the main geologicalaspects of all known obsidian sources and their archaeological spatial and temporal distri-bution. We analysed all the current information from Patagonia, especially that from ourinvestigation area in the southern portion of this region. The aim was to create a mapwhere we can see the patterns of use of obsidian during the Holocene.

Finally, we propose and discuss different hypothesis to explain the observed results inthe use of obsidian in relation with technological decision making, the role of source-terri-tories, the extent of social relations, the territorial organization, mobility, population inter-actions, and exchange systems, among many others relevant topics.


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DIFFICULTIES AND RESULTS IN THE ASSESSMENT OF LITHIC RAW MATERIAL AVAILABI-LITY: TWO CASES FROM SOUTH PATAGONIA (ARGENTINA)

- FRANCO, Nora Viviana ([email protected])CONICET and University of Buenos Aires

- VETRISANO, Lucas ([email protected])University of Buenos Aires

In order to understand how raw materials are obtained, used and exchanged, a goodknowledge of the regional lithic resource base is needed. The degree of difficulty in obtai-ning the necessary information would vary in relationship to geological processes affectingdifferent regions. It should be pointed out that studies about the resource base have cen-tred on primary sources. However, humans have frequently used secondary sources.

Here we will analyse two cases from south Patagonia in which the understanding of thelithic resource base presents different difficulties: the southern Santa Cruz River and northof the Chico River. While both areas were affected by glacial processes and present a vastmajority of siliceous secondary sources, the second one is much more heterogeneous,which different availability of rocks in areas located at less than 1 km apart. This poses aproblem because geochemical analysis is of limited utility and a high amount of samplingis required.

Studies carried out along the Santa Cruz River have shown that dacites are the most fre-quent rocks of good quality, both in the upper and the lower courses of the river. In theupper course, the way in which they were utilized changed between the Middle and LateHolocene, something that may be the result of changes in the way the area was used orthe movement of different populations with different technological choices. The introduc-tion of different varieties of obsidian has been recorded in the area, as well as changes inthe way they were used. Exotic black obsidian was at first a part of the transported indivi-dual tool-kit, and afterwards it was incorporated into ensembles probably by exchange.Grey-green banded obsidian was circulated in the area since the early Holocene but wasonly part of mortuary contexts during the late Holocene.

The situation north of the Chico River is more complex. Not only have the studiesbegun only a short time ago but there is a high and punctuated availability of siliceousrocks. Efforts have been carried out in order to register this variability and first tendenciesin the utilization of immediately available and non-local rocks have been recorded. Studiescarried out in the area have also shown the existence of a new secondary source of blackobsidian, extending the distribution of this raw material well to the east. Lithic characte-ristics, however, have allowed for the recognition of the utilization of the primary lithicsource by ca. 8000 years B.P.


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LATE GLACIAL AND EARLY HOLOCENE RAW MATERIAL ECONOMIES AT THE HELGA-ABRIROCK SHELTER SITE IN ACH VALLEY

- HESS, Thomas ([email protected])

University of Tübingen

The Helga-Abri rock shelter site is situated in the Ach Valley of Baden-Württemberg,Germany, on the Swabian Jura. It forms a protected area in close proximity of the famouscave site of Hohle Fels. During the Late Magdalenian and the Early Mesolithic, it was occu-pied by mobile hunter-fisher-gatherers. Excavations by the University of Tübingen in the1970s and 1980s have revealed archaeological features, such as fireplaces, multifunctionalpit-structures and the remains of a potential smoking-tent. Due to its stratigraphic sequen-ce, the site plays a key role in our understanding of cultural processes during the terminalPleistocene and early Holocene in Southwestern Germany. This period was marked byrapidly changing environmental conditions, to which prehistoric groups reacted with ahigh degree of innovation. In the framework of a PhD-study, the lithic artefacts are syste-matically analysed. In addition to typo-technological investigations, the project involveslithic sourcing by petrographic methods. The latter is of significant value for the recons-truction of territories and social relations in the past. Imports of exotic raw material overdistances of up to 300 km suggest a far-reaching contact network and movements alongthe Jura Mountains during the Late Glacial. Geological similarities, leading to the abundan-ce of chert-bearing layers, as well as possible campsites, facilitated migration between dif-ferent regions. In contrast to this pattern, Mesolithic groups living at Helga-Abri mainlycollected local chert that was heat-treated prior to further processing. Based on ethnogra-phic analogies and substantivist theory, the presentation argues for a multidirectionalapproach, considering symbolic aspects of lithic raw materials. Furthermore, it emphasi-ses their role in the social sphere of prehistoric communities, such as the construction ofcultural identity.

Keywords: lithic raw material; provenance analysis; long-distance-exchange;’ substan-tivism; Late Magdalenian; Mesolithic; ethnoarchaeology


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CHALCOLITHIC RAW MATERIAL ECONOMY IN LIGHT OF NEW DATA FROM THE“PRZYJAŹŃ” MINING FIELD IN RZECZKOWO (CENTRAL POLAND)

- BUDZISZEWSKI, Janusz ([email protected])- GRUŻDŹ, Witold ([email protected])- JAKUBCZAK, Michał ([email protected])- SZUBSKI, Michał ([email protected])

Institute of Archaeology, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw

The studies of chalcolithic production from Chocolate Flint are still not well investiga-ted when it comes to the production of “dagger” blades. These forms are usually madefrom long regular blanks and are found among inventories attributed to the Lubelsko-Wołyńska culture. In our research we examine how these blades were extracted and pro-duced.

During our survey carried out on a Chocolate Flint outcrop in 2013 we discovered seve-ral new prehistoric extraction fields of which one, “Przyjaźń” in Rzeczkowo (CentralPoland), was located on redeposited sediments of glacial origin. Flint nodules from this sitewere changed by post-depositional factors, which caused heavy patination of their colours.In such form they were picked up by prehistoric producers and used for blade production.We studied this collection by morphological analyses to assess the technology and compli-mented this with comparison to experimentally made items.

“Przyjaźń” is a Chocolate Flint mine where raw material was extracted from quaternarysediments differently than what has been observe at well know mines in the region. It isvisible in the fragmentary preserved relief of the anthromorphically changed surface of thesite.

Additionally, the specific type of colourful raw material, together with technologybased on production of long blades with the punch technique suggest to us that theassemblages should be linked to the Chalcolithic Lubelsko-Wołyńska culture.

Our hypothesis of raw material acquisition and flint distribution sheds new light onChalcolithic cultures in the region. Most likely the flints were extracted by use of simplemethods and nodules were transported over long distances with only minimal preparationof pre-cores. Occasionally, blades were produced on mining fields but this was linked to theearly phases of reduction. Macrolithic blades were made in settlements by highly qualifiedknappers.


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LOCAL OR IMPORTED RAW MATERIAL? THE STUDY OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF FLINTAND CHERT IN DYNASTIC EGYPT (FROM THE MIDDLE KINGDOM TO THE END OFROMAN PERIOD)

- BULAWKA, Sylwia ([email protected])

Institute of Archeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences

The use of flint and chert as a raw material for tools production in the ancient Egyptcontinued longer than in the neighboring territories. Lithic industries functioned since theStone Age, through the Predynastic and Dynastic Periods, as late as the Roman Period.

Over time, however, their occurrence significantly decreased. The attention of resear-chers has been limited to the lithic inventories dated from the Stone Age to the end ofEarly Dynastic Period. The artifacts made of this raw material in later periods also occu-rred, even when metal products were commonly used, but this issue has usually beenunderestimated by the scholars. That is why so little is known about this part of ancientEgyptian manufacturing.

It is particularly important to note that the widespread use of flint raw material for theproduction of everyday objects continued into the Middle Kingdom and later periods. Thiswas caused by the difficulties in access to tin and copper, of which deposits in Egypt werescarce. Flint, however, taking into account its great hardness, widespread availability andlow cost perfectly suited to the production of required implements. In addition, besidesthe artifacts there are also known paintings from the tombs of the Middle Kingdom depic-ting the production of flint knives.

Flint and chert are present almost all throughout the territory of Egypt. Its sources arelocated along the Nile Valley, from Cairo to Aswan. Two types of raw material are knownto have been used. It could be mined (in nodules or in tabular shape) or collected from thesurface. The first, of much better quality, was extracted at a few outcrops in the discussedperiods: in the Wadi al-Sheikh, Wadi Sojoor, Wadi Umm Nikhaybar, el-Tod, WesternThebes and probably in Hierakonpolis. The evidence from the inventories of many sitesalso confirms that some of the implements were made from local raw materials, and other,especially those more advanced, were imported from outside. It is unclear whether thisphenomenon related to the specific types of implements or whether other factors areinvolved here. The main aspects of the distribution and components are also unknown.This issue is deeply analyzed in this presentation.

The main goal of the study was the attempt at reconstruction of the distribution of rawmaterials in Egypt from the Middle Kingdom to the end of the Roman period. This inclu-des the analysis of places of mining, processing and settlement areas themselves Also, theissue of different factors (e.g., geographical, political, etc.), which could determine theavailability of the flint and chert, will be taken up.


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THE EXPORT OF HELIGOLAND FLINT IN PREHISTORY WITH SPECIAL FOCUS ON DANISHFINDS

- HIRSCH, Klaus ([email protected])

Museum Sønderjylland - Arkæologi Haderslev

In the early 1970s, geologists became aware of unique flint deposits on the small islandcomplex of Heligoland, located in the North Sea 46 km off the German coast. UpperCretaceous chalk outcrops in the subtidal area under the islet “Düne” are the source of fivedifferent types of flint. It was in the 1980s, that the Dutch archaeologist Jaap Beuker rea-lized that a hoard found at Een (Drenthe province, Netherlands), associated with theFunnel Beaker Culture, contained objects made of Heligoland Flint. This discovery trigge-red intensive research during following decades and led to the conclusion that the flintsources of Heligoland were exploited in the Stone, Bronze and early Iron Ages.

Although all types of Heligoland Flint are knappable, it seems that only two types, redflint and tabular flint, were regularly used in prehistory. The abundant tabular flint hasexcellent knapping properties, is brownish-gray in color, and was probably “exported” ona large scale. However, because of its color, it is difficult to distinguish it from commonBaltic Flint. The rather sparse red flint was highly sought after and can be easily recognizedon the basis of its exquisite red color. Artifacts made of Heligoland Flint have been foundover a vast area mainly along the North Sea coasts of the Netherlands and Germany as wellas Denmark.

The earliest finds of artifacts made of red Heligoland Flint date to the Late PalaeolithicFedermesser Group and Ahrensburg Culture. There seems to be a hiatus in flint exploita-tion thereafter, because to date no artifacts have been found that reliably date to theMesolithic period. In the course of the Early Neolithic, the flint outcrops were apparentlyrediscovered. Several thin butted axes made of this special material prove that the lateEarly Neolithic population obtained material from Heligoland. Exploitation proceededthroughout the Neolithic and the Bronze Age and finally ceased sometime in the Early IronAge.

The first Danish find of red Heligoland Flint was recognized in 2006. Since then, 20 arti-facts of red flint and 10 of gray flint have been identified in public and private collectionsas well as in recently excavated material. The artifact spectrum covers all common typesof “large” tools, for example axes, adzes, sickles and daggers. This is remarkable, sincefrom a modern point of view there was no necessity to transport Heligoland Flint as far as300 km into areas where local flint of high quality was abundant and easily accessible.


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RADIOLARITE IN POLAND: OCCURRENCE AND DISTRIBUTION DURING THE STONE AGEAND EARLY BRONZE AGE

- KERNEDER-GUBAŁA Katarzyna ([email protected])

Institute of Archeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Science

There are a lot of good quality lithic raw materials in Poland, especially flints, but des-pite this radiolarite was also willingly used, especially in the vicinity of its outcrops.Radiolarite is a siliceous rock which originated in deep-see sediments from the sedimenta-tion of radiolarian skeletons. It is a well-known raw material commonly used during theStone Age and Early Bronze Age in Europe.

The richest and the most important deposits in Poland are located in the PieninyKlippen Belt. This is the part of geological unit, which appears also in several other coun-tries in the Carpathian Mountains (Romania, Ukraine, Slovakia, Austria). It occurs in thesouthern part of Poland, in the Pieniny Mountains (Nowy Targ district, Małopolskie voivo-deship). Excavations conducted in this area since the 1970s by P. Valde-Nowak and J.Rydlewski have revealed abundant remains of Paleolithic processing workshops andcamps. Until this fieldwork, it was thought that all radiolarite artefacts found at PolishStone Age and Early Bronze Age sites located in the northern part of the Carpathians, espe-cially in the Vistula Basin, came from Slovakia and other distant areas.

Other areas, where the exploitation of radiolarite is confirmed, but in on a smallerscale, are located also in the Carpathians (Carpathian Flysh in the South-Eastern part ofPoland) and in the Silesia region (secondary deposits of so called “Gliwickie Radiolarites”).

Radiolarite was the object of distribution in the Stone Age and Early Bronze Age inPoland since the Middle Palaeolithic, in varying degrees in particular periods, dependingon many cultural and practical factors. It seems that the greatest significance of importedradiolarite was in the Final Palaeolithic, as indicates by the largest number of the sites withthis raw material as well as its large geographic dispersal. Surprisingly, radiolarite does notseem to have been popular in the Neolithic and Chalcolithic, something which does notcorrespond to the situation of the surrounding areas (Slovakia, Hungary, Austria). The pro-blem of the identification of the exact beds where the distributed artefacts come from isdifficult to solve.


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NEW CHALLENGES IN THE STUDY OF LITHIC RAW MATERIALS IN CENTRAL ITALY AT THEDAWN OF METAL WORKING SOCIETIES: THE CASE OF LA PIETRA AND OTHER RADIOLA-RITE QUARRY-WORKSHOPS IN TUSCANY

In central-southern Tuscany, radiolarite and radiolarian chert from the geological for-mation of Diaspri (Jaspers) has been a fundamental lithic raw material throughout prehis-tory. During the Copper Age this material acquired a specific importance as it was selectedfor the local production of flat retouched arrow and javelin heads. In the regional archaeo-logical record, the latter artefacts are found mostly within burial contexts which representthe major evidence for the period given that very little settlement evidence has been dis-covered so far.

Given the scarcity of extra-funerary evidence, the discovery and the recent investiga-tion of the impressive radiolarite quarry of La Pietra has shed new light on the economy ofCopper Age populations. La Pietra has already been described in other works as a specia-lized quarry-workshop for the production of preforms for foliated armatures.

Our aim here is to integrate the data from this site with its contemporary archaeologi-cal record, paying attention to the transformation local populations were undergoing aspart of the transition to metal-working and socially differentiated societies. Interestingnew data may come from taking a lithic raw material perspective in a context where diffe-rent cultural groups have been individuated by archaeologists mainly on the grounds ofceramic types and funerary habits.

Parallel to the archaeological investigation at La Pietra and to the study of the reduc-tion sequence which took place at the site, a programme of surveys has been started onthe other radiolarite outcrops of the area in order to verify the presence of exploitationcontemporary with La Pietra and thus gradually reconstruct an ancient geography of lithicraw material supply. Preliminary results of these surveys are presented here.

Methodological questions are also discussed. These particularly concern the issue ofdeveloping raw material studies within a geologically complex area. In fact whereas LaPietra quarry is part of a large and well-known radiolarite outcrop, there exist many smalland very small occurrences of radiolarite, which are found often in olistostromes withindifferent geological formations and are not always indicated on geological maps even at alarge scale. We show an example in which one of these smaller radiolarite occurrences hasprovided positive archaeological evidence. Another peculiar geological feature to the areaconsidered is the coexistence of outcrops of two different types of radiolarite (those of theTuscan Domain and the Internal Ligurian Domain) with different palaeo-geographic originsbut similar macroscopic aspect. Characterizing and distinguishing these two sources isnecessary in order to define the geography of radiolarite exploitation and may reseacherssource the raw material of single artefacts more precisely and thus shed light on circula-tions and exchanges. The results of the first attempt to individuate petrological and geo-chemical markers which can be used to distinguish geologically and archaeologically bet-ween the two radiolarite types are presented here.

In conclusion, the interdisciplinary study of La Pietra and other lithic quarry-workshopsis contributing to bridge the gap between the archaeological knowledge of Copper Agepopulations and their experience of the landscape and its natural resources.

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(1) - SCARAMUCCI, Sem ([email protected])(2) - BERTOLA, Stefano(3) - COSTANTINI, Armando ([email protected])(3) - GIAMELLO, Marco(4) - VOLPI, Vanessa(3) - MORONI, Adriana ([email protected])

1. Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences - R.U. Prehistory andAnthropology – University of Siena; 2. Institut für Geologie und Paläontologie, UniversitätInnsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria; 3. Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences,University of Siena, Siena, Italy; 4. Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy,University of Siena, Siena, Italy


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LITHIC RAW MATERIAL PROCUREMENT STRATEGIES AND EXCHANGE IN THE LA PLATABASIN, ARGENTINA

- SILVESTRE, Romina ([email protected])- ACOSTA, Alejandro ([email protected])- LOPONTE, Daniel ([email protected])

CONICET, Instituto Nacional de Antropología y Pensamiento Latinoamericano, Buenos Aires,Argentina

The technological organization and lithic raw material procurement strategies of hun-ter–gatherers have been subjects of considerable interest in the La Plata Basin (Argentina).Ongoing archaeological research shows that the strategies employed by native popula-tions to produce their stone artifacts during late Holocene times, are far more complexthan previously thought.

The lower Paraná wetland is a region that lacks primary lithic outcrops, but it is loca-ted in an area where a high population dynamic existed during late Holocene times.Several ethno-historical sources mention that when the Spaniards arrived, this region wasinhabited by diverse ethnic groups, showing a dense occupation of the space. In fact,ongoing archaeological research shows that the lower La Plata Basin was occupied by com-plex hunter-gatherers as they competed for space with the newly arrived Amazonian hor-ticulturalists known as Guaraní. In this scenario, the analysis of lithic artifacts recoveredfrom several archaeological sites from this wide region, allow us to evaluate the complexrelationships between these groups through the study of lithic raw material provisioningand exploitation strategies.

There are several features that are present in these sites: the presence of rocks comingfrom sources as distant as 300 km from the archaeological sites, such as orthoquartziteand chert; the remarkable existence of lithic prestige goods such as beads made of mala-chite, an exotic rock found farther than 500 km from the sites; a very characteristic projec-tile point design shared by all archaeological sites coming from the region; the presenceon all sites of silicified limestone, a rock coming from the banks fo the Uruguay River, froma distance of 280 km. All these features, along with other lines of evidence such as potterydesign and decoration allow us to conclude that during late Holocene, the lower La PlataBasin was a highly dynamic space in terms of population, and was inhabited by nativepopulations that maintained close relations and which shared not only raw materials butalso ideas.


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MOVING STONES: FIRST HYPOTHESIS ABOUT FLINT MANAGEMENT IN SEVERAL NEOLI-THIC SITES OF CENTRAL APULIA (SOUTH-EAST ITALY)

- SIVILLI, Sandra ([email protected])

Università del Salento

Apulia (South-East Italy), from the end of the 7th to the 5th millennium BCE, is an areaof particular interest for the study of the circulation of lithic raw materials, particularlygiven the richness and variety of the Neolithic cultural phases; the dynamics of populationchanges and economic structures; the geomorphologic features and its geographic posi-tion; and the existence of a complex district of flint mines in the Gargano promontory(Tarantini & Galiberti 2011). Starting from 6th millennium BCE, this district shows organi-zed and systematic underground extraction activity.

At Apulian Neolithic sites, the primary raw material used was flint, either “imported” or“local”, although obsidian, siliceous limestone, quartzite, chalcedony and greenstone arealso present. All of these raw materials could have reached sites through different circula-tion modes, which are barely known due to the absence of investigation. In this context,the contribution of Gargano flint to these contexts may be overestimated, especially dueto the lack of studies on alternative supply sources. Rather, the analysis of published data(Conati & Sivilli in press) suggests that, given the variety of raw materials and their proces-sing technology, from the early phases of the Neolithic an “economy of raw materials”(sensu Perlés 1991) was in use.

This study is part of a PhD research project, which aims at demonstrating the variety ofraw material circulation models between the 7th and 5th millennia BCE in south-easternItaly. The presentation will show the first results of the technological study of a number ofNeolithic lithic assemblages from sites in central Apulia and the initial hypotheses for thecirculation models.

CONATI BARBARO C., S. SIVILLI , in press, Osservazioni sulle modalità di approvvigiona-mento e circolazione della selce nel corso del Neolitico in Puglia, in "Atti XLVII RiunioneScientifica dell'Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria", Ostuni 2012.

PERLÈS C. 1991, Économie des matières premières ou économie de débitage:deux concep-tions opposées?, in quot;25 ans d’études téchnologiques en préhistoire bilan et perspecti-ves, Actes de XI rencontres internationales d’archéologie et d’histoire d’Antibes", APDCA,Juan-les-Pins, pp.35-45.


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LITHIC RAW MATERIAL RESOURCES AT THE BRONZE AGE SITE OF OUTEIRO DO CIRCO,BEJA (SOUTH PORTUGAL)

- SOARES, Sofia ([email protected])ESTIG - Instituto Politécnico de Beja

- REIS, Helena ([email protected])

- SERRA, Miguel ([email protected])Palimpsesto, Inc

- PORFÍRIO, Eduardo ([email protected])Palimpsesto, Inc

This presentation analyses flaked lithics raw materials and their provenience in the caseof a Late Bronze Age settlement near Beja city (South Portugal). Outeiro do Circo is a largefortified settlement from the Late Bronze Age (1250-850 BCE), having an occupied area ofabout 17 hectares and making it one of the largest settlements of this period in the IberianPeninsula. The element that gives greater emphasis to this settlement is an impressive wallthat borders it almost entirely. The wall reveals a complex defensive system, with doublewalls, bastions and moats.

The majority of the archaeological artefacts are comprised of ceramic materials, thelithic and metal artefacts being a minority. However, the Bronze Age lithics show a varietyof typology and raw-material, demonstrating the importance that the use of the stone stillhad during this period.

Portuguese studies of lithic artefacts from Bronze Age sites are scarce. Given this situa-tion, the lithics from this period are not very well known and there are some questionsthat still need to be addressed, such as the acquisition of the raw material, and the tech-niques used for the manufacture of the tools. The ongoing research at Outeiro do Circo hasprovided, for now, a small assemblage of knapped stone artefacts such as cores, flakes, sic-kles, denticulates, and a posteriori tools. The characteristics of this assemblage reveal thatthe inhabitants of Outeiro do Circo used a great variety of local and regional raw materialsfor the production of several flaked stone supports, with special focus on the productionof sickles. Macroscopic examination of the lithics available from six years of archaeologicalexcavations identified different raw materials such as chert, jasper, flint, quartzite and gab-bro. Probable provenience and availability of raw materials is discussed and placed intolocal and regional geology. Comparisons with similar contexts are made.


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UPPER PALAEOLITHIC SOCIAL NETWORKS IN CENTRAL AND NORTHERN PORTUGAL ASREVEALED BY LITHIC RAW MATERIAL SOURCING

- AUBRY, Thierry ([email protected])Côa Parque, Fundação para a Salvaguarda e Valorização do Vale do Côa

- GAMEIRO, CristinaUNIARQ, Centro de Arqueologia Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Letras, Lisboa

- MANGADO LLACH, Javier ([email protected])SERP. Facultat de Geografia i Història. Universitat de Barcelona, Spain

- LUÍS, LuísCôa Parque, Fundação para a Salvaguarda e Valorização do Vale do Côa

- MATIAS, HenriqueUNIARQ, Centro de Arqueologia Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Letras, Lisboa

- Do PEREIRO, TiagoEra Arqueologia, Cruz Quebrada, Portugal






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FLINTS IN IRON AGE GRAVES: FLINT FROM THE CEMETERY AT WEKLICE, ELBLĄGCOUNTY, ELBLĄG DISTRICT, NORTHERN POLAND

- WERRA, Dagmara H. ([email protected])- NATUNIEWICZ-SEKULA, Magdalena ([email protected])

The Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences

In the Bronze Age, flint was still being used throughout Europe. In the early periods ofthis age, in many areas, it continued to play an important role in the economy, as eviden-ced by the numerous flint mines in use at the time as well as flint tools. In the Late Bronzeand Early Iron Ages, flint still had an important place in the economies of communitiesliving in East Central Europe. At the same time, an analysis of late flint industries suggeststhat some of them had no utilitarian significance. The presents of flint, in particular skele-ton graves from the cemetery at Weklice (the cemetery was used by communities of theWielbark Culture during the Roman Period) open new possibilities to discuss of its mea-ning.

The cemetery at Weklice is the one of the most famous sites from the Roman Period inPoland. Graves are equipped mostly with Roman imports (vessels: glass, bronze) alongwith local finds of precious metals (gold, silver, copper alloys). The collections concern overof 4000 finds but it is not the end because during the excavations in 2012 and 2013 reve-aled 22 flint artifacts.

The presence of the flint materials in the cemetery of the Roman period leads to seve-ral interpretations: 1) They are remnants of the older settlements, graves were dug intoolder strata and thus some of the specimens of flint could be in their secondary filing onthe field; 2) They are the remains of the flint knapping of the Wielbark Culture community;3) They were intentionally placed in the graves by the Wielbark Culture community as theresult of a conscious choice as an example of a custom to place flint in graves from earliereras.

Acknowledgements

Funded by Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy Of ScienceAdulescentia est tempus discendi (10/ATD5/MN/2015)


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AN OVERVIEW OF THE KNAPPED STONE ECONOMY AT THE TĂRTĂRIA SITE (ROMANIA)

- CRANDELL, Otis ([email protected])

Department of Geology, Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

This study focused on sourcing the lithic artefacts from the Tărtăria site in theTransylvanian Basin. The objective was to establish a model of the procurement patternsof the population at the settlement. This site is located along the middle region of theMureș River and has several habitation levels belonging to the Vinča A, Vinča B, Vinča-Turdaș (or Vinča C), Petrești and Coțofeni cultures (Middle Neolithic to Chalcolithic). Mostof the results of this study are based on analysis of the artefacts from Iuliu Paul’s excava-tion in 1989. This knapped artefacts from the Tărtăria site were categorised by tool type,signs of usage and retouch, and probably geographic origin. The sources of the artefactmaterials were predicted based on macroscopic and petrographic analyses (polarized lightoptical microscopy).

The lithics appear to be made from the same types of materials found at other contem-porary sites in the area. As with other sites, the most common imported material is obsi-dian, followed by Moldavian flint. Balkan flints represent only a small part of the assem-blage. Of the local material, the vast majority is chert, likely local Trascău Mts. chert, whichrepresents over half of the pieces in the assemblage. Although the site is closer to sourcesof jasper in the Metaliferi Mts. than some other Neotlihic and Chalcolithic sites down river,very few of the artefacts were made from jasper. (This may be due to an economic connec-tion with nearby and contemporary, quarrying activity at the Piatra Tomii site.)

Obsidian is used almost exclusively for blades and flakes. The same is true forMoldavian flint, although scrapers were not uncommon. Cores and scrapers are morecommon among local material than among imported material. The percentages of eachartefact type seem to remain relatively similar for each culture (i.e. with the progress oftime). This shows that people were still using the same general types of tools.

The percentages of the different materials varies over time though. During the Vinča Aand Vinča B phrases, local materials represent approximately 30% of the assemblage andimported materials represent c. 70%. After the Vinča B phase (i.e. entering into theChalcolithic), the emphasis switches to local sources (representing c. 87%) while importeddrop to c. 13%.

Two important observations can be made from this study. Firstly, with the possibleexception of Balkan flint, the imported materials came from outside of the territories ofthe cultures at this site. This indicates that areas of similar artistic style (the main charac-teristic used to define culture areas) do not in fact match areas of economic interaction.This further supports the need for a redefining of cultures and cultural territories.Secondly, although the inhabitants during the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic used impor-ted materials (especially obsidian), local materials became more and more predominantover time, possibly due to the introduction and continually increasing value of copper orincreased self-sufficiency. The fact that this shift in material usage occurs most drasticallyduring the transition to the Chalcolithic supports this idea.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by funds from the Romanian Ministry of Education andResearch projects PNII-ID 2241/2008 (CNCS-UEFISCDI) and PN-II-ID-PCE-2011-3-0881.


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PROCESSING TECHNIQUES OF THE KNAPPED STONE PRODUCTION AT YURAC CORRALARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE (AYACUCHO – PERU): RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE GEOLOGY,THE REGIONAL VOLCANISM AND STONE TOOL PRODUCTION AT THE END OF THE MID-DLE HOLOCENE.

- VALENZUELA, Leslye ([email protected])Jorge Basadre Grohmann National University, Perú

- VALENZUELA, Christian ([email protected])Maison Archéologie & Ethnologie "René-Ginouvès", Paris, Francein

Stone tool production and lithic analysis -in the Central and Southern area of Peru- hasnot been deeply analyzed since the 70’s, and very little is known about the settlement andthe use of the landscape by the Holocene populations in this region. Archaeological inves-tigations at the prehistoric site of Yurac Corral (south-central of Peruvian Andes) can helpus to achieve a better understanding of the interaction between the northern and sou-thern sites. The importance of Yurac Corral relies on the fact that until now it existed a lackof archaeological sites and investigations in the central area of Peru, but little by little theinformation provided by the excavation of Yurac Corral will change this paradigm. On thispaper we present preliminary results of a study focus on the analysis of the potential rawmaterial sources and their influence on stone production during the last stage of theMiddle Holocene.

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Killian Driscoll ([email protected])

Didac Roman ([email protected])

Organizers

Session Description

How were stone artefacts made? This session will look into the various methods usedto process raw material and produce tools or even artwork by knapping. Presentations inthis session may be theoretical or based on modern analogy. They may also be basedpurely on methods used by modern knappers today.


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S3- Stone tool production and processing techniques

RAW MATERIAL CHOICE MATTERS – OBSIDIAN VS. CHERT LITHIC TECHNOLOGY AT NEO-LITHIC ÇUKURIÇI HÖYÜK IN WESTERN ANATOLIA

1. BOGDANA, Milić ([email protected])Istanbul University, Department of Archaeology, Turkey

2. HOREJS, Barbara ([email protected])Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology, Austrian Academy of Science, Vienna,Austria

Çukuriçi Höyük is a prehistoric settlement located in western Turkey, near the site ofancient Ephesus. The settlement was occupied from the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Ageperiod (7th to 3rd millennium BC). the lithic study in this paper is concentrated on theNeolithic period of the site, and deals with the earliest artifacts from the first half (6630cal BC) and the second half (6400-6200 calBC) of 7th mill. BC.

The lithic assemblages of Çukuriçi Höyük are represented by remarkably high amountsof imported obsidian artifacts in comparison to lithics from other Neolithic sites in theregion. The ratio between obsidian and chert at Çukuriçi is around 85% to 15%, withslightly varieties in different contexts.

The Neolithic chipped stone industry at Çukuriçi Höyük is based on blade production,while knapping was carried on unidirectional blade cores, with the use of different modesof pressure technique, which seems to be very developed here. Cores have been found indifferent stages of exploitation. In both obsidian and chert, conical and bullet cores werediscovered at the site. However, it is clearly visible that obsidian blade products (blades,bladelets and micro-blades) dominate the assemblages. Nevertheless, the main aim of thisstudy is to show whether there are possible technological differences in tool productionon different raw materials, i.e. obsidian and chert, even though morphological analysis sofar has shown that the main artifact types are present in both materials.

The majority of the less frequent chert finds in the assemblage seem to be of local pro-venance. The second part of this paper questions how knapping properties and the qua-lity of raw material influenced the choice of it, if we take into account the availability ofsources. Some results of the chert survey held in Ephesus region in 2014 will be pointedout in the presentation, however the detailed provenance studies on chert, microscopicfossil determination and further geochemical analysis are currently carried out by M.Brandl and M. Martinez.


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EARLY HARAPPAN DISC BEADS AND STONE KNAPPING INNOVATIONS

- POTTENTAVIDA Ajithprasad ([email protected])The M. S. University of Baroda

- MADELLA, Marco ([email protected])Universitat Pompeu Fabra and IMF-CSIC, Spain

- GADEKAR, Charusmita ([email protected])Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara, Gujarat, India

Lapidary stone beads of the Early Harappan are relatively rare and show little standar-dization in their morphology and technique of production. They have often escaped detai-led investigation. Recent excavations at Datrana in North Gujarat, Western India broughtto light several small disc beads of carnelian and jasper/chert along with several thousandsof lithic blades belonging to the Early Harappan period that has been dated to 3000 BCE.A detailed study of several unfinished beads and bead rough-outs along with debitage ofthe bead industry revealed knapping innovations in the bead production. The new methodused in the production of beads was an extension of the blade technology; effectivelyadapted for producing thin, disc-like flakes just as platform rejuvenation flakes from cylin-drical blade cores. Hundreds of such small, discs and cylindrical blade cores are recoveredfrom the site. The discs were later pierced at the centre by pecking from both sides, whichsignificantly varied from the standard Urban Harappan drilling using cylindrical drill-bits.The difference is also apparent in the rough-grinding and polishing of the beads. The tech-nique could be seen as an innovative adaptation of the blade technique for the productionof simple beads by the Early Harappan stone knappers. The paper examines different sta-ges of the innovative bead knapping technique along with techniques of blade productionat the site.


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A COMPARISON OF LITHIC ASSEMBLAGES BELONGING TO ECONOMICALLY DIVERSESETTLEMENTS FLOURISHING DURING MID-THIRD MILLENNIUM BCE GUJARAT

- GADEKAR, Charusmita ([email protected])Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara, Gujarat, India

- POTTENTAVIDA, Ajithprasad ([email protected])The M. S. University of Baroda

This paper deals with the lithic assemblages belonging to two contemporary Harappansites involved in different economic production practices. Both the sites are situated inGujarat, Western India and flourished during the mid-third millennium BCE. One of thesites is Bagasra, situated in Rajkot district and the other site is Shikarpur, situated inKachchh district. Bagasra was an important craft production centre while Shikarpur wasinvolved in inter-regional trade and exchange.

Bagsara has provided evidence of being self-sufficient in its lithic tool use whileShikarpur has shown heavy reliance on imported tools. The studies have shown that thecraft community at Bagasra was utilizing “formal tools” that had undergone additionaleffort in their production. The “formal tools” are often linked with populations practicingmore mobile settlement strategies (and having short-term site occupations). Their presen-ce at the site of Bagasra is thus intriguing since Bagasra was not a mobile settlement. Thevast number of imported stone tools (Rohri chert blades) recovered from Shikarpur, on theother hand shows utilization without additional efforts. These two assemblages reflect thecontext of their production and use and show marked differences in their typological aswell as technological features.


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BREAKING ROCKS: CONFIGURATION SYSTEMS OF LITHIC INSTRUMENTS IN RECENT PREHISTORY

(1) - LÓPEZ RODRÍGUEZ, Mª Cristina ([email protected])(1) - GUTIÉRREZ SÁEZ, C. ([email protected])(2) - MARTÍN LERMA, I. ([email protected])

1. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; 2. Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain

Since the late Neolithic, intentional breakage of laminar blanks begins to be commonin groups with high fracturing indexes in their lithic industries overall, enduring throughoutthe Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age. The objective is to obtain smaller and more standar-dized modules to be used in a sequence to prepare complex tools. In this paper we studythe fracture systems and stigmas associated with each of them in order to determine theircharacteristics on archaeological material, and therefore establishing differences with acci-dental fractures that occur during use or post-depositional processes.


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LITHIC DEBITAGE STUDY AND ORGANIZATION OF SETTLEMENT IN NEOLITHIC WESTERNJAPAN

- UEMINE, Atsushi ([email protected])

The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research / Institute for Research in Humanities, KyotoUniversity

This paper intends to explain the structure of a large-scale agricultural site that charac-terized the Yayoi Period, the early agrarian stage of Japan, on the basis of analyses of lithicartifacts and debitage.

Neolithic society of the western area of the Japanese archipelago suddenly transfor-med from the previous small-scale Jomon society to Yayoi genuine agricultural society thatcharacterized large-scale settlement, surrounded by ditches. Here is one of the mostimportant issues to explain the mechanism of ancient social transformation and the rela-tionship between the beginning of the rice cultivation and it.

Traditionally, Japanese archaeologists have approached this issue from the standpointof settlement archaeology. However, this paper contributes to explaining this phenome-non on the basis of analysing the assemblage of chipped stone tools and debitage. It beco-mes possible to reveal relationships among human groups reflected in lithic procurement,transportation and consumption strategies, and pave the way for a comparative study ofprehistoric age from the single point of view.

The investigation of lithic assemblage unearthed in Higashinara Site, a representativelarge-scale site of the Middle Yayoi Period (second and first centuries B.C.), located inOsaka Prefecture. First of all, it is indicated that the site is regarded as the compound madeup of several of the settlement units through the analysis of the actual condition shown inthe location and function of each structural remains. Based on the assessment, some cha-racteristics of lithic assemblages unearthed from different area of the site are compared toclarify the relationship among settlement units.

According to my field survey, the type of cortex is originated in the difference of thegeological background of each spot in source area of lithic raw material, and tells theancient procurement zone. The observation and classification of cortex type imply diffe-rences among the settlement units of the site. Further, in each settlement area, lithic con-centrations that have the difference in the composition of debitage are contiguous, thus itis thought that the production of stone tool was not simultaneously carried out in thesame place and time.

Given the above data, it is evaluated that the settlement units of the site are remotelyrelated especially in the procurement of lithic raw materials. The results of my previousstudy suggest that ties among settlements became clear in the late phase of the FinalJomon Period (ca. tenth to sixth centuries B.C.), and maintained in the Early Yayoi Period(ca. fourth to third centuries B.C.). In the Middle Yayoi Period, ties formed among settle-ments close to one another, and it seemed to be a large-scale agricultural society. Theemergence of large-scale Yayoi settlements could be interpreted as a “descendant” ofevolving Jomon society.


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STONE TOOLS HAVE TRACES OF THE KNAPPERS' HABIT

- ASAI, Takua ([email protected])

Doshisha University Graduate School of Letters

The purpose of this study is to clarify the structure and the group of the settlementsites of the Middle Yayoi period in Japan. The Yayoi period is the time when rice growingbegan in Japan and is about 2000 years old. Today, it is said that the village of the Yayoiperiod composes one village because plural groups live in the neighborhood. It is a unityof plural buildings to be regarded as important for the authorization of this group andassume them one unit it in near relation group. This group is labeled the “fundamentalgroup”. But I wonder if the group is really one group? This study makes questions whetherone fundamental group in the Yayoi settlement sites consists of one group or severalgroups.

Tools had traces of the habits of the knappers that is produced by a person or a group.It varies between those people and groups which produced them when it is different totools. The stone tools can provide evidence for the context of the production unlike otherremains. In other words, the stone tools are a suitable material culture to observe a habitof makers.

I selected one of three fundamental groups of the Kamo site in Hyogo prefecture,Japan. Here, there were numerous stone tools (tools, flakes and others) excavated, and itis thought that there was a stone tool manufacturing area. The technique and materials (akind of the andesite called sanukite) used were the same, and arrowheads and scrapersdominate the assemblage. The circumference of arrowhead is customized to fix the form,and the trace of the procedure is evidenced on the arrowheads.

As a result of analysis, it was recognized that procedures of the processing were diffe-rent at two points in the manufacturing areas. In a group that had been considered to beone group until now, I was able to find two groups. I was able to point out that the unityof the building did not show the unity of the group in Yayoi settlement sites.


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THE BARRANCO CARDONES WORKSHOP (ARUCAS, GRAN CANARIA). AN EXAMPLE OFKNAPPING VESICULAR BASALT FOR MAKING ROTARY QUERNS

(1) - NARANJO MAYOR, Yurena ( [email protected])(2) - FRANCISCO ORTEGA, Isabel ([email protected])(1) - RODRÍGUEZ RODRÍGUEZ, Amelia ([email protected])

1. Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria; 2. Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna(España)

Rotary querns were important utensils in everyday life on the island of Gran Canaria inpre-European times. They are ubiquitous in archaeological sites (both domestic and stora-ge places). These artefacts have been the object of previous studies in the Canary Islands,but aspects of their production process only began to be researched more recently. To dothis, the role of the quarries, as production centers for rotary querns with a clear intentionof creating surpluses, will be taken as the focus of attention. In a first stage, the quarrieswere identified and described, and secondly the specific provenance of the raw materialshas been studied, and is still on-going. Volcanic tuff (compacted lapilli) was a very impor-tant raw material used to make these artefacts (Rodríguez-Rodríguez et al., 2004), it hasbeen our main object of research during the last years. But recently we had discovered notonly vesicular basalt quarries, but also a specific workshop to shape this type of tool.

Vesicular basalt is difficult for knapping because of its hardness and surface irregula-rity. The fracturing is very irregular, difficult to classify as conchoidal. We thought that theancient Canarians retrieved this raw material in the basins of the ravines or in coastalareas, in order to get more manageable pieces for making querns. The recent archaeolo-gical excavation of a series of caves located in the Barranco de Cardones (Arucas, GranCanaria), has revealed the existence of workshops dedicated to the configuration of thiskind of basalt for rotary querns and other milling material. We present our study about themodalities of knapping this type of basalt emphasizing in techniques of knapping, whichare different from those of volcanic tuff.


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FROM ACHEULEAN TO MSA STONE TOOL PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING TECHNIQUESCHANGES IN THE SUDAN, FROM THE EASTERN DESERT OF LOWER ATBARA RIVER

- NASSR, Ahmed ([email protected])

Faculty of Arts, Archaeology Dept. Al-Neelain University, Sudan

The discoveries of early and middle Paleolithic sites in the south/east Africa encoura-ged the archaeology of prehistory in north/east Africa in general. Sudan is one of the mostimportant corridors of early cultural diffusion, the location and the landscape were themain attributes to attract the concentration of studies. Since the 1940’s many early andmiddle Paleolithic sites have been discovered, with most of the research focus on the placeand early cultures’ movement from southeast to northeast Africa. A few of the studiesfocused on the stone tools and revealed many taxonomic items from early to middlePaleolithic tools. In general the discoveries from north and central Sudan show a large dif-ferentiation in tools production and typologies. That raised many questions related to thetransition from early to middle Paleolithic: How and why the technologies changed?

This paper discusses the transitional change in the technology, raw materials and typo-logy in the Sudan from the survey and test pits collections in 2014 from the eastern desertof Atbara River. The author conducted a survey and six sites have been discovered: five ofthese sites close to the river, which are related to the MSA technology; and one from faraway in the eastern desert, consisting of a large quantity of material from the earlyPaleolithic to MSA stone tools. The data from the six sites revealed different raw materialsand typologies, and at the same time shows gradual technological horizons. The largehomogenous and heterogeneous types of stone tools, some related to the early Paleolithicand other closely to MSA technology.

The study of collections, established not from techniques alone, but also typologiesand raw material, and then classification carried out on tool size and weight and descrip-tion the tool edges, end, butt, faces, striking platform and the function of tools. This leadsto an understanding of stone tool chronology and typology and the elements pertaining tothe transitions from the comparison with southeast and northeast Africa.


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VARIABILITY IN MIDDLE STONE AGE CORE REDUCTION IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

- HISCOCK, Peter ([email protected])University of Sydney

- MACAKAY, Alex ([email protected]) University of Wollongong

This paper explores the diversity of different core reduction strategies employed inMiddle Stone Age (MSA) sites in the Western Cape of South Africa. Our particular interestis the relationship between the different strategies and the materials on which theyapplied. Our study uses quantitative methods to characterise discoid, non-discoid andbipolar reduction of cores, and the timing of heat treatment and pressure flaking. Weargue that MSA reduction was elaborately articulated with materials at hand, with knap-ping actions changing over time and space as procedures were expressed or represseddepending on context. This image indicates that simple normative images of knapping areunlikely to capture the variety of MSA practices or the breadth of knappers’ skills and lear-ning represented in those assemblages.


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RAW MATERIAL PROCUREMENT AND ITS CONSEQUENCES FOR KNAPPING TECHNO-LOGY IN THE MIDDLE PALAEOLITHIC SITE OF KATTA SAI, WESTERN TIAN SHAN PIED-MONTS (UZBEKISTAN)

- KOT, Malgorzata ([email protected])University of Warsaw

- KRAJCARZ, Maciej T. ([email protected])Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences

- PAVLENOK, Konstantin ([email protected])Institute of Archaeology and Etnography, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences

- KRAJCARZ, Magdalena ([email protected])Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences

- LAZAREV, Sergei Yu ([email protected])Laboratory of Mesozoic and Cenozoic continental ecosystems, Tomsk State Universit

- RADZHABOV, АlisherArchaeological Institute of the Uzbek Academy of Sciences

- SNEIDER, Svetlana ([email protected])Institute of Archaeology and Etnography, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences

- SZYMCZAK, Karol ([email protected])Institute of Archaeology, the University of Warsaw

The open air, loess site of Katta Sai is located in Uzbekistan, in the western Tian Shanpiedmonts, approximately 100km SEE of Tashkent, near the Yangiobod village. Lithic arti-facts were located in a single horizon in a quite dense concentration. A number of refit-tings indicates its homogeneity. Excavations at Katta Sai site started in 2013 by a Polish-Russian-Uzbec research group allowed to identify a new variant of human adaptation inthe regional Middle Paleolithic.

As the raw material, the river pebbles brought from the nearby river gorges were used.Among the raw material, mainly effusive rocks of aphanitic and porphyritic textures werepresent. These rocks are common in alluvial sediments, but are not dominating (phaneri-tic rocks dominate there), what indicates the intentional selection of raw material, orien-ted towards felsic aphanites. A minor amount of artifacts are made of exotic rocks, such assilicites, metamorphic rocks and jasper. What is particularly interesting in the Katta Saiassemblage is that the use of rounded river pebbles restricted the manufacturing processheavily.

The preliminary analyses shown that we dealing with here a predetermined flake tech-nology, focused on obtaining thin flakes or even blades. However, the manufacturing sche-me was adjusted to the poor quality raw material. The use of a very hard, poorly silicifiedrock, did not allow for a sequence of small, precise removals. In consequence the prede-termination of the blanks’ shape had to be designed more by a careful intensive prepara-tion of a striking surface.


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LATE MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC INDUSTRIES OF GROTTE DE LA VERPILLIÈRE II (SAÔNE-ET-LOIRE, FRANCE)

- FRICK, Jens Axel ([email protected])

Tübingen University

Recent, detailed studies of Middle and Early Upper Paleolithic sites are quite rare insouthern Burgundy. Here, we present insights gained from on-going analyses of LateMiddle Paleolithic lithic assemblages from the Grotte de la Verpillière II, near Chalon-sur-Saône in southern Burgundy. The site contains three geological horizons (GHs) that haveyielded intact material attributed to the Middle Paleolithic (GH 3, 4x and 4). MiddlePaleolithic accumulations were deposited on top of a layer of rockfall from the interior ofthe shelter roof. Slightly after the MP occupation, a significant collapse destroyed largeparts of the rock shelter, leaving the site as it appears today: as a collapsed rock shelterwith a cave-like karst tunnel. From lithic variation, specific spatial distribution, refittingtrials and the geological setting, it seems probably that only 25% of the site is and wasunder excavation (campaigns 2006-2015). We present here the preliminary conclusions ofanalyses of the lithic assemblages from the site.

The primary lithic raw material is local flint from the argiles à silex, a cretaceous flintmainly reworked in the Eocene. In addition, some varieties of local Chaille (Jurassic chert)as well as isolated examples of unidentified flint are present. The intact Middle Paleolithiclayers also contain quartzite, quartzitic sandstone, and sandstone and quartz variationsthat were mainly used as hammerstones and anvils. The lithic industries of the MiddlePaleolithic contain the complete operational sequence from unworked raw pieces to com-pleted tools that were used and discarded. Lithic material from GH 3 contains more than200 cores (tested raw pieces, configured and exhausted cores) together with blanks accu-mulated from core surface correction they attest to on-site lithic reduction activities. Thedominant mode of production is recurrent reduction on convex surfaces. The presence ofexhausted Levallois cores, a large number of cortical blanks and also thin, flat blanks withsometimes-faceted butts suggests that the dominant litho-technological approach wasLevallois and that a major portion of the lithic material from the Middle Paleolithic layersderives from on-site reduction processes.

Some particular lithic objects show double patination and/or multiple retouch, sugges-ting a diachronic object biography. From macroscopic analysis, we suggest that numerouswanted blanks were hafted. The presence of tool tips and also fragments that might bebroken while hafted could point out that retooling and tool maintenance was an importanton-site activity. In the sequence of GH 3, also some highly variable bifacial elements arepresent. Mostly they are asymmetric in plan view, with the presence of tranchet blows(para-burin blows) and the preference of one cutting edge. A classical allocation followingBordesian typology would present serious challenges in the case of lithic industries thatcontain such highly variable bifacial elements. Other sites in Western Europe yielding bac-ked asymmetrical bifacial pieces with tranchet blows (e.g. Grotte de la Verpillière I a.k.aGrotte de Germolles) have been attributed to several different industries: theKeilmessergruppen (KMG), the Mousterian with bifacial tools (MBT), the Charentian witha Micoquian influence, for example.


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IMPORT – EXPORT AND PRODUCTION: MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC TECHNICAL BEHAVIOR ATTHE SU 13 OF OSCURUSCIUTO ROCK SHELTER, SOUTHERN ITALY

(1) - MARCIANI, Giulia ([email protected])(2) -SPAGNOLO, Vincenzo ([email protected])(3) - AURELI, Daniele ([email protected])(2) - RANALDO, Filomena ([email protected])(2). - BOSCATO, Paolo ([email protected])(2). - RONCHITELLI, Annamaria ([email protected])

1. Università degli Studi di Ferrara, Italy - Universitat Rovira I Virgili Tarragona Spain; 2.Università degli Studi di Siena, Italy; 3. Universite Paris Ouest Nanterre La Defense UMR 7041-ArScAn - equipe AnTET, France- Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra edell’Ambiente, UR Preistoria e Antropologia – Università degli Studi di Siena, Italy.

The relation between lithic assemblage and geological formations is not enough torecognize the mobility patterns of a human group although previous researches highligh-ted the connection between the availability-quality of raw material and the mobility stra-tegies. In this regard, technical features of a lithic assemblage can provide some clues toillustrate strategies - such as, for instance, "embedded procurement", "specific procure-ment", or "exchange". Therefore, instead of focusing on the bare distances between thesite and the supplying areas, it could be interesting to assume a larger point of view inorder to - while taking into account technical aspects and raw materials - try to recalibra-te the analysis scale from a hunter-gatherer prospective rather than from the strictlyarchaeological site. From this perspective we compare three lithic assemblages comingfrom the Mousterian, Proto-Aurignacian, and Noaillian Gravettian layers of the RiparoMochi site (Grimaldi caves, Balzi Rossi area, Liguria), one of the most complete stratigra-phic sequences of the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic in Mediterranean Europe.

The position of Riparo Mochi in the osmotic center of the Liguro-Provencal arc is a keyto defining prehistoric human diffusion and development in this area. The Mousterianlithic assemblage is made from different raw materials, exploited more or less by the sametechnical procedure, and variability is mainly connected with changes in the intensity ofthe use of each raw material, especially when the decreasing presence of regional rawmaterial from the bottom to the top of the sequence is observed. In other words, theanalysed assemblages share a similar adaptive strategy, but natural resources were useddifferently. The territory exploited to collect raw material seems to become more andmore restricted from the bottom to the top of the sequence. The site of Riparo Mochishows that distinct occupation phases of the Proto-Aurignacian "colonisation" took placeover a short time span. It also shows the existence of groups who were exploiting a largeterritory since the earliest occupation of the site. Human groups who inhabited RiparoMochi adapted their raw material provisioning strategies to the geological context, bymoving raw materials over long distances. The Noaillian Gravettian lithic assemblage ischaracterized by pebble morphology that is largely represented when considering the local


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TECHNICAL RUPTURES IN ABRIC ROMANÍ MIDDLE PALAEOLITHIC SITE: A MULTIDISCI-PLINARY APPROACH TO IDENTIFY NEANDERTHAL TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIO-ECONOMICORGANISATION

(1) - ROMAGNOLI, Francesca ([email protected])(2) - BARGALLÓ, Amelia(2) - CHACÓN, Maria Gema(2) - VAQUERO, Manuel

1. - Dipartimento di Storia, Archeologia, Geografia, Arte e Spettacolo (SAGAS), Cattedra diPreistoria, Università di Firenze. Via S. Egidio, 21. 50122 Firenze, Italy. 2. Institut Català dePaleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES).

Technological rupture along Middle Palaeolithic sequences are attested in severalmulti-layers sites in Europe. The change in productive processes can suggest the presenceof hunter-gatherers groups with different cultural traditions, sharing different technicalknowledge. Traditionally the definition of the productive processes is based on the dicho-tomy between “expedient” and “predetermined” techno-complexes. Research ofNeanderthal technological variability is mainly focused on landscape mobility strategy as aparameter that explains the human cognitive abilities, the productive strategies, and thechanges in the organisation of technology. Little attention has been devoted to investiga-te the relation between technical ruptures and the changes in occupational strategies at amicro-scale of analysis.

We present the result of a multidisciplinary analysis of layer M and layer O at AbricRomaní Middle Palaeolithic rock-shelter (Capellades, Barcelona – Spain), characterised byDiscoid and Levallois technology respectively. The site preserves a very rich archaeologicalrecord of animal bones, lithic remains, woody remains and numerous hearths, arranged onwell delimited occupational floors. It has been excavated over more than 200 m2 andevery single remain larger than 1 cm has been positioned in a Cartesian coordinate system(3D space: x, y, z). We have applied a multidisciplinary approach to reconstruct humanbehaviour within a high temporal resolution. This approach includes the morpho-technicaland the diacritical analysis of the whole assemblage, the Raw Material Units analysis, lithicrefits and the identification of the spatio-temporal relations between the archaeologicalaccumulations on the occupational floor.

These high-resolution approach allows us to discuss changes in productive strategiesgoing beyond the classical “expedient-predetermined” dichotomy, including into the analy-sis several factors usually not considered into the technological analysis, such as (i) the fle-xibility of the technical systems, (ii) the temporal constraints within the activities carriedout into the site (recycling behaviour) and (iii) the intra-site occupational strategy as effectof different social organisation during these two phases of human presence in the site.


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A FRESH LOOK AT THE BOKER TACHTIT LITHIC ASSEMBLAGES FOLLOWING RENEWEDEXCAVATIONS

1. - GODER GOLDBERGER, Mae ([email protected])1. - BOARETTO, Elisabetta ([email protected])2. - MCPHERRON, Shannon P. ([email protected])3. - BARZILI, Omry ([email protected])

1. - Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel. 2. - Max Planck Institute for EvolutionaryAnthropology, Leipzig, Germany. 3. - Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel and IsraelAntiquities Authority, Jerusalem, Israel

Boker Tachtit located in the central Negev, Israel, was first excavated by A.E. Marks inthe 1970's. The site is situated within the main ecological corridor connecting Africa withEurasia, and, chronologically, positioned at the interface between the Middle and UpperPalaeolithic. Renewed excavations at Boker Tachtit (2013-2014) are being carried out aspart of a broader collaborative study titled 'Timing of Cultural Change' in the frame ofMPWCIAA. The main aims of the new excavations are to secure the dating of the site usingabsolute dating methods, and to better understand the technological affinities of theassemblages and their possible origins. The focus of this study is on the latter aim. Thechaîne opératoire approach, combined with an attribute analysis and refitting, is used torelate the newly excavated assemblages with the ones from the old excavation. Using thismethod, differences between the archaeological units at the site are highlighted and aregional comparative study is carried out in search of possible antecedents. Initial resultssuggest that the sequence at Boker Tachtit represents one of the earliest UpperPalaeolithic traditions. Other sites within a similar geographical and chronological context,such as Taramsa 1 in the Nile Valley and Tor Sadaf in Jordan, reflect a similar, although notidentical, shift from a blade technology with Levallois elements to a true blade technology.Each of these assemblages reflects the same conceptual technological change while retai-ning unique techno-typological traits indicating a fusion of indigenous and exogenouslithic traditions. A special focus in this study is put on raw material exploitation and mana-gement in order to clarify the mode of occupation and land use patterns. By using lithictechnology to infer human behavior this study offers a plausible interpretation for the roleof Boker Tachtit in the dispersal of human groups across the landscape.


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TECHNOLOGICAL VARIABILITY IN LATE PLEISTOCENE - EARLY HOLOCENE LITHIC ASSEM-BLAGES AT THE IMILAC- PUNTA NEGRA BASINS (ATACAMA DESERT, SOUTH AMERICA)

- KELLY, Patricia ([email protected])Universidad de Chile

- CARTAJENA, Isabel ([email protected])

- MÉNDEZ , César ([email protected])Departamento de Antropología, Universidad de Chile

- NÚÑEZ, Lautaro ([email protected])El Instituto de Investigaciones Arqueológicas y Museo, Universidad Católica del Norte

- FAÚNDEZ , Wilfredo ([email protected])Universidad de Tarapacá

- LOYOLA, Rodrigo ([email protected])

- SIERRALTA, Simón ([email protected])Universidad de Tarapacá

- LOYOLA, Rodrigo ([email protected])

- SIERRALTA, Simón ([email protected])

Recent research in the Atacama desert has shown intense late Pleistocene to earlyHolocene transition human occupations at the Punta Negra and Imilac basins at 3000 masl. Palaeoenvironmental reconstructions reveal wetter conditions due to increased preci-pitation and higher water tables between ~12.6 and ~10.2 ka, contemporary to humanoccupations when both basins were wetlands. The onset of aridity by the end of the wetphase fully coincided with the end of human occupations in this area. The archaeologicalsites at Punta Negra and Imilac consist mostly of open-air base camps, quarries, and lithicworkshops, located along the coastlines of both basins. The lithic assemblages were mainlyrecovered from the surface and chiefly consist of a wide variety of flake tools, scrapers,cores, and other artifacts, as well as different types of projectile points. In this regard, weapproach the lithic assemblage of the early occupations of Punta Negra and Imilac fromthe perspective of the Anthropologie de la Technologie, where artifacts are understood asthe result of a dynamic process that involves the transmission and acquisition of knowled-ge and techniques. The reconstruction of the methods, techniques, and gestures involvedin the production of this lithic assemblage, enable the understanding of internal recurren-ces and variability. The extended spatial dispersion of the debitage and knapping methodsidentified by our study suggests the simultaneous occupation between the ~12.6 and 10.2ka of both palaeo-wetlands by groups sharing the same knowledge and techniques. On theother hand, within assemblage variability is better explained by a differential use of locallithic resources at each locale.


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FLINTKNAPPING IN THE PLEISTOCENE-HOLOCENE TRANSITION. HAMMERSTONESFROM SPANISH MEDITERRANEAN REGION

- VADILLO-CONESA , Margarita ([email protected])Universitat de València

- JARDÓN GINER, Paula ([email protected])Departament de Didàctica i Organització Escolar, Universitat de València, València, Spain

- AURA TORTOSA , J.Emili ([email protected])Departament de Prehistòria i Arqueologia, Universitat de València, València, Spain

In papers dedicated to the Iberian Pleistocene-Holocene transition it is not common tofind studies on the use of small-medium pebbles as hammerstones. Some of these pebbleshave been documented associated with a blade-bladelet production at the Coves de SantaMaira site (Castell de Castells, Alacant, País Valencià, Spain). This circumstance has madeus to undertake a study of these pieces to assess their role within the chaîne opératoire toknap bladelets dated in the Pleistocene-Holocene transition.

Our goal is to approach the lithic technology of the different Epipalaeolithic levelstaking into account the characteristics of the lithic productions as well as the hammersto-nes that are associated. To carry out this task we have analysed the lithic productionsystems with the objective of understanding the organization and the techniques used inthis process.

• On the one hand, we have undertaken a macroscopic analysis of the hammerstonesfrom a morphological, functional and use-wear marks perspective, in order to obtaindata about the type of use.

• On the other hand, we have made a comparison between experimental hammers totest the assumptions made on the basis of the archaeological materials.

• Finally, we have compared the results obtained from hammerstone studies with thoseof the techno-economic study of lithic production.

At the end of the Upper Palaeolithic the use of pebbles as hammerstones at differentsites in the Spanish Mediterranean region has been described. This analysis provides directdata on flintknapping techniques and retouching that can be contrasted with the dataobtained from different blade-bladelet production. Therefore it is an approach that com-bines integrated techno-functional and experimental data to analyse the flintknappingprocesses during the Epipalaeolithic of central and southern part of the SpanishMediterranean region.


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STONE TOOL PRODUCTION IN NORTHWESTERN SPAIN: SOME INSIGHTS ON THE SPECI-FICS OF THE QUARTZ GROUP

- RODRÍGUEZ-RELLAN, Carlos ([email protected])Université de Nantes/ Laboratoire de Recherches Archéologiques

- DE LOMBERA HERMIDA, Arturo ([email protected])Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago. Spain

The lithic assemblages from those sites located on constrained lithological regions, suchas Northwestern Iberia, are usually characterized by the predominance of specific rawmaterials such as quartzite or quartz. The consideration of some of these raw materials asa homogeneous group hinders the full recognition of their management and the analysisof the technological dynamics applied to these rocks by the prehistoric societies.Regarding quartz, such uniform consideration does not usually take into account either theformation processes, nor the textural variability or the mechanical properties of this rawmaterial.

In this presentation, the quartz morphostructural groups are presented as a simple butuseful methodological tool for apprehending the variability within this raw material. Thesevariables are focused on the texture and homogeneity of the blanks: specifically on thepresence of internal flaws and on the grain size. Along with the technological studies, thisclassification will allow us to identify the selection criteria applied on quartz and its rele-vance to the technical needs required by the different strategies.

This paper presents an analysis of several lithic assemblages from Northwestern Spain,ranging from the Lower Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age, defined by the hegemonic role ofquartz. For the Palaeolithic period, the Acheulean site of Locus I from As Gándaras ofBudiño (Porrino, Pontevedra), the Solutrean open-air site of Valverde (Monforte de Lemos,Lugo) and the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic assemblages from Cova Eirós (Triacastela,Lugo) have been analysed. Meanwhile, among the Late Prehistory sites, three domesticsites -Os Remedios, O Regueiriño (Moaña, Pontevedra), and Lavapés (Cangas, Pontevedra)-, a burial mound -Chousa Nova I (Silleda, Pontevedra), and a rock shelter -el Santuario(Aliste, Zamora)- ranging from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age have been studied.

The application of specific chaînes opératoires belonging to each technocomplex onquartz (Levallois and blade technology, leaf-shaped points, bipolar knapping, etc.) showshow prehistoric knappers had a high level of knowledge of the different quartz types andof their specific technical requirements.


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KNAPPERS OF THE BAJO DEBA. THE UPPER MAGDALENIAN LITHIC PRODUCTION DYNA-MICS AT THE AIZKOLTXO CAVE (MENDARO-GIPUZKOA)

- GARCIA-ROJAS, Maite ([email protected])- MUJIKA ALUSTIZA, José Antonio

Universidad del País Vasco

The Bajo Deba is a geographical area with a large density of sites ascribed to the UpperPaleolithic. Aizkoltxo Cave is located in the municipality of Mendaro (Gipuzkoa) and wasdiscovered in 1927 by J.M. de Baraniarán and lead to excavations that began in 2003. Atthis conference we will present the study of lithic material recovered up to 2010, for whichwe have been able to reconstruct the technical process of the lithic production. In thissense it has been possible to characterize this manufacture sequence and the different rawmaterials exploited by the hunter-gatherer groups.

Thus this study has three points of analysis:

1. The technological characterisation of the processes of the volumetric reduction ofthe lithic material.

2. The typological characterisation of the configurations for the retouched artefacts andthe choosing of different blanks for the configurations.

3. The identification of different raw materials used, in which different processes ofknapping were identified within the overall dynamics of managing the flint.


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A TECHNOLOGICAL OVERVIEW OF THE NOAILLIAN GRAVETTIAN OF RIPARO MOCHI(BALZI ROSSI, ITALY)

- SANTIANELLO, Fabio ([email protected])- GRIMALDI, Stefano ([email protected])

Università degli studi di Trento, Italy

Mobility strategies and technological aspects of the Italian Gravettian are poorlyunderstood. An explanatory framework within which to understand the dynamics ofGravettian adaptations is lacking. We analysed the evidence coming from Riparo Mochi(Grimaldi caves, Balzi Rossi area, Liguria), one of the most complete stratigraphic sequen-ce of the Upper Palaeolithic in Mediterranean Europe. The Balzi Rossi area is located in anarrow corridor, named as the Liguro-Provençal Arc, that should have been a natural axischannelling the circulation of both humans and animals between central Italy andSouthern France. The position of Riparo Mochi in the osmotic center of the Liguro-Provencal arc is critical to define the Gravettian diffusion/development in this area. In thispaper, we present the lithic assemblage coming from the Noaillian Gravettian - Unit D,dated to 24600 ±100 14C - from a typological and technological perspective; rock suppl-ying outcrops are also characterized, and a reduction sequence is suggested; finally, a spe-cial focus on the typology, technology and function of the burins is presented. Resultsshow that local raw material is the most exploited one even if French and central Italianflints were also imported to the site. In order to reconstruct the Gravettian reductionsequence, we interpret each blank as a product of a hypothetical reduction sequence bymeans of the classification of the technical features of blanks - such as dorsal scars, crests,dimensions, presence/absence of cortex – together with an experimental knapping acti-vity. The main technical goal was the production of elongated blanks (blades) by means ofthe uni-directional method of debitage. The original morphology of the cores – here sub-divided into pebbles, blocks (including nodules and slabs), flakes (including burin cores)influences how the method of debitage was realized. The comparison between stone pro-venance and technical aspects allow us to suggest a long-distance mobility, suitable for theexploitation of a large area spanning from Provence to central Italy.


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ACHEULEAN LITHIC TECHNOLOGY AND RAW MATERIALS IN SOUTHERN IBERIA

- JIMÉNEZ-COBOS, Francisca ([email protected])- MORGADO, Antonio ( [email protected])

Depto. Prehistoria y Arqueología, Univ. de Granada, Granada, España

The technological study on two Acheulean lithic collections from Cortijo El Cavillo (Loja,Granada) and Piedras Negras (Ronda, Málaga) are presented in this poster. Both sites arelocated in separate interior depressions of the Betic mountain system of Southern Iberia.

The first site, Cortijo Calvillo, has been technologically studied for the first time by appl-ying by applying diacritic analysis, having previously been published with typological des-criptions. This has emphasized some features that are technologically poorly developedwithin the European Acheulean techno-complex, similar to those documented in Tafesa(Madrid) or Pinedo (Toledo). The sample is dominated by flint, mainly trihedral picks andhand-axes, abandoned after exhaustion, which should be related to the common use of hisplace, supposedly an animal gathering ground, due to the presence of natural salt watersprings.

The second site, Piedras Negras (Ronda, Málaga), is being presented for the first time.This site represents a significant find for the understanding of the first occupation of thismountain region in the Serrania de Ronda. Applying the same methodological criteria, wecan distinguish an evolved Acheulean techno-complex, having dominated clearly differentmethods and techniques for creating these objects, elements which in many occasions arenon-finished or are at a mid-stage. The site of Piedras Negras is interpreted as a frequen-ted area for obtaining the characteristic raw material (quartz-sandstone) from which thetools were made.

The internally coherent technology of both samples and the interpretation of the diffe-rent contexts allow us to overcome descriptive and typological criteria characteristic of thestudies of the Acheulean lithic findings in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. Therefore,some bifacial elements, as is the case of Piedras Negras, must be related to transformationtasks during initial conformation stages and not typological archaism.


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LIVE WITHOUT CHERT. THE USE OF VEIN QUARTZ IN THE PREHISTORY OF PIEDMONT(NORTH-WESTERN ITALY)

Piedmont is an Italian region of the western Alps characterized, from the MiddlePalaeolithic until the Neolithic, by the use of vein quartz as the main exploited raw material.

Middle Palaeolithic is well attested in the caves of Monte Fenera: Ciutarun, RiparoBelvedere and Ciota Ciara cave that, investigated during the 1970s and the 1990s, showedfor the first time the extensive use of vein quartz in the region. The systematic excavationsat Ciota Ciara cave were started again in 2009 by the University of Ferrara. The lithic industrycomprises more than the 80% of local vein quartz that has been exploited through theLevallois, the discoid, the S.S.D.A. and the Kombewa s.l. knapping methods. Similarly, thelithic industry found at Vaude, another locality of Western Piedmont, is characterized by thealmost exclusive use of vein quartz (91%) for the production of stone tools. As for the CiotaCiara cave, also here all the typical Mousterian knapping methods are represented. From theVaude area also come some quartz blades that could belong to the Upper Paleolithic and aquartz arrow point probably dated Copper age, while some Epigravettian quartz bladeletswere found during the 1960's at Riparo Belvedere (Monte Fenera).

The Mesolithic occupation of Piedmont is attested by the Alpe Veglia site (NorthernPiedmont, 1750 m asl) where survey and excavation campaigns have been carried out by theUniversity of Ferrara in the 1990's. The lithic industry is mainly composed by hyaline quartz,followed by vein quartz and flint tools. It attests the occupation of the area by hunter-gathe-rers during the ancient Mesolithic. Two isolated tools, typologically referable to theMesolithic, were found some years ago at Alpone (North-western Piedmont) but justrecently they have been identified as such by the authors.

The use of vein quartz during the Neolithic period is shown by the lithic industry foundin 2003 at Lago Pistorno (Montalto Dora – Western Piedmont). The most particular featureof this lithic assemblage is the use of vein quartz for the production of arrow points.

Recent survey campaigns, carried out by the authors, allowed an identification of prehis-toric occupation of the Sessera valley (North-eastern Piedmont) even if the lack of diagnos-tic elements does not allow its precise chronological positioning.

From the Middle Palaeolithic until the Neolithic period it is evident that all the humangroups that inhabited the region adapted their technology and therefore their culture to thelocal environment and to the knapping features of the raw material available, i.e. vein quartz.

New research, carried out in collaboration between Italian and foreign institutions, arebeginning this year. The main purpose is to identify Palaeolithic and Mesolithic occupation inthe Piedmontese territory in order to define the modalities and the intensity of this culturaladaptation, allowing an identification of the prehistoric settlement dynamics of the wholeregion.

- DAFFARA, Sara ([email protected])Universitat Rovira i Virgili

- BERRUTI, Gabriele L.F. ([email protected])Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), Vila Real, Portugal, Associazione cul-turale 3P – Progetto

- BERTÈ, Davide F ([email protected])Preistoria Piemonte, San Mauro Torinese, Italy

- CARACAUSI, Sandro ([email protected])Tarragona, Spain, Università degli Studi di Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy, Associazione culturale 3P -progetto Preistoria Piemonte, San Mauro Torinese, Italy


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THE LITHIC MATERIAL OF THE INHAZINHA AND RODRIGUES FURTADO ARCHAEOLOGI-CAL SITES, MUNICIPALITY OF PERDIZES/MG: AN ANALYSIS OF CULTURAL DYNAMICS

- CABRAL DE MEDEIROS, Joao ([email protected])Centro de Arqueologia e Antropologia de Paulo Afonso/ Universidade Estadual da Bahia

- BELTRAO, M.C.M.C. ([email protected])Museu Nacional/UFRJ

- VERGNE M.C. ([email protected])UNEB, Brazil.

- PEREZ DA PAZ, R.A. ([email protected])Museu Nacional/UFRJ, Brazil

This paper presents the results of the analysis of the chaînes opératoires of the lithicmaterial of two sites located in the Paraná River basin, in the Perdizes region, State ofMinas Gerais, southeastern Brazil. The area is dated of the Upper Precambrian, with occu-rrences of Araxá Group rocks (Pea), near Bauru formation of the sedimentary Paraná RiverBasin. In the Inhazinha archaeological site, dated of 1095 ± 186 BP (TL-FATEC), 220 lithicpieces (36 polished and 184 chipped) were collected. The raw material chose are of fourtypes (in descending order): quartz, sandstone, basalt and quartzite. In the RodriguesFurtado archaeological site, dated of 500 ± 50AP (TL-FATEC) 397 lithic pieces (28 polishedand 369 chipped) were collected, made of four types of rocks (in descending order):quartz, sandstone, basalt and quartzite.

The comparative analysis of the chipped lithic industries of both sites shows that thereis much more similarities than differences between the artifact collections, where thetools were manufactured for momentary use and discarded at once (resourceful tools);just a few pieces presented post-debitage transformative actions. The polished lithic indus-tries of both sites show a high level of polishing work, indicating that there was an inten-tional goal by the artisan to produce excellent quality tools with a high final touch.

Therefore, we will present comparative data of these industries produced by the cera-mist groups of the studied region.


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PRELIMINARY TECHNOLOGICAL COMPARISON BETWEEN CHERT AND QUARTZ SPLINTE-RED PIECES FROM THE UPPER PALAEOLITHIC OF VALE BOI (SOUTHWESTERN IBERIA)

(1) - HORTA, Pedro ([email protected])(2) - CASCALHEIRA, João ([email protected])(2) - MARREIROS, João ([email protected])(2) - BICHO, Nuno ([email protected])

1. Universidade do Algarve, Faro, Portugal; 2. ICArEHB Universidade do Algarve, Faro,Portugal

Splintered pieces are often neglected in archaeological studies even though they areabundant in some archaeological contexts. The site of Vale Boi provides such context, withan abundance of these artifacts within the Upper Palaeolithic levels.

The site is located in the southwestern tip of Iberia and has a high level of stratigraphi-cal and chronological preservation ranging from Early Upper Paleolithic to Neolithic levels,including Gravettian, Proto-Solutrean, Solutrean and Magdalenian occupations. This pos-ter presents the preliminary data from the technological analysis of splintered pieces fromone of the site's areas (the Slope), focusing on the comparison between chert and quartzfrom the Gravettian and Solutrean levels. For this study a total of 45 pieces were selectedfor analysis. The chert group is composed of a total of 26 pieces while the quartz group iscomposed of 19 examples. The two groups show some differences between them in a rela-tively large number of attributes. For example the number of damaged platforms in thechert artifacts ranges from 2 to 4, while the quartz artifacts only show traces of 2 dama-ged (bipolar) platforms.

The extension of the scars into the artifact are also divergent between the two mate-rials, with most chert artifacts showing signs of invasive scaring (46,15%) while quartz arti-facts show, in the same piece both marginal and invasive scars (52,63%). Splintered piecesare often linked to two types of activities: bipolar knapping (in the form of cores for theremoval of chips) and as wedge for the exploitation of several types of materials(i.e. antler,bone, wood, etc.). The artifacts analyzed for this study suggest that, despite some appa-rent differences between raw materials their use as wedges would have been the primaryfunction of those tools during that time frame.


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CHAÎNES OPÉRATOIRES AND BLADE TECHNOLOGY FROM THE UPPER PALAEOLITHICSITE OF MARCHALES (GRANADA, SPAIN)

- GARCÍA FRANCO, Alejandro ([email protected])- MORGADO, Antonio ([email protected])

University of Granada, Granada, Spain

The study of the Upper Palaeolithic of the southern Iberian Peninsula is often approa-ched from a few stratigraphic sequences recognised in the region. We can say that theUpper Palaeolithic in Andalusia is one of the worst known stages of regional prehistory. Onthe other hand, its development has just passed the descriptive, typological, formal cha-racterization. In some cases, the latest contributions in the central region of the BeticCordillera circumscribed to the province of Granada, were made during the past century.

In this sense, this paper has two aims. First, we present the rock shelter of Marchales(Colomera, Granada, Spain), as a new Magdalenian site from the mountainous area of theSubbetic Andalusia. Furthermore, by applying the diacritical analysis on cores, flakes andother lithic objects, we present the technological characterization of the different opera-tions in blade production and lithic tools (burins, along with scrapers and to a lesser extentbacked elements). Different chaînes opératoires for the generation of all typological toolsare distinguished. The work presents and discusses the distinctive features of the differenttechnical elements, focusing on the blade knapping methods, with a petrological descrip-tion of the main types of flint used. It also determines the knapping technique, which hasinvolved an experimental approach. It concludes with the definition of blade technology atthe first moments of the Magdalenian in the region.


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GIANT CORES AND LARGE FLAKES IN THE HIGH ELEVATION DESERT OF SOUTHERNARGENTINE PUNA

(1) - HOCSMAN, Salomón ([email protected])(1) - BOBILLO, Federico Miguel ([email protected])(2) - ESCOLA, Patricia Susana ([email protected])

1. Instituto Superior de Estudios Sociales, San Miguel de Tucuman, Tucuman, Argentina; 2.Escuela de Arqueología de San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca. Argentina

The using of large flakes from giant cores as blanks for tool production is an outstan-ding topic for contemporary archaeological studies across the globe, related to Acheulianassemblages. However, the production and use of very large flakes is registered in severalkinds of archaeological contexts around the globe. The present research concerns a casestudy from the southern part of South-Central Andes. Specifically, it comprises a portionof the holocenic archaeological sequence from Antofagasta de la Sierra (Argentina). In thispaper we describe the giant artifacts of some quarries, rockshelters and open air residen-tial archaeological sites together with their reduction sequence, from the nature andacquisition of the raw material, through the blank production and tool manufacture.

Very good quality raw materials are abundant in Antofagasta de la Sierra, basically vul-canites, but giant cores are not ubiquitous because the size of clasts is mainly smaller at aregional level. Only three quarries have the suitable size of clasts to produce giant cores:QSZAC, POZAC and Los Negros quarry.

The production of large flakes appears twice in the archaeological sequence analyzed.First, as blanks used for bifaces as tools and cores and for lanceolate apedunculate andtriangular and lanceolate stemmed projectile point manufacturing from 7500 to 3000years BP. This moment is associated with fully mobile hunter-gatherers and semi-sedentarylate hunter-gatherers in transition to food production. Technical modes of tool productioninvolve mostly bifacial thinning.

Second, large flake production is aimed later to the manufacture of a big agriculturalspecialized tool with marginal retouch only, from 1700 to 1200 years BP, associated withfull sedentary agro-pastoralist societies. The use of these flaked tools is related to quinoaharvesting. It is remarkable that there is no record of giant cores and large flakes use from3000 to 1700 BP and that the objectives of tool production are completely different whencomparing the both cases considered.

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4. Use-wear analyses - signs of usage on stone tools (a.k.a. traceology)

Ignacio Clemente ([email protected])

Juan Gibaja ([email protected])

Juan José Ibañez ([email protected])

Organizers

Session Description

An important field of study in lithics is related to what the artefacts were used for anduse-wear analyses often give a better insight into this topic. This session will focus on rese-arch related to use-wear analysis (also known as traceology) and various signs of usage onknapped stone tools.


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USER WEAR ANALISYS OF QUARTZITE LITHIC IMPLEMENTS FROM THE MIDDLEPALEOLI-THIC SITE OF LAGOA DO BANDO (CENTRAL PORTUGAL)

- BERRUTI, Grabiele Luigi Francesco ([email protected])University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro

- CURA, Sara, ([email protected])Museu de Arte Pré-Histórica de Mação (Portugal); Grupo “Quaternário e Pré-Histórica” doCentro de Geociências (uID73 – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia)

The Middle Palaeolithic site of Lagoa do Bando is an open air site in a fluvio-lacustrinecontext located at 570 a.s.l., in the municipality of Macao, in the center of Portugal. Thesite was discovered in 2011, during an emergency excavation, and resulted in the recoveryof a lithic industry composed mainly of fine grain quartzite implements of Discoid andLevallois technology. The raw material was not identified near the site, but in the valley ofsmall streams some kilometres away. In fact, the reduction sequence analysis indicatesthat only the final stages of production took place at the site.

The use wear analysis was conducted on 41 artefacts obtained through Discoid andLevallois technology. Twenty of these artefacts revealed use wear traces. Ten of themshow traces of wood work, five have traces of butchering activities, three present traces ofmeat processing and two present undetermined traces. For the use wear analysis, a pro-tocol was used which provided a combination with high power approach and low powerapproach. Two component silicone moulding material was used to make fine grainedmoulds of the edges of these artefacts. The use of moulds allowed observation without thehigh degree of glare common with quartz-rich raw materials. A reference collection of localquartzite flakes was produced, and which was used to process a variety of materials withincontrolled experiments that were necessary to understand and interpret the use wear pre-sent on the archaeological artefacts.

These results converge with the current interpretation of this site as a temporary hun-ting site integrated into a landscape pattern of occupation between the river valleys andthe tops of low mountains.


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TOOLKITS, CHAÎNES OPÉRATOIRES AND CROSS CRAFT INTERACTION IN THE DOMESTICSINGLE GRAVE CULTURE: AND APPROACH THROUGH FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS

- GARCÍA-DIAZ, VIRGINIA ( [email protected])

Leiden University

This paper presents the result of the technological and functional analysis on flint,stone and bone implements of three Single Grave Culture settlements, the northernbranch of the Corded Ware Culture (2900-2450 B.C.E.). The Corded Ware Culture is knownmainly from burials and deposits. Information on households is scarce, and domesticimplements are seldom studied in detail. However, during the last decade of the 20th cen-tury, several domestic settlements were excavated in the province of Noord-Holland,making this area one of the best in Europe to study the domestic sphere of the CordedWare Culture. From 2009 to 2014 the NWO-Odyssee programme’s ‘Unlocking North-Holland’s Late Neolithic Treasure Chest’ project focused on the analysis and interpretationof three archaeological settlements of the Single Grave Culture. Through the analysis ofthe interconnectivity of different chaîne opératoire it was possible to understand thegenerated networks, and the cross craft interaction, of material culture from the archaeo-logical contexts. Technological and functional analysis then, permits an understanding ofthe role of the implements on the social organisation of the groups, and how the techno-logical system was organised.

In this presentation, the results of the analysis of three Single Grave settlements, atKeinsmerbrug, Miennaker and Zeewijk, are shown. Technological and functional analysisof the Single Grave settlements suggest that toolkits were interrelated into different sphe-res of domestic life, but no indication pointing to specialization of implements and toolkitsfor specific activities was found. The results are contextualised within the Dutch andEuropean Neolithic context.


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AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT AND NEW KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE CHIPPEDSTONE INDUSTRY FROM VINČA CULTURE

- BOGOSAVLJEVIC PETROVIĆ, Z. Vera ([email protected])

National museum in Belgrade

The 800 year duration of the Vinča culture in the periods of the Late Neolithic and EarlyChalcolithic within the territory of Serbia impressively marks its stable profile and influen-ce on the surrounding region. In order to examine the hypothesis of the continuity of Vinčachipped stone industry and the previously noticed changes within it, we started from thequestion of the process of tool production and the life cycle of artefacts. A series of prepa-ratory activities in making replicas of sickles and the realization of a harvesting processcontributed to gaining better knowledge of sequences of lithic organization, from thesupply strategy to the production and utilization of artefacts. The main goal of the experi-ment was to obtain authentic traces of use on the working edges and creation of the visualdatabase in order to be compared with examples from the region.

The first concrete data from this archaeological experiment came from the comparisonof the flakes and blades from the archaeological assemblage of Vinča - Belo Brdo with thereplicas produced within the experiment. This involved adhering to the quality of lithic rawmaterials and the technique of soft hammer percussion, obtaining the first 16 kg of grainfrom a sown area of 56 m2, determination of the time of establishing the first traces fromthe harvest (after 3 hours) until the appearance of the first gloss (between 7 and 8 hoursof active use) as well as the projection of the land area in the surroundings of settlementsfor feeding an average family.

Making of sickle replicas contributed to more precise determination of the time andefforts necessary for the production of tools from different raw materials, the duration ofpotential usage of composite tools and the process of sickle insert renewal. The amountof raw material required by an average family per season was quantified based on theapproximate area of land and the quantity of cereal necessary for a household in Vinčasettlements. Observations of this kind have so far been reduced to recognizing basic wor-king processes within one assemblage of chipped stone tools and a series of assumptionsmade without more extensive elaboration. Raising the question of the quantity of rawmaterial necessary for the work of one Vinča community during a one year period has ope-ned far broader implications on the influence of man on his surroundings and his actualextent in the period at the end of the 6th and the beginning of the 5th millennia B.C.E.

Keywords: Vinča culture lithic technology; experimentation; lithic raw materials;reduction sequences; sickle replica; microwear analysis; quantification of needs

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100


THE SPIKE SCRAPER OF THE GUADIANA VALLEY, DURANGO (MEXICO): USE AND FUNC-TION IN THE CHALCHIHUITES CULTURE

- ANDRADE GONZÁLEZ, Israel ([email protected])Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, Centro INAH Durango, Durango, Mexico

- CABADAS BAÑEZ, Héctor VíctorUniversidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Toluca, Mexico

- PUNZO DIAZ, José LuisInstituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, Centro INAH Michoacán, Michoacán, México

- LAILSON TINOCO, BecketUniversidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, México

Archaeology of the Chalchihuites culture (Durango, Mexico) is remarkably interestingbecause it coexists between two great cultural areas in North America - NW Mexico andSW United States Southwest on one hand and Mesoamerica on the other. Chalchihuiteslithics remains are scarce, especially in the Guadiana branch. The Spike Scraper studied inthis region is very valuable to our understanding of the pre-Hispanic settlements of theGuadiana Valley. This tool is a unique artifact manufactured specifically in the region andhas been found at the majority of the localities studied, especially at the La Ferreria site,the most representative settlement of the Guadiana branch. The scanning electron micros-cope analysis of the lithics suggests some functionality designed by the Chalchihuitesgroup, as well the importance of the artifact: from the raw materials selection, manufac-ture development and the social-economic value. This study analyses the Spike Scraper inseveral aspects, starting with the lithic typology, its use and function, its geographic distri-bution among the diverse archaeology sites in the Guadiana Valley and its significant rela-tionship with the Chalchihuites culture.


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TOOL FUNCTION AND HUMAN BEHAVIOUR IN FUENTE DEL TRUCHO (HUESCA, SPAIN)

- DOMINGO, Rafael ([email protected])

University of Zaragoza

Fuente del Trucho is a major site in the Central Pre-Pyrenees that exhibits fine exam-ples of rock art (Utrilla et al., 2014) as well as very interesting archaeological levels withboth Neanderthal and modern human occupations (Mir and Salas, 2000; Montes et al.,2006). Recent dates suggest that some of the stratified occupations belong to the EarlyUpper Palaeolithic, in accordance with several lithic tools of Aurignacian typology thatappeared in the disturbed internal sediments. The external stratigraphic sequence, stillpartially excavated, points to a succession of Mousterian and Upper Palaeolithic levels.

The occurrence in the same site of these techno-complexes leads us to propose a func-tional analysis based on the ideas described by Klein (1993) and Pawlik (2011, 2012) con-cerning the “modern behavior package”. We document the differences betweenNeanderthal and modern humans in terms of lithic artefact variability and usage.

The possibilities offered by the succession within a single site and environment of dif-ferent human groups with similar necessities provides an ideal opportunity to trace thesesupposedly behavioural peculiarities. Both groups of prehistoric people shared a commonlandscape, with the same access to raw material and resources and likewise they facedsimilar climatic conditions. We can therefore assume that they shared common basicneeds that they tried to overcome by their own means. The different human responses tothese similar challenges can be read in terms of cultural traditions that are partly represen-ted by their toolkit management.

Functional analysis of lithic tools should offer a good image of the behavioural diffe-rences between Neanderthals and modern humans. Fuente del Trucho, with a limited butrepresentative lithic assemblage of both chronocultural periods, offers a good opportunityto test these ideas.

Klein, R. (2003). Whither the Neanderthals? Science, 299: 1525-1527.

Mir, A., Salas, R. (2000). La cueva de la Fuente del Trucho y su industria lítica arcaizante delPleniglacial superior (Colungo, Huesca). Bolskan, 17: 9-32.

Montes, L., Utrilla, P., Martínez-Bea, M. (2006). Trabajos recientes en yacimientos muste-rienses de Aragón: Una revisión de la transición Paleolítico Medio/ Superior en el Valle delEbro. Zona Arqueológica, 7 (1):214-233.

Pawlik, A. (2012). Behavioural complexity and modern traits in the Philippine UpperPalaeolithic. Asian Perspectives, 51 (1): 22-46.

Utrilla, P., Baldellou, V., Bea, M., Montes, L., Domingo, R. (2014). La Fuente del Trucho.Ocupación, estilo y cronología. In Corchon, S. and Menéndez, M. Cien años de arte rupestrepaleolítico. Centenario del descubrimiento de la cueva de la Peña de Candamo (1914-2014).Universidad de Salamanca, pp. 199-132


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103


GREYWACKE VS. QUARTZITE: AN EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM TO COMPARE GROUNDSTONE RAW-MATERIALS

(1) - PEREIRA,Telmo ([email protected])(1) - MARREIROS,João ([email protected])(2) - GIBAJA,Juan ([email protected])(1) - PAIXÃO, Eduardo ([email protected])(1) - CASCALHEIRA,João ([email protected])(1) - BICHO,Nuno ([email protected])

1. ICArEHB - Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution Human Behavior,University of Algarve; 2. CSIC (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas)

Ground stone technology is present in the Palaeolithic sequences of sites all throughoutthe territory of Portugal. Although the underdeveloped state of research does not allow adetailed characterization, this category of materials is present both in the south, mostlymade from greywacke and in the north mainly made from quartzite.

In order to identify, characterize and compare use-wear, this project seeks to realize anexperimental program, based on the application of pressure and impact with several typesof organic and lithic elements, to greywacke and quartzite blocks with metric and morpho-logical features similar to the archeological materials. The marks will be macroscopicallyand microscopically analyzed in order to identify quantification and distribution patterns,and relate them with the different activities, the main goal being the understanding of thedifferences among raw materials from a use-wear perspective.

This study will be essential to learning how different raw materials preserve use-wearmarks caused by different activities and, ultimately, daily human behavior.


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USING TEXTURE QUANTIFICATION OF SICKLE GLOSS THROUGH CONFOCAL MICROS-COPY TO STUDY THE ORIGINS OF AGRICULTURE IN THE NEAR EAST

(1) - IBAÑEZ, Juan José ([email protected])(2) - ANDERSON, Patricia ([email protected])(3) - GONZÁLEZ URQUIJO, Jesús ([email protected])(1) - GIBAJA, Juan ([email protected])

1. IMF-CSIC; 2. CNRS, Université de Nice; 3. Universidad de Cantabria

Cereals were first cultivated and domesticated in the Near East at the end of thePleistocene or the beginning of the Holocene. When and where this process took placeexactly are still matters of debate. In this paper we resort to the quantitative analysis usingconfocal microscopy of sickle gloss texture on flint tools used for cereal reaping to shednew light on this debate, showing that wild cereals were most probably cultivated in the13th millennium BP in the Middle Euphrates (during the Younger Dryas) and that a localand continuous process towards cereal domestication took place in this region of theNorthern Levant. Thus, our research contributes a new method for investigating the ori-gins of agriculture, while the data gathered allow us to support both the hypothesis on therelevance of the Younger Dryas as a triggering element for the origins of agriculture andthe protracted model of plant domestication, pointing to the Middle Euphrates as one ofthe zones where agriculture originated.


105


WHAT IS A NICE FLAKE LIKE YOU DOING IN A PLACE LIKE THIS? USE-WEAR AND REFITANALYSIS JOIN TO STUDY THE QUARTZITES OF MIDDLE PLEISTOCENE TD10.1 LEVEL OFGRAN DOLINA SITE (SIERRA DE ATAPUERCA, BURGOS, SPAIN)

- LÓPEZ-ORTEGA, Esther ([email protected])- PEDERGANA, Antonella ([email protected])- OLLÉ, Andreu ([email protected])- RODRÍGUEZ, Xosé Pedro

Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social - URV - Universitat Rovira i Virgili

Numerous studies are based on lithic refits and on use-wear residues applied toPalaeolithic assemblages with the aim of better understanding the economy and manage-ment of raw material into the settlements. Most of these studies have been focused onUpper Pleistocene assemblages, mainly in Neanderthal and modern human settlements,and have identified not only the connections between artefacts and their use, but alsotheir interactions and movements, often allowing us to determine activity areas on the sitesurfaces. Recently, refit and use-wear analysis has been applied to Lower and MiddlePleistocene chronologies in African, Asian and also European lithic industries.Nevertheless, these archaic settlements and their preservation reveal new difficulties andonly an interdisciplinary study can shed light on this matter, and provide a more accurateinterpretation.

This study is presented as a complementary interaction between refit study and a use-wear analysis applied to a quartzite sample coming from the Middle Pleistocene TD10.1level of the Gran Dolina site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain), dated to around 300.000BP. The results obtained show a concentration towards the North and East sections of boththe artefacts and the units of raw material, even though some of these units are relativelycloser to the central area. Use-wear analysis allowed us to determine the function basedon refit and contributed to the explanation of artefact movements within the settlement,where some structuring elements have been identified.


106


FUNCTIONAL APPROACH TO THE ROCK CRYSTAL TECHNOLOGY IN HIGH MOUNTAINENVIRONMENTS. THE CASE OF MONTLLEÓ (PRATS I SANSOR, LA CERDANYA,CATALUÑA)

(1) - FERNÁNDEZ MARCHENA, Juan Luis ([email protected])(1) - OLLÉ, Andreu ([email protected])(2) - MANGADO, Xavier ( [email protected])

1. IPHES/URV, Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain; 2. SERP, Universitat de Barcelona, Catalonia,Spain

The open air site of Montlleó, with Early Magdalenian levels, is one of the earliest evi-dences of the colonization of the Pyrenean Axial Zone. Despite being located at a conside-rable altitude (1304 m a.s.l.), it is not a simple hunting camp, as shown by the typologicalvariety of its lithic industry, the malacological ornaments, and others. Its location in theColl de Saig, a path that connects the northern and southern slopes of the Pyrenees,makes it a likely reference point for the contact between groups inhabiting the territoriesbetween the Gulf of Lion and the Ebro Valley. One of the main features of Montlleó is thepoly-lithologic nature of its raw materials. This is an advantage when performing use-wearstudies, especially in sites like Montlleó, in which a significant portion of flint assemblageexhibits a white patina. Rock crystal is a material practically unaffected by post-depositio-nal chemical processes, so its microscopic study has a great value in obtaining functionaldata from this site.

The use-wear study of this rock crystal assemblage is important for several reasons.First, this raw material is uncommon, and therefore it has been very little studied. It is avery rare material before the Upper Palaeolithic, but despite its scarcity in the archaeolo-gical record, it is quite common in mountain environments in which, due to geological rea-sons, flint is scarce. The study of a site such as Montlleó, with a considerable amount ofrock crystal, can shed light on the debate about the use of U.A.D.s (Útiles de Arista Diédrica– Dihedrical Ridge Tools). This debate is focused on whether rock crystal prisms with remo-vals from the distal part were scraping tools or engraving tools, or whether they are simplyunexhausted cores.

Moreover, due to the previously mentioned poly-lithological character of the site, thisstudy is a first step in the functional characterization of the raw materials. For this purpo-se, a high magnification study was conducted, with the combined use of OLM and SEM. Itis envisioned that this will identify the extent to which the provisioning of various litholo-gies was carried out with a pre-established (before collection) functional purpose.


107


USE-WEAR ANALYSIS OF A SINGULAR ARTIFACT: THE ROCK CRYSTAL POINT FROM OACHADIZO (BOIRO, A CORUÑA, GALICIA, SPAIN)

(1) - FERNÁNDEZ MARCHENA, Juan Luis ([email protected])(1) - OLLÉ, Andreu ([email protected])(2) - SEOANE NOVO, Cristina(2) - RODRÍGUEZ NÓVOA, Alba Antía ([email protected])(2) - AMADO RODRÍGUEZ, Estevo ([email protected])(1) - PÉREZ TENORIO, R. ( [email protected])

1. IPHES/URV, Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain; 2. GEPN, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain

The knapped stone industry in the Galician Iron Age hillforts is largely unknown.Currently, research on the material culture of these Galician Iron Age settlements is beco-ming increasingly diverse. Therefore, they are no longer reduced to studies of typologiesand technical analysis over ceramics and metals, but they also include a wide range ofapproaches to culture such as, for example, anthracological and carpological analyses, aswell as trade. This deficiency in the investigation - which may depend on various factors -limits the overall perception of the economy of these peoples since it does not refer to anentire technological complex.

In this study we present data obtained from the use-wear study of a rock crystal toolfrom the castrum of O Achadizo (Boiro, A Coruña, Galicia). This tool was located in "shellmidden A", dated to the 2nd Iron Age, and is of particular importance because of its poin-ted morphology and the evidence of configuration around its perimeter. For the study ofthis piece, we carried out a macroscopic and microscopic analysis in order to obtain asmuch data as possible. The location of a series of striae which are discordant with the useof the piece as point, along with the macroscopic data, has lead us to make a number of“gigaphotos”. With these “gigaphotos” we were able to document the orientation of thelinear features. In this way, we have seen that there is a differential orientation of the stria-tions in the various sectors of the tip, suggesting a possible technical nature.


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FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF LITHIC POINTED ELEMENTS FROM THE EL SALT SITE (ALCOY,ALICANTE, SPAIN)

- JARDON GINER , Paula ([email protected])Facultat de Filosofia i Ciències de l'Educació. Universitat de València

- HORTELANO, Laura ([email protected])Universitat de València

- GALVÁN, Bertila ([email protected])

Functional analysis of lithic projectiles has been a frequently subject of discussionduring the last decade. The technological and dimensional approach is related with macro-fracture and use wear analysis for the study of pointed objects from ancient collectionsand recent excavations atEl Salt (Alcoy, Alicante). The aim was to establish whether thesepointed objects were used by Neanderthals as hafted spearheads for hunting .

El Salt occupations occurred during Marine Isotope Stages 3b and 3a . The proximity toother sites that complement the development of various economic activities related to thebenchmark settlement is significant. They all have in common archa eosedimentary cha-racteristics of deposits, typical of interstadial conditions and astriking resemblance with-technological management of lithic raw materials. The previous study of projectilesfromAbric del Pastor (Galván , Hernandez and Francisco , 2007) serves as a starting pointon which this study is based.In the case of Pastor delAbric, we found preferential huntingactivities to be related to hunting of wild goats, however, El Salt presents a wide range ofanimals, observations can be made about hunting activities which could point to the exis-tence of more diverse tactics, techniques, and weapons. The discussion on the methodsand techniques of hunting, the selection of lithic raw materials , size of lithic projectiles,type of hafting and their suitability for wildlife hunted in the Alcoy Valleys is presented inan integrated manner. Thus it is possible to approach a technological and economic inter-pretation of the exploitation of resources in this geographic area.

Galván, B.; Hernandez, C.; Francisco, I. (2007). Elementos líticos apuntados en el musterien-se alcoyano. El Abric del Pastor (Alicante).VELEIA, 24-25. p. 367-383.


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USE WEAR AND HAFTING EVIDENCE ON QUARTZ TOOLS FROM THE VALE DA PEDRAFURADA SITE (PIAUI, BRAZIL)

- CLEMENTE-CONTE, Ignacio ([email protected])IMF- CSIC. Barcelona

- BOËDA, Eric ([email protected])AnTET. Université Paris X

- FARIAS, María ([email protected])Universidade do Rio Grande Do Sul, Brasil

In this work we present the results of the use-wear analysis carried out on the lithicassemblage from the Vale da Pedra Furada site, dated to the Pleistocene period (27,000-14,000 BP). We describe the characteristics of the surfaces of the quartz tools that havebeen analyzed in order to reconstruct the production activities carried out with theiredges. We focused our attention on the relation between the shape or type of the toolsand the materials worked and the action performed with each one of them. Moreover, weidentified several zones associated with the hafting; they seek abrupt fractures of 'siret'type or retouched notches, on which it is possible to observe micro-wear produced by thefriction with the strings used for hafting. Such evidence has been reproduced experimen-tally, using the same raw material employed by the prehistoric group and reproducing theblanks showing the same technological features.

Key Words: Pleistocene; America; quartz; use-wear; hafting


110


A PALAEOECONOMIC PERSPECTIVE ON LITHIC ASSEMBLAGES: THE TRACEOLOGICALANALYSIS OF FLAKED STONE TOOLS FROM EARLY-MIDDLE NEOLITHIC CONTEXT IN THEN-NE OF THE IBERIAN PENINSULA

- MAZZUCCO; Niccolò ([email protected])- GIBAJA, Juan Francisco ([email protected])

Milà I Fontanals - CSIC Barcelona

Traceological analysis of flaked stone assemblages has a great potential in prehistoricstudies. Apart from defining the functionality of determinate categories and/or typologiesof artefacts, traceology can strongly contribute to the understanding of the economicorganization of a site or groups of sites. During the last decade the study of an increasingnumber of Early and Middle Neolithic contexts in the northwestern Mediterranean (andespecially in Southern France) revealed the existence of different ‘functional status’ and‘functional complementarities’ among sites, with a specialization of places and practices.In this poster, we advance a more rigorous statistical analysis of the use-wear data in orderto explore site-economy variability, comparing assemblages from large open-air sites andfrom caves and rock-shelters of different sizes and located in the NE of the IberianPeninsula. Our analysis demonstrated the existence of a varied spectrum of occupationswith different economic orientations, already during Early Neolithic. Stable settlementswith a mixed economy are associated with more or less temporary occupations focused onthe exploitation of a reduced range of resources (i.e. hunting; pastures; meat and diary).Such diversity of occupations suggests a specialization of sites and peoples within the terri-torial and economic system of Neolithic, agro-pastoral, communities. This scenario is inagreement with a pattern of seasonal (short, mid-range?) mobility between stable settle-ments and ephemeral campsites or pastoral shelters.

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S5 - Microcrystalline quartz as a geological material

- Patrick Julig ([email protected])

- George “Rip” Rapp ([email protected])

Organizers

Session Description

This session will focus on topics such as the petrogenesis of different lithic materials orother usages of microcrystaline quartz in the modern era


112


DETERMINING CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND MARKERS OF NEOLITHIC QUARTZARTIFACTS AND DEBITAGE USING PORTABLE XRF: RESULTS FROM THE KUIVANIEMIMUSTAMAA SITE IN NORTHERN FINLAND

- OKKONEN, Jari ([email protected])University of Oulu. Finland

- PANTTILA, Hannu ([email protected])Geological Survey of Finland

The Kuivaniemi Mustamaa archaeological site was accidentally ploughed for forestregeneration and altogether the remains of three Middle Neolithic pit houses dating backto roughly 3000-2500 cal. BCE were partly destroyed through thisaction. On these opentracks an inclusive surface collection was gathered, consisting of seven quartz tools, sevenquartz cores and 39 pieces of debitage (Figures 1 and 2). The bedrock of the study area ismigmatitic tonalite and the soil type of the site is sand till. The site is on the slope of amoraine ridge.

A set of 20 samples of quartz finds were analyzed with an Olympus Innovx Delta 6000portable XRF-device. The aim of the study was to determine the chemical characteristicsand independent chemical markers of the samples. These samples were analyzed twice,firstly unwashed and then after washing with ethanol. The analyses of unwashed samplesshowed some precipitated elements and one sample had traces of phosphor. As a result,the samples can be grouped into three categoriesbased onthe silica content and severalsub-groups by the amounts of Fe and Ti. Some elements, such as K and Sr, show more inde-finable occurrences. In the coastal area of the Northern Baltic, the Stone Age shore-boundhunter-gatherers typically utilized the quartz blocks frequently found on stony tops ofmoraine hillocks. All the quartz material of Mustamaa site is identical in regardsto the tex-ture and color. Consequently it is difficult to visually distinguish which objective piece,detached pieces or tools are possibly from the same preparation process. The main purpo-se of the XRFresearch was to identify distinct quartz reduction episodes and their spatialextent.


113


MAIN FEATURES OF MICROCRYSTALLINE QUARTZ FROM MIOCENE IGNEOUS ROCKS OFNORTH WEST OF ANNABA (ALGERIA)

- DAIF, Menana ([email protected])- ARAFA, Ahmed

University of Annaba Algerie

Several prehistoric sites are located in Annaba area, where many industries and toolsare recorded. Many of them, ranging from the Acheulean to the Neolithic, are composedof microcrystalline quartz coming from various outcrops; however, this study is limited tothe Miocene igneous rocks. In these magmatic rocks, silicification is the most commontype of alteration. This microcrystalline quartz owes its origin largely to the hydrothermalprocess, accompanying the end of igneous activity.

Microcrystalline quartz occurs in two main forms. In the first, when the hostrock pre-sents a fine vesicular texture, the microcrystalline quartz spreads uniformly,takingan“homogeneous”aspect, originally replacedby amorphous silica, the resulting silici-fied rock becomes uniformly very hard.In the second one, the original texture of the rockis cut by a complex system of fissuring, which is filled with well-individualized chalcedony,resembling stockworks.

The most abundant varieties of microcrystalline quartz are: ordinary and banded chal-cedony and spherulitic quartzine. There is also a fan-shaped mature opal.

Archaeological aspect is approached only by locating samples in relation to prehistoricsites. The study focuses on the geological aspect of the raw material: origin, petrographyand chemistry.

Various microstructural features are determined using microscopic methods (optical,SEM) and X-ray diffraction. Investigations also emphasize on water contents of differenttype of microcrystalline quartz.

115


S6- Characterising lithic sources

- Adrian Burke ([email protected])

- Patrick Julig ([email protected])

- George “Rip” Rapp ([email protected])

Organizers

Session Description

In order to trace the provenance of an artefact, it is necessary to distinguish betweendifferent potential sources. There are many methods of doing this ranging from visual tomicroscopic to chemical analyses. This session will focus on methods that may be used todistinguish between materials as well as characterisation studies of specific raw materialsources.


116


CHERT CHARACTERIZATION USING REFLECTANCE SPECTROSCOPY

- PARISH, Ryan M. ([email protected])

University of Memphis, Memphis, U.S.A.

Two complimentary reflectance spectroscopy techniques, Visible and Near-Infrared(VNIR) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), are proving to be non-destructive, fast, costeffective, versatile and accurate methods to differentiate chert sources. The study pre-sents research demonstrating the potential application of reflectance spectroscopy data inchert provenance research. Reflectance spectral data gathered in the visible, near- andmiddle-infrared regions records the interactions of both the atomic and molecular confi-guration of chert with portions of electromagnetic radiation. A large chert sample databa-se consisting of over 3,000 samples from 100 plus deposits in the Midwestern andSoutheastern United States highlights the application of reflectance spectroscopy to diffe-rentiate chert by formation, by outcrop or deposit and by intra-deposit. The non-destruc-tive application of outer surface analysis is tested using controlled experiments. Otherpotential variables affecting accurate provenance information including, thermal altera-tion, sample size and thickness, intra-sample or intra-artifact variation, instrument noise,sample geometry and multivariate statistical analysis are considered.

Analysis of approximately 400 Late Paleoindian-Early Archaic diagnostic projectilepoints from 12 sites along the Lower Tennessee River illustrates the potential chert sour-ce applications of reflectance spectroscopy. Also, provenance data for this material refinesour understanding of hunter-gatherer group mobility and resource acquisition during theEarly Holocene.

ISKM 2015 ‐ Abstracts

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S6‐ Characterising lithic sources

HETEROGENEITY OF KNAPPABLE RAW MATERIAL USED FOR CHIPPED STONE ARTEFACTPRODUCTION AT THE MESOLITHIC SITE OF LEPENSKI VIR (SERBIA)

(1) ‐ ŠARIĆ, Kristina ([email protected])(2) ‐ ŠARIĆ Josip ([email protected]) (1) ‐ CVETKOVIĆ Vladica ([email protected])(1) ‐ GAJIĆ Violeta ([email protected])

1. University of Belgrade; 2. Institute of Archaeology, Belgrade, Serbia

Lepenski Vir is a Mesolithic‐Neolithic archaeological site situated in Eastern Serbia, onthe right bank of the Danube River. Although it is most famous for its unique sculpturesmade of sandstone, it is also significant in terms of stone tools. Mineralogical‐petrographi‐cal analyses of the investigated collection of chipped stone artefacts, represented by 910samples, were done in order to characterize the raw material and its provenance. Theresults of research confirm the heterogeneity of the stone material used for making tools.The majority of the knapped stone tools were made of cherts and radiolarite (around70%), quartzite (around 20%), acid volcanic rocks and their volcaniclastics (around 6%),whereas silicified limestones, basalts, diorite and gabbro represent the rest of the mate‐rial.

Cherts and radiolarites are heterogeneous in colour – from pale ochre and red to greenand dark grey and have amorphous to cryptocrystalline or organic texture. Within thisgroup, 102 items were made of so‐called “Balkan Flint“. Quartzite raw material is milkywhite or dark grey, with typical granoblastic texture and massive fabric. The samples ofacid volcanic rocks are dacite‐rhyodacite to rhyolite lava and accompanied devitrified wel‐ded tuffs, fallout and phreatomagmatic pyroclastic rocks. They are usually purple to grayand show porphyritic to volcaniclastic texture.

Despite the fact that it is not possible to determine the origin of all raw materials onthis level of research, some conclusions can be stated on the basis of the existing geologi‐cal data. A certain number of artefacts were made from cherts and radiolarites, which areknown to occur interstratified with Jurassic and Cretaceous limestones situated just abovethe site. On the other hand, the previously mentioned acid volcanic and volcaniclasticrocks are not found in Serbia. However, just across the Danube, in Romania, such rocks arewidespread. This provides evidence to conclude that the raw material originates from theother side of the Danube. Such conclusions confirm already postulated statements thatthe communities from both sides of the Danube communicated and most likely were ableto cross the river. Further multidisciplinary research would help in providing more eviden‐ce in order to specify the true localities of origin of the raw material used for making knap‐ped stone artefacts.

Acknowledgements

The study was funded by the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and TechnicalDevelopment (projects no. 176016 and 177020).


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THE IRISH LITHIC LANDSCAPE PROJECT: CHERT PROVENANCING RESEARCH IN PREHIS-TORIC IRELAND

(1) - DRISCOLL, Killian ([email protected])(2) - BURKE, Adrian ([email protected])(2) - BARON, Anne(3) - WARREN, Graeme(4) - BERGH, Stefan(5) - SHORT, Heather

1. Département d'anthropologie.Université de Montréal 2. Université de Montréal ; 3.University College Dublin (Ireland); 4.- National University of Ireland, Galway (Ireland); 5.-Dept. Geosciences, John Abbott College, Montreal

While Ireland has a very rich archaeological heritage, there is a significant gap in theisland's raw material sourcing research. This project will begin to fill this gap, and therefo-re deepen our understanding of the prehistoric communities there. The 2014 geoarchaeo-logical prospection for the project centred on the northwest of Ireland, which includescase study assemblages from domestic sites and ritual sites such as megalithic tomb com-plexes. During 2014 we collected 350 geological samples from over 400 survey points,which included examining c. 250 outcrop groups.

The present analysis is using non-destructive energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) as a first-order technique to determine chert whole-rock geochemistry, which will befollowed by petrographic analysis on a sub-sample of the collection. A significant part ofthis project is the creation of a lithoteque reference collection of Irish cherts; this will bephysically housed at the UCD School of Archaeology, Ireland and accompanied by a web-based, spatial database, open for use by other researchers.


119


RAW MATERIAL SOURCES OF KNAPPED STONE TOOLS FROM THE EXCAVATION OF THEPREHISTORIC SITE AT TOUMBA THESSALONIKI, GREECE

(1) - KARAGEORGIOU, Stamatia ([email protected])(2) - KOSTAKI, Aikaterini ([email protected])(3) - VAVELIDIS, Michail ([email protected])(3) - ANDREOU, Stelios ([email protected])

1. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki ; 2. Department of art history and archaeology,Université Paris 1 Panthéon, Sorbonne, France; 3. School of Geology, Aristotle University,Thessaloniki, Greece

The settlement of Toumba in Thessaloniki is an archaeological site of the Bronze Age.This site has the form of an artificial hill due to the accumulated remains of human acti-vity. The period of these activities lasted for almost 2000 years. The excavations showedthat there was continuous habitation since the late third or early second millennium B.C.E.until the late 4th or early 3rd century B.C.E.

The lithic tools from the excavation of Toumba were studied in order to compare theraw materials that had been used with respect to the geological occurrences of the corres-ponding materials in the region. After the macroscopic identification and color categoriza-tion of different types of chert products found during the excavation, the site of Vasilikawas chosen for sampling respective varieties of chert. Vasilika is a village of Thessalonikiand is located at a distance of about 28 km southeast of Toumba. This area is known formining activity and extracting raw materials used for knapped tools. The classification ofstone tool raw materials in a certain geological context from where these come, suggeststheir generating mechanism and geochemistry. With such evidence, it is suggested that itis possible to make a connection between this geological occurrence and the human choi-ce of such materials in stone tool manufacturing.

The petrographic examination of 940 lithic products shows whether there are integra-ted operational sequences at the site. Samples of both tools and raw materials were stu-died under a polarizing microscope. The determination of the chemical composition of thesamples was done with ICP-MS analyses and XRF analyses. After this further geochemicaldetermination, some of the preliminary groups were connected. Apart from silicate rocks,the geochemical study revealed the existence of other kinds of raw materials amongst thefindings of knapped stone products, which cannot be connected to the regional area ofVasilika.


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121


FROM THE SOURCE TO THE OBJECT: AN INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH TO TRACINGTHE ORIGIN OF STEATITE ORNAMENTS MADE BY THE IROQUOIANS OF THE SAINTLAWRENCE VALLEY (QUEBEC, CANADA)

- BARON, Anne ([email protected])Post-doctorante, Université de Montréal, Département d’Anthropologie, Pavillon Lionel-Groulx, C. P. 6128, succursale

- BURKE, Adrian L. ([email protected])Enseignant-chercheur, Prof. Agrégé, Université de Montréal, département d’Anthropologie,Pavillon Lionel-Groulx, C.

- GRATUZE, Bernard ([email protected])Directeur de recherche CNRS, Université d’Orléans, IRAMAT-CEB UMR 5060, 3D Rue de l’Férollerie, F-45071 Orléans

- CHAPDELAINE, Claude ([email protected])Professeur titulaire, Université de Montréal, département d’Anthropologie, Pavillon Lionel-Groulx, C.P. 6128

Since precontact times, First Nations groups from northeastern America used steatite,or soapstone, to make many artifacts, such as ornaments, vessels, and ceremonial anddecorative objects. Only a few studies have been dedicated to this topic, more particularlyon steatite vessels from Northern Dorset sites and from Eastern America. In these regions,steatite vessels are common. In Southern Ontario, Quebec and New York – regions occu-pied by Iroquoian groups during the Late Woodland period – many beads and pipes havebeen discovered but steatite vessels are very rare or even nonexistent. Steatite quarriesare known for steatite vessels and the manufacture during the Late Archaic and EarlyWoodland is well documented. But for the Iroquoian region during late prehistory, it ismore difficult because the identification of geological sources are unknown. Consequently,tracing the origin of the materials and the diffusion of the steatite artifacts in this arearepresents an important scientific challenge. A research program based on an interdiscipli-nary approach is in process in order to understand raw material acquisition and to recons-truct ancient exchange networks for the territories occupied by Iroquoian populations,more particularly in the St. Lawrence Valley. This interdisciplinary research involves i) anarchaeological approach to the artifacts to restitute the chaine operatoire, ii) a geologicalapproach to identify and sample the exploited resources and iii) the characterization of thematerials to define their origin. Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma MassSpectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) was chosen for its micro-destructive aspect, which provides aprecise and detailed first estimation of the chemical composition of the materials. Theimportant work of sampling both archaeological objects from Iroquoian sites and geologi-cal sources have been realized in different archaeological institutions and also in the fieldin southern Ontario, Quebec and New York to create a reference collection of the mate-rials. The results obtained from these different approaches will be presented.

'On the Rocks' ‐ International Symposium on Knappable Materials / University of Barcelona / 7‐11 September 2015

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S6‐ Characterising lithic sources

CHERTY ROCKS FROM THE TERRITORY OF SERBIA AS POTENTIAL RAW MATERIAL FORKNAPPED STONE ARTEFACTS

(1) ‐ ŠARIĆ, Kristina ([email protected])(2) ‐ ERAMO, Giacomo ([email protected])(3) ‐ DE BENEDETTO, Giuseppe ([email protected])(3) ‐ PENNETTA, Antonio ([email protected])(1) ‐ GAJIĆ, Violeta ([email protected])(4) ‐ JOVANOVIĆ, Divna ([email protected])

1. University of Belgrade; 2. Università degli Studi di Bari "A. Moro; 3. Laboratorio diSpettrometria di Massa Analitica ed Isotopica, Dipartimento di Beni Culturali ‐ Università delSalento, Lecce ; 5. Geological Survey of Serbia, Belgrade

The geology of Serbia is dominated by the Dinaride‐Hellenide orogen that consists oflithological units with heterogeneous cherty material. This material occurs mainly withinthe Triassic porphyry‐chert formation and the Jurassic diabase‐chert formation. The latteris associated with a complex ophiolitic melange. These units contain blocks and olistolithsof layered and massive cherts and radiolarites, sometimes up to 15 m thick. In addition,post‐ophiolitic Cretaceous limestones of western and eastern Serbia contain cherts andradiolarites as nodules and lenses, and they usually show gradual transitions to limestonesor silicified limestones. This widespread cherty material, which could be used to knap thestone artefacts fount at prehistoric sites in Serbia, is very poorly characterized in terms ofpetrological and geochemical features.

In this ongoing study we present the basic geochemical characterization (obtained byLA‐ICP‐MS) of the material known as chert in the Serbian geological literature. The analy‐ses include 11 samples of cherts from different localities and with variable ages and litho‐logies. Moreover, attention was given to collecting material that is petrographically similarto those found in the known archaeological collections. Two samples were taken from theJurassic diabase‐chert formation in southwestern Serbia, five samples originate fromUpper Jurassic‐Cretaceous limestones of eastern Serbia, two samples are from Cretaceouslimestones of western Serbia, one sample was found as a cherty block within the Jurassicophiolitic melange in central Serbia and one sample originates from the Miocene.

Macroscopic investigations show that all samples have microcrystalline texture andhigh relative hardness. Their positions within specific geological formations were also indi‐cative for determining this rock type as chert. However, chemical analyses, particularly inregards to the SiO2 and CaO content, indicate that the studied samples display a chemicalheterogeneity. Five of them display silica contents in the range of 83.22‐98.13 wt %. Othersamples are characterized by lower SiO2 and respectively higher CaO contents. As alreadyproposed by some geologists, this could be explained by incomplete processes of silicifica‐tion of limestones. Hence, these samples cannot be defined as pure cherts.


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COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS OF THE CHERT INDUSTRY AT THE PALAEOLITHIC SITE OFGIURGIU-MALU ROŞU (ROMANIA) BY VIBRATIONAL SPECTROSCOPY

- ALEXANDRESCU, Emilian Dumitru ([email protected])University of Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania

- STANCULESCU, Ioana ([email protected])Horia Hulubei National Institute for Physics and Nuclear Engineering

New mineralogical analysis of raw materials and tools used at the Giurgiu-Malu Roşuprehistoric settlement and observations on its chert industry are reported. In past rese-arch, it was established that at Giurgiu a large number of lithic raw material and a verysmall number of tools were found [Alexandrescu et al. 2004; Alexandrescu 2012]. Despitethis, the tools were obtained by blade Upper Palaeolithic technique and the large quantityof debitage is related to the quality of the raw material which was used. The compositio-nal analysis of cherts of different provenance taking into account the type of raw materialand artefact categories allowed for the description of the Upper Paleolithic population ofthe Romanian Plain concerning its extent, raw material exploitation techniques and predo-minant varieties.

Infrared (IR) and Raman complementary vibrational spectroscopy methods were usedfor the compositional analysis of the archaeological materials. Several nondestructivevibrational spectroscopic techniques were used: micro Diffuse Reflectance FourierTransform Infrared (micro DRIFT), Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR), micro ATR, NIR FT-Raman, micro Raman and Raman mapping.

The raw material consists almost entirely of a bluish chert (A), a reddish chert (M) (only4.8 %) and an insignificant number of other rocks (black schist, sandstone, and quartzite).For example, the identification of minerals was made using the position of the NIR FTRaman bands of alpha-quartz (465, 206 and 128 cm-1), moganite (502 cm-1), calcite (713,1086 and 281 cm-1), anatase (397 and 515 cm-1) and aragonite (1086, 706 and 155 cm-1).The small shifts in the alpha-quartz vibration band positions and the alpha-quartz:moga-nite bands intensity ratio as well as other spectral parameters were used for provenancestudies. Possible sources of raw material, previously established, are the FrăteştiFormation and Danube terrace deposits. In the Raman spectra of the M type chert, thepresence of the 396 cm-1 peak of anatase titanium dioxide, a heavy earth mineral mayindicate a raw material of higher quality. From the micro DRIFT spectra, it was determinedthat the M type chert has a more homogeneous composition and a lower content of orga-nic remains than the A type chert.

The heterogeneous composition of the Giurgiu-Malu Roşu chert industry and empha-sis was placed on the different mineralogical constituents of the major types of cherts - Aand M. The physicochemical properties of the raw material can be correlated with the cha-racteristics of the chert industry. The wide heterogeneity of raw material and high percen-tage of “lower quality” chert could explain the vast quantity of debitage. The chertindustry of Giurgiu-Malu Roşu belongs to an Upper Palaeolithic facies characteristic of theRomanian Plain.

1. E. Alexandrescu et al., 2004. Nouvelles données chronologiques, technologiques et typo-logiques sur le Paléolithique supérieur de la Plaine Roumaine du Danube: le gisement deGiurgiu-Malu Roşu, L’Anthropologie 2004, 108, 407-423

2. E.D. Alexandrescu, 2012. Arhaeocharts, 2012, http://aniri.ro/arheo/index.php


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GARGANO CHERTS: MULTIPARAMETRIC PROTOCOL FOR PROVENANCE DETERMINATION

(1) - ERAMO, Giacomo ([email protected])(2) - MUNTONI, Italo M. ([email protected])(3) - TARANTINI, Massimo ([email protected])(1) - MONNO, Alessandro ([email protected])(4) - DE BENEDETTO, Giuseppe ([email protected])(4) - PENNETTA, Antonio ([email protected])

1.Università degli Studi di Bari "A. Moro"; 2. Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici dellaPuglia - Centro Operativo per l’Archeologia della Daunia, Foggia, Italy ; 3. Soprintendenza peri Beni Archeologici della toscana, Firenze, Italy; 4. Università del Salento, Lecce, Italy

In recent decades, archaeometric research about obsidian sources and circulation inCentral Mediterranean area has achieved good results, despite what has happened withother knappable materials. Detailed archaeometric literature on cherty materials is poorand discontinuous in time and space. Difficulties in unambiguous characterisation to iden-tify distinguishing features of chert for sourcing, makes it relatively hard to compare mate-rials from different regions and retrace ancient trade routes. Current archaeological kno-wledge about the circulation of chert in the central Mediterranean Sea identifies GarganoPromontory as one of the main sources. In addition, the Gargano Promontory is locatedalong one of the supposed routes of the spread of the Neolithic in southern Italy, which isthe “bridge” of Adriatic islands connecting southern Croatia to the north of Apulia.

In the current state of research, the geography of the Early Neolithic landscape of thepromontory shows that only the area exploited for chert sources was inhabited. EarlyNeolithic sites and mines lie along the coast in a well-defined area, and no other site is pre-sent within a radius of about 25 km. This fact suggests an interpretation of the Neolithicmining area as an “island” area and thus the establishment of maritime expedition for thesupply of Gargano chert, just as the Mediterranean islands were rich in obsidian. This sug-gests the possibility of a special status in the Neolithic of these territories rich in lithic rawmaterial.

In general terms, our analytical approach focuses on the correlation among quantita-tive data of texture or structure, colorimetry, reflectance or gloss and chemistry (throughLA-ICP-MS) obtained from geological chert samples and mine debris from GarganoPromontory. Three out of the four geological formations investigated (i.e. Calcare diPeschici Formation, Maiolica Formation, and Scaglia Formation) were mined in the past,whereas traces of mining in the Marne a Fucoidi Formation are unknown to-date.

In this work we present our results based on macroscopic and chemical analysis of aselection of 151 samples of chert to understand the variability of the intrinsic features anduse them as potential discriminant factors for provenance. In each formation, cherts withdifferent features and quality coexist. Among multiple sampling in outcrops with severalchert layers, macroscopic and chemical results show lateral homogeneity and verticalheterogeneity. The chemical variability of chert samples is influenced by the distance fromthe cortex, when present. Geochemistry and colorimetry are not able to distinguish chertsof the four formations investigated. However, we observed some chromatic and chemicalhomogeneity on the level of sites (e.g., Defensola, Arciprete, Tagliacantoni for PeschiciFormation, and Martinetti, Guariglia or Valle Sbernia, Bosco della Risega for MaiolicaFormation).


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LITHIC ARROWHEADS: SILICEOUS RAW MATERIAL SOURCES AND TECHNOLOGY IN CEN-TRAL ALENTEJO, PORTUGAL

(1) - MIRAO, Jose ([email protected])(1) - COSTA, Mafalda ([email protected])(1) - BARRULAS, Pedro ([email protected])(2) - OLIVEIRA, Jorge ([email protected])(2) - ROCHA,Leonor ([email protected])

1. Univ. de Evora - Lab. hercules; 2. CHAIA - Univesidade de Evora

The Mitra II Dolmen and Zambujeiro Dolmen are two closely related megalithic struc-tures, dated to the Neolithic period, located in the Alentejo region, Portugal. The Mitra IIDolmen was built in the Middle Final Neolithic (approximately 2,600-2,700 B.C.E.) and isone of several dolmens identified by the Leisners (two German archaeologists that studiedthe Megalithism of the Iberian Peninsula in the first half of the 20th century) in theAlentejo region. This dolmen was first excavated in the 1960’s by a group of amateurarchaeologists from Évora, and has since then undergone five different interventions, star-ting from 2000 until 2011. The Zambujeiro Dolmen (built between the beginning of the 4thmillennia B.C.E. and the middle of the 3rd millennia B.C.E.) was found and excavated byHenrique Leonor Pina between 1964 and 1968 (Soares & Silva, 2010), and has since under-gone a second phase of interventions between 1985 and 1987, and a final phase of inter-ventions in the early 1990's (Odriozola et al., 2012).

This study focuses on the chemical and mineralogical analysis of the numerous silice-ous lithic arrowheads recovered during the excavations of both prehistoric sites. A geoche-mical and mineralogical approach is essential to establish the sources of chert raw mate-rials and to compare or to cluster the different artefacts. Due to the high variability ofmacroscopic characteristics that can be found in a single chert outcrop and the complexityof the material, a multi-analytical approach is required. Thus, in this study, the chemicaland mineralogical composition of siliceous lithic arrowheads recovered from the twomegalithic sites was determined by noninvasive and minimally invasive analytical techni-ques, such as in-situ XRF, XRD, LA-ICP-MS, and SEM-EDS.

The results allowed the authors to suggest possible raw material sources, to proposeprobable trade routes during the Neolithic period, and to establish links between differentmaterials and different sites, as well as different manufacture technologies.

Keywords: Chert; flint; arrowheads; Neolithic; LA-ICP-MS

Odriozola, C. P.; Mataloto, R.; Moreno-García, J.; Villalobos-García, R. & Martínez-Blanes,J. M. (2012). Producción y circulación de rocas verdes y sus productos en el SW peninsular:el caso de Anta Grande do Zambujeiro. IX Congresso Ibérico de Arqueometria, Lisboa, 2011,Abstracts, pp. 125-142.

Soares, J. & Silva, C. T. da (2010). Anta Grande do Zambujeiro – arquitectura e poder.Intervenção arqueológica do MADES, 1985-87. Musa. Museus, Arqueologia e OutrosPatrimónios 3, p.83-159


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FIRST ARCHAEOPETROLOGICAL APPROXIMATION OF THE PROVENANCE OF THE NEOLI-THIC AXES AND OTHER ARTIFACTS FROM THE CAN SADURNÍ CAVE (BEGUES, BAIX LLOBREGAT)

(1) - REY-SOLE, Mar ([email protected])(2) - ACHE, M. ([email protected])(3) - FIERRO, E.(3) - EDO, M. ([email protected])(3) - ALÍAS, G.M. ([email protected])(1) - MANGADO, X. ([email protected])

1. SERP, Dept. Prehistòria, Història Antiga i Arqueologia, Universitat de Barcelona ; 2. ASOME(Departament de Prehistòria UAB) Mòdul de Recerca A, Campus de Bellaterra; 3. CIPAG

Can Sadurní cave, located in Begues (Baix Llobregat, Spain), is an archaeological sitethat features a wide stratigraphic sequence ranging from the last hunter-gatherer societiesat the beginning of the Holocene to the Bronze Age, a fact that has led to the recovery ofa large number of different raw materials of different natures. The stratigraphy of the sitecovers approximately 11,000 years but in this study we will focus on the Early and MiddleNeolithic. In this presentation, we present the initial archaeopetrological characterizationstudy and initial hypotheses about the origin of raw materials used for the manufacture ofaxes, which are the second type of macrolithic tool abundantly recovered at the site. Wewill also discuss a set of “lighters”. The different steps of the mineralogical analysis,macroscopic and microscopic, will provide a range of complementary data to perform adetailed characterization of the analyzed raw material and their potential catchment areas.


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CHARACTERIZING JURASSIC CHERTS AS A LITHIC RAW MATERIAL IN THE MIDDLE TOUPPER PALAEOLITHIC OF SOUTHERN BURGUNDY

- SIEGERIS, Markus ([email protected])University of Tuebingen, CRC 1070

- FLOSS, Harald ([email protected])Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tuebingen, Germany

The chert varieties of the Jurassic time period are a well-known and often describedlithic raw material in prehistoric research. For many years, in many European study areasthe material has been the focus of either archaeological based analysis of procurementpatterns or archaeometric analysis of qualities, e.g., the Swabian Jura (nodular Jurassiccherts varieties), Bavaria (tabular Jurassic chert varieties) or Poland (Krzemionki chert). Inthe area of Southern Burgundy, another lithic raw material had been the focus of researchin recent decades, the secondary deposited Cretaceous and Tertiary flints of the so-called“l’argiles à silex” (“flint in clay”). Articles and publications, such as Ruè (2000) for example,have given a good overview of the varieties and the outcrops in Southern Burgundy alongthe west-side of the Bresse-Saône-Rhône Valley. Still, the lithic raw materials of theJurassic time period have only played a minor role in the research context. Many prehisto-ric sites are known in this area, such as the cave sites of Grottes de la Verpillière I & II, theMiddle and Upper Palaeolithic open air sites of Saint-Martin-sous-Montaigu or the famousopen air site of Solutré, for example. Although the raw material of the so-called l’argiles àsilex seems to have been preferred by prehistoric hunter-gatherers, especially the non-local or less used materials can help to understand specific lithic raw material procurementor migration patterns.

The aim of this presentation is to give an overview of the varieties and outcrops of thisraw material and try to characterise the macroscopic and microscopic features of thechert, in order to distinguish between the different varieties, particularly in an archaeolo-gical context.

Acknowledgements

The “Southern Burgundy” workgroup at the Department of Early Prehistory andQuaternary Ecology of the University of Tuebingen was included in the Projet Collectif deRecherche “Le Paléolithique supérieur ancient en Bourgogne méridionale” and sub-pro-ject B01 "Variability of the use of resources. Spatial Exploitation by Late Neanderthals andEarly Modern Humans in Europe" in Collaborative Research Center 1070 "ResourceCultures" (also at the University of Tuebingen) within the scientific framework of this rese-arch project.


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THE MINERAL COMPOSITION OF “CHOCOLATE FLINT” COMPARED TO OTHER VARIETIESOF CHERT FROM CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN POLAND USED BY PREHISTORIC COMMUNI-TIES

- WERRA, Dagmara H. ([email protected])The Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences

- SIUDA, Rafał ([email protected])Faculty of Geology Address University of Warsaw 93, Żwirki i Wigury

One of the more important problems related to studies of the Stone Age is determiningthe mechanisms of long-distance distribution of siliceous rocks. Therefore, it is necessaryto develop methods which will allow the different rocks to be distinguished very precisely.Owing to its rich resources, the area of the Vistula Basin is an excellent place for imple-menting such investigations. It boasts deposits of several kinds of chert which were widelyused in the prehistoric times: “Chocolate”, Gray White-Spotted, Striped (banded) and, onits eastern borders, Volhynian. Unfortunately, mistakes are sometimes made when distin-guishing the various cherts, especially in the case of “Chocolate Flint”.

The differentiation of the color of “Chocolate Flint” and determination of its characte-ristic features in relation to other siliceous rocks can be solved by using mineralogical stu-dies. Therefore several samples of “Chocolate Flint” were analyzed, together with compa-rative samples of other siliceous rock, (from Saspow, Olszanica, Krakow District, CisoweWyciąg, Olkusz District, Udórz, Zawiercie District, Janikowa, Ożarowa, Śródborze,Wojciechówki, Opatów District, Borownia and Krzemionki, Ostrowiec ŚwiętokrzyskiDistrict and Bodaki, Ukraine).

During the research we focused on the study of accessory minerals present in“Chocolate Flint”. On the basis of determining the chemical composition in the microsco-pe within them were identified inclusions of: hematite, pyrite, gypsum, barite, calcite, ruti-le, ilmenite, zircon, monazite, rare earth elements (REE), phosphates, churchytu groupminerals, and apatite. Most of the aforementioned minerals occur sporadically. Only inclu-sions of pyrite, hematite and barite occur in all types of chert.

Mineral that may be helpful to distinguish “Chocolate Flint” from other varieties of sili-ceous rocks is apatite. The occurrence of this mineral was found in samples fromWierzbica "Zele", Polan II, Seredzice, Radom District, Orońsko, Chronów-Kolonia,Tomaszowa, Szydłowiec District, and chert from Bodaki and Janików. There is no apatite inJurassic-Cracow chert, and the apatite present in Cisowa Wyciąg chert is characterized byan increased content of yttrium. Most frequently the apatite present in “Chocolate Flint”creates an irregular aggregation of elements that are remnants of skeletal fish. Anothervariation of this mineral is present in the form of oval apatite, with a drawn grain size ofup to 20 μm. The last variety is apatite with irregular inclusions which is always associatedwith pyrite and barite aggregates. For chert from Ożarów, the characteristic feature is thepresence of rare earth elements (REE). The analyses of the chemical compositions of thesephases indicate that, depending on the dominant cation, we are dealing with churchy-Y orchurchy-Nd. These minerals are present in the form of fine inclusions or globular aggrega-tes composed of thin acicular crystals.

Acknowledgements

The investigations were funded by the National Science Centre in Poland (PRELUDIUM2; UMO-2011/03/N/HS3/03973) and partly by Adulescentia est tempus discendi


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CHERT IN ITS DIVERSE NATURAL OCCURRENCES: GEO-TOOLS FOR A BETTER DEFINITIONOF THE SOURCING OF SECONDARY OUTCROPS


- PIBOULE, Michel21 rue General Ferrié. 38100 Grenoble

- THIRY, MédardAix Marseille Université, CNRS, MCC, LAMPEA UMR 7269 ; Ministère de la Culture et de laCommunication, DRAC de Corse, Ajaccio, France

- LEANDRI, CélineCentre de Recherche CRP2A, UMR 5060 CNRS, Maison de l’archéologie

- LE BOURDONNEC, François-XavierSARL Paléotime

- TALLET, PascalDepartement of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.Leipzig, Allemagne

- RAYNAL, Jean-PaulPACEA/PPP, UMR 5199 CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, bâtiment B18, allée Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, CS 50023, 33615 Pessac cedex, France

Precise identification of siliceous geo-resources used during prehistory still raises manyproblems, and archaeologists have an ever-increasing need for this data. The purpose ofthis study is to provide a database containing an exact and descriptive identity for each dif-ferent geological type of chert found within a region. The database in this study is beingdeveloped for the administrative regions of Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne, Aquitaine andProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It will contribute to an accurate understanding of precisemovements and exchange of raw materials and therefore also to the behaviour of prehis-toric groups.

Until now, the problem has been viewed in reverse; by trying to revert to the identityof the original material through study of found objects. Such a procedure follows an illogi-cal route because it is first necessary to characterize raw materials in their primary posi-tion and secondly to make an appraisal of the epigenesis of the chert recovered fromsecondary sources. Our characterization approach is based on mineralogical composition(determined by optical microscopy, SEM, microprobe, and cathodo-luminescence), micro-facies characteristics (identified during microscopy and SEM image analysis), porosity mea-surements (by image analysis and porosimeter), and the presence and distribution ofmajor and trace elements (using ICP, LA-ICP-MS, XRF, PIXE, Raman and SEM-EDS) on thesurface or in cracks in the matrix. Following the collection of information, a statistical eva-luation is necessary to produce a reliable identification of the chert. Consideration of allvarieties of the same material in its different states, coming from all known primary andsecondary sources sets the study of archaeological samples on a solid foundation.


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SOURCING OF NORTH AMERICAN HURON GREAT LAKES BASIN EARLY HOLOCENECHERT ARTIFACTS BY LA-ICP-MS

- JULIG, Patrick ([email protected])Laurentian University

- PETRUS, Joe ([email protected])Dept. of Earth Sciences, Laurentian Univ. Sudbury, Canada

Chert artifacts are often identified with geological sources by visual macroscopic ormicroscopic analysis in comparisons to reference samples from known geological locationsand by geochemical methods. The sources of cherts can reveal travel routes and socialinteraction and exchange patterns through time. In this study brown and tan chert arti-facts of unknown geological provenance, excavated from Early Holocene (Late Paleo-Indian - Early Archaic) archaeological sites are compared with visually similar materialsfrom known geological formations, using semi-destructive laser ablation inductively cou-pled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). In this region of the North American GreatLakes, the early Paleo-Indians, ca. 10,500-12,500 BP, preferred to use a visually distinctivegrey Fossil Hill Formation chert, of Silurian age, often transported some distance. The latePaleo-Indian - Early Archaic cultures ca. 9,500-8,000 commonly utilized quartzites and avariety of local cherts but their use of Fossil Hill Formation cherts is poorly known. Tan andbrown chert artifacts from the west end of the Alpena-Amberly Ridge (exposed by very lowwater levels ca. 9,500-7,500 years BP) are found by heavy REE and other minor and traceelements to compare most closely to Fossil Hill Formation cherts. This may indicate a con-tinuity of human preference of this Fossil Hill Formation silica material from the LatePleistocene into the early Holocene era. Also these brown facies of the Fossil Hill chert mayhave been available when Great Lakes water levels were very low exposing the brown bedsaround the western end of Manitoulin Island, Canada.


131


THE ARCHAEOMETRIC STUDY OF OBSIDIAN FROM GRAN CANARIA (CANARY ISLANDS,SPAIN): NEW RESULTS, NEW DIRECTIONS

(1) - BUXEDA i GARRIGÓS, Jaume ([email protected])(2) - KILIKOGLOU, Vassilis ([email protected])(3) - RODRÍGUEZ RODRÍGUEZ, Amelia del Carmen ([email protected])(3) - NARANJO MAYOR, Yurena ([email protected])(3) - DEL PINO CURBELO, Miguel ([email protected])(1) - MADRID i FERNÁNDEZ, Marisol ([email protected])(4) - GALVÁN SANTOS, Bertila ([email protected])

1. Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; 2. NCSR Demokritos, Aghia Paraskevi, Greece;3. Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain; 4. Universidad de La Laguna, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Spain

The Canary Islands were populated around the end of the 1st millennium BCE by peo-ple of the palaeo-Berber group from North Africa. They underwent a ‘prehistoric’ period,without apparent communication between islands until the arrival and conquest byEuropeans during the 14-15th century. During this period, every island developed a parti-cular culture that, in Gran Canaria, led to a hierarchical complex structure in which obsi-dian played an important role.

Obsidian was exploited by the original populations on Tenerife, Gran Canaria and LaPalma Islands, but no exchange of obsidians has been reported so far. At Gran Canaria,obsidian is found in ignimbritic deposits of small size and the only important sources havebeen found on Hogarzales and El Cedro Mountains, where numerous mining galleries andmining instruments are known. Besides these, Las Vacas Mountain is also known for theexistence of ignimbritic obsidians which were exploited from open air deposits.

From 2002 to 2010, 64 individual artefacts have been characterized by means of ICP-OES and ICP-MS in three different analytical series. Thirty six correspond to geological sam-ples: 24 from Hogarzales, Las Vacas and El Cedro, that exhibited the same chemical com-position, but also 12 from Tenerife Island. Moreover, 28 archaeological obsidian samplesfrom 7 different archaeological sites around Gran Canaria were also characterized. All ofthese samples, with 3 exceptions, were found to be compatible with the Hogarzales-Vacas-Cedro source.

Very recently, a large sampling has been conducted on several archaeological obsidiansfrom all over the Gran Canaria Island, and also from a site on Tenerife. In this sampling,several geological samples from Tenerife (La Tabona), Hogarzales, Las Vacas and El Cedrowere also considered, including 9 samples analysed previously by ICP-OES and ICP-MS. Inthis way, a sample of more than 220 artefacts has been characterized by portable-XRF andthe results have revealed the possible existence of at least 3 new groups whose relation tonew as yet unknown sources on Gran Canaria need to be further explored. The existenceof unknown sources would imply a significant change in the understanding of exploitationstrategies of obsidians on the island. Thus, a subsample of the previous sample set is beinganalysed by means of ICP-OES and ICP-MS in order to assess the consistency of the newresults.


132


PROVENANCE AND MACROSCOPIC ANALYSIS OF THE CHERT ASSEMBLAGE FROM LAYER D OF LAPA DO PICAREIRO (PORTUGAL)

- ANDRADE, Catarina ([email protected])Universidade do Algarve

- FARIAS, Anne ([email protected])Núcleo de Alunos de Arqueologia e Paleoecologia, Universidade do Algarve, Faro, Portugal

- PEREIRO Telmo ([email protected])Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior, Universidade doAlgarve, Faro, Portugal

- HAWS, Jonathan ([email protected])Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior, Universidade doAlgarve, Faro, Portugal; University of Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.A.

Human economic and behavioral patterns are partly influenced by environmental fac-tors such as local and regional settings, climate, biotic and abiotic raw materials resources.The study of lithic raw material procurement, consumption and stone-tool production iskey to understanding complex settlement systems and land use patterns. Here, we focuson raw material procurement and movement during the Early Holocene in CentralPortugal. For this investigation we studied raw materials from the cave site of Lapa doPicareiro. The site is located in Serra d’Aire (Central Portugal), at an altitude of 570 metersabove sea level, facing west. During the last 20 years, the archaeological excavations haveexposed a stratigraphic sequence with more than 8 meters, revealing multiple layers richin fauna, lithics, charcoal and combustion features that clearly show human use of the cavefrom the Middle Paleolithic to the Bronze Age.

In this presentation we focus on the acquisition of Layer D of Lapa do Picareiro, datedfrom 8310+130 BP (9012 – 9528 cal BP), corresponding to the Portuguese Epipaleolithic,in order to better understand behavioral and economical patterns of this period in thePortuguese Estremadura. We surveyed a ~20 km radius area in order to gather geologicalsamples from primary and secondary chert sources that are always relatively well boun-ded in the landscape, as opposed to the ubiquitous distribution of quartz and quartzite.Geological samples were macroscopically analyzed and compared against the stone toolassemblage, considering a series of traditional visible characteristics. Because some ofthese features can be subjective, we structured our database in order to make them quan-tifiable.

Our preliminary results showed that the archaeological assemblage is more relatedwith the sources located towards west than those from east of Serra d’Aire. This researchproject will ultimately focus on other occupational layers of Lapa do Picareiro and othersites of this region in order to shed light on the subsistence, mobility and economic pat-terns during the Late Pleistocene.


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MINERALOGY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF LITHIC ARTIFACTS FOR IDENTIFICA-TION OF PROVENANCE IN SALOBO ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES, CARAJÁS MINERAL PRO-VINCE, PARÁ, BRAZIL

1. - COSTA, Marcondes Lima ([email protected])1. - PANTOJA, Heliana l. ([email protected])2. - SILVEIRA, Maura I. ([email protected])3. - RODET, Maria J. ([email protected])1. - ANGELICA, R.S. ([email protected])1. - PAZ, Simone P.A. ([email protected])1. - RODRIGUES, Suyanne F. S. ([email protected])

1. Federal University of Pará, Belém, Pará, Brazil; 2. Emílio Goeldi Paraense Museum, Belém,Pará. Brazil; 3. Emílio Goeldi Paraense Museum, Belém, Pará. Brazil

The region of the Carajás Mineral Province is home to several archaeological sites withnumerous lithic artifacts in various stages of operational chain. Are artifacts that still requi-re mineralogical and chemical studies whose results may help in the identification of rawmaterials and their provenance, and therefore contribute to the characterization studiesof cultural traits. From this perspective lithic artifact recovered in the impact area of theSalobo copper mine (and gold with by-product) were investigated. They are beads andpendants used as loud of a complete operational chain. The results obtained by XRD, XRFand SEM / EDS show that the raw material used is a semi-hard kaolin (semi-flint) consis-ting mainly of kaolinite, and cryptocrystalline quartz, crandallite group phosphates (floren-cite), sericite and hematite. Equivalent material was found in Alto Bonito amethyst mines,20 km of sites, and then considered as the source area of the raw material used for themanufacture of these devices, which is enhanced by association with amethyst and hyali-ne quartz chips also associated the semi-hard kaolin. So the people of this region knewhow to exploit its mineral wealth in loud production and technological artifacts to the ope-rational chain.


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THE VEGAMIAN FORMATION: CHARACTERIZATION OF A SOURCE OF SUPPLY OF POTEN-TIAL LITHIC RAW MATERIAL DURING PREHISTORY IN THE CANTABRIAN MOUNTAINS

(1) - HERRERO ALONSO, Diego ([email protected])(2) - NEIRA CAMPOS, Ana ([email protected])(3) - TARRIÑO VINAGRE, Antonio ([email protected])(2) - FUERTES PRIETO, Natividad ([email protected])

1. University of Salamanca; 2. University of Leon; 3. CENIEH

Studies developed to characterize lithic raw materials at the prehistoric sites of the cen-tral-western area of the Cantabrian Mountains (near Picos de Europa) highlight the impor-tance of the Vegamian Formation as a potential source of supply of lydites. The macrosco-pic features of these lydites, presenting a black colour and laminations, are consistent withthe so-called 'black chert' found at Mesolithic sites of the region, such as those found inthe El Espertín and La Uña Caves (León, Spain). Therefore, an accurate characterization ofthis formation is essential for research on the exploitation of siliceous resources duringprehistory in the Cantabrian Mountains.

The Vegamian Formation is formed of slates and shales of Tournaisian age (LowerCarboniferous) with strata of limestone and black lydites. These rocks are high in silica,normally associated with radiolarians, and the formation is present both north and southof the Cordillera. It was characterized by Comte (1959) at Vegamián (in the south ridge,north of the province of León) a village which, since 1968, has been submerged by thePorma reservoir. On geological maps, the cartographic representation of this formation isimprecise. Given its thinness, sometimes it is not even reproduced. In other cases, it hasbeen included in the overlying formation (the Alba Formation), which is a bedrock of radio-larites. This siliceous raw material has been used in archaeological contexts. Hence, it isnecessary to clearly outline the features of both lithologies.

The aim of this work is to define this type of raw material. For this purpose, we will pro-vide a characterization from various points of view, such as textural, with petrographicanalysis of thin sections, and mineralogical, through X-Ray Diffraction (XRD).Thermogravimetric and high resolution geochemistry analyses, such as InductivelyCoupled Plasma for Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES), will be carried out. They willbe applied to samples from geologic outcrops and, subsequently, contrasted with similaranalyses of archaeological samples from the La Uña and El Espertin sites. This will allow usto investigate the exploitation of this type of raw material during prehistory in the sou-thern Cantabrian Mountains. The results can also be extrapolated to the northern area.


135


GEOSTATISTICAL MODELS OF ARTIFACT RELATIVE FREQUENCY DATA AND THE SOUR-CING OF KNAPPABLE MATERIALS: TWO CASE STUDIES FROM PATAGONIA AND THEPAMPAS OF ARGENTINA

1. - BARRIENTOS, Gustavo ([email protected])2. - BELARDI, Juan Bautista ([email protected])2. - CARBALLO MARINA, Flavia ([email protected])1. - CATELLA, Luciana ([email protected])3. - OLIVA, Fernando ([email protected])

1. División Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional deLa Plata, República Argentina; 2. UNPA-UARG, CONICET, Río Gallegos, República Argentina;3. CEAR, Facultad de Humanidades y Artes, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario,República Argentina

The aim of this presentation is to introduce and discuss an approach to sourcing avariety of knappable materials based on the use of geostatistical models of relative fre-quency data (i.e. percentage representation of toolstone classes in georeferenced artefactassemblages). This is particularly useful in areas where there is scarce information aboutboth the variability of one or many toolstone classes represented in lithic assemblagesacross the regional space and the localization of their likely or actual sources. Such modelsare constructed using kriging interpolation under the assumption that continuous surfacesmake the spatial information recovered from relatively few, scattered, and unevenly distri-buted sampling locations more intelligible. As long as it is expected that, in most situations,the relative frequency of a toolstone will decrease as a function of the distance from thesource, then the presence of significant peaks of frequency in areas that do not coincidewith the location of some previously described source may alert us to the presence of anundetected supply area (Barrientos et al. 2014). This helps to plan problem-oriented sur-veys and to implement more analytical sourcing activities. We will exemplify the approachwith two case studies from regions previously inhabited by hunter-gatherers: southernPatagonia and the eastern Pampas of Argentina (Figure 1).

The Pampas are characterized by an uneven distribution of lithic resources, which areavailable in rather restricted areas of the landscape, both in the form of primary outcropsand of secondary deposits. In southern Patagonia, the lithic resource base is broader thanin the Pampas, with a more ubiquitous localization of primary and secondary sources.Besides differences in raw material distribution, there are remarkable differences inarchaeological visibility (higher in Patagonia than in the Pampas), which influence sam-pling choices.

During the presentation we will discuss the pros and cons of the advocated approach,particularly focusing on some critical issues like theoretical premises, data requirements,spatial modelling, and results interpretation.

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by grants from CONICET (PIP-11220120100622CO) andUniversidad Nacional de La Plata (N740).

Barrientos, G., L. Catella and F. Oliva. 2014. The spatial structure of lithic landscapes: TheLate Holocene record of east-central Argentina as a case study. Journal of ArchaeologicalMethod and Theory. Online First. DOI 10.1007/s10816-014-9220-0.


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137


MONEGROS-TYPE CHERT: PETROGRAPHIC CHARACTERIZATION AND PREHISTORICUSAGE

- GARCÍA-SIMÓN, Luis M. ([email protected])


In recent years, allusions to the exploitation of a so-called “Monegros-type” chert havebeen commonplace in archaeologic literature, mostly in Iberia but also in southern France.Most of the time, these references have not offered a true petrographic characterization,being merely de visu descriptions of those products. This work presents macroscopic andmicroscopic descriptions of around twenty outcrops located in the Monegros territory, inthe Middle Ebro Basin, where this chert variety has been found, all of them of primary orsub-primary order. These descriptions allow us to define two different origins: continentallacustrine and evaporitic. This chert appears as kidney-shaped nodules (occasionally verythin, like tablets) that can be found either isolated or stratified. Following the petrologicstudy, we review materials found at several archaeological sites in the Ebro Basin wherethis chert type has been described, usually due to the presence of Liesegang rings, easilyrecognisable by archaeologists.


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THE ESCALADA FORMATION: CHARACTERIZATION OF A POTENTIAL SUPPLY SOURCE OFCHERT DURING PREHISTORY IN CANTABRIAN MOUNTAINS (NW SPAIN)

(1) - FUERTES, Natividad ([email protected])(1) - FERNÁNDEZ, Esperanza ([email protected])(1) - GÓMEZ, Fernando ([email protected])(1) - ALONSO Eduardo ([email protected])(2) - HERRERO, Diego ([email protected])(1) - NEIRA, Ana ([email protected])

1. University of León; 2. University of Salamanca

Studies developed in order to characterize lithic raw materials in prehistoric sites in theCantabrian Mountains (NW Spain) highlight the importance of chert nodules found in theSierra de Gobezanes (Concejo de Caso, Asturias) as a potential source of supply. Althoughit is the northern Cantabrian Mountains, the macroscopic features of this lithology, presen-ting a black brilliant colour, are consistent with certain samples of the so-called 'blackchert' found at Mesolithic sites of the region on the southern slope, such as those foundin the El Espertín and La Uña Caves (León, Spain). Therefore, an accurate characterizationof the Gobezanes nodule chert is essential for research on the prehistoric exploitation ofsiliceous resources in Cantabrian Mountains.

The cherts of Gobezanes probably come from the Escalada Formation, which is formedby massive limestone of Lower to Upper Moscovian age (Carboniferous) and appears onlyin the Ponga Region. The geographic distribution of this geologic region is restricted to theeastern province of Asturias and northeast of Leon. This includes the headwaters of someof the main rivers both in the northern (Nalón, Sella) and the southern (Esla and Porma)Cantabrian Mountains. Although the occurrence of chert nodules in the geological studiesof this formation has not been commonly quoted, this presence has been confirmed by thesurvey carried out in the Sierra de Gobezanes, around the headwaters of the Nalón River.We have also located another outcrop of the Escalada Formation bearing chert nodulesjust in the watershed, at the mountain pass of San Isidro, where the source of the Aller(northern slope) and the Porma (southern slope) Rivers is located.

The aim of this work is to define those cherts coming from the Escalada Formation andcheck whether both outcrops, the Sierra de Gobezanes and the Puerto de San Isidro, areequivalent. For this purpose, we will provide a characterization from various points ofview, such as macroscopic and textural, with petrographic analysis of thin sections. Thegeological and geographic distribution of this lithology will allow us to check the exploita-tion area of the cited raw material during prehistory.


139


TERRITORIAL CHERT ABUNDANCE: A STATISTICAL APPROACH TO DETERMINATE PROVI-SIONING AREAS

- SOTO, Maria ([email protected])- GÓMEZ DE SOLER, Bruno- VALLVERDÚ, Josep ([email protected])

IPHES. Àrea de Prehistòria. Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Tarragona

The eastern margin of the Ebro Basin (NE Iberian Peninsula) is a territory with abundantchert sources. Prospecting campaigns along the Catalan Coast Ranges and the CentralDepression have revealed the existence of numerous silicifications related to similar litho-facies, which make the determination of lithic provenance areas difficult. The applicationsof GIS methods and Gravity Models allow for the development of new approaches to rawmaterial analysis through the characterization of quantitative features of the chert sources(Wilson, 2007; Soto et al., 2013).

The study that we present is an example of the utility of classifying chert areas for esta-blishing models of lithic catchment models in territories with a high predictability ofresources. The digitalization of geological formations with silicifications in a hydrologicalbasins map, using these geological formations with silicifications as units with territorialmeaning for mobility, allow us to obtain data related to the extent of the area and to cre-ate stratigraphic sections with the main lithologies of the source areas that were located.

The use of GIS software also facilitates the analysis of some factors affecting procure-ment processes:

- Geological Formation Area (FA). Maximum domain of the geological formationwith silicifications.- Formation Thickness (FCT). Calculated thickness of the geological layer with silicifi-cations in the outcrop area.- Outcrop Apparent Thickness (OAT). Distance between the base and the top of the

chert source.- Chert Index. Chert (cm2)/enclosing rock (m2).- Size(S). Averaged maximum size of the nodules.- Abundance (Ab). Chert theoretical input to the territory based on the previousvalues.

These factors determine the contribution of the siliceous materials to the basins, thusestablishing a Territorial Abundance Index for the different raw materials. This index couldbe used, combined with the distance between outcrop and site, to determine statisticallythe catchment areas. The statistical discrimination, based on the raw material distributionof the archaeological assemblages, will contribute to the definition of the catchment stra-tegies, mobility routes and territories frequented by the hunter-gatherer groups.

Soto, M., Gómez de Soler, B., Vallverdú, J. & Vaquero, M. 2013, Aplicación experimental deSistemas de Información Geográficos a la prospección y análisis de áreas de captación derocas silíceas en la Prehistoria. El caso práctico del Abric Romaní y el Molí del Salt. In:Experimentaciób eb arqueología. Estudio y difusión del pasado Vol. 25.2 (Palomo, A., Piqué,R., Terradas, X., ed.). Sèrie Monogàfica del MAC, Girona: 517-524.

Wilson, L. 2007, Understanding Prehistoric Lithic Raw Material Selection: Application of aGravity Model. Journal Archaeological Method Theory, 14: 388-411.


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CHALCEDONY FROM THE TOLFA VOLCANIC DISTRICT (LATIUM, ITALY):PETROGENESISAND ARCHAEOLOGICAL POTENTIAL

- SCARAMUCCI, Sem ([email protected])Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences - R.U. Prehistory andAnthropology – University of Siena

- MODESTI, Valerio ([email protected])Facoltà di Lettere, Università degli Studi “Tor Vergata”, Roma, Italy

- AURELI, Danile ([email protected])UMR 7041- ArScAn équipe AnTET, Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense , Paris, France

- CONTARDI, AntonioMuseo Civico A. Klitsche De la Grange, Allumiere (Roma), Italy

- ROCCA, Roxane ([email protected])UMR 7041- ArScAn équipe AnTET, Paris, France

The area of Monti della Tolfa, located on the coast of Northern Latium (Italy), has beenlittle investigated in terms of prehistoric settlement dynamics. Recent research (I Montidella Tolfa Prima di Homo Sapiens Project) has, however, revealed human occupationsstar-ting from the Lower Palaeolithic; among these, Ficoncella site records human presence at500.000 kyrs. Middle and Upper Palaeolithic occupations are also known but only fromsurface findings of lithic assemblages.

The geology of the Tolfa complex is characterized by a thick volcaniccover and onlylimited extents of the original substratum do emerge.The latter, mostly made up of marlsand shales, shows a scarce occurrence of lithic raw materials suitable for knapping.Siliceousrocks, such as flint and radiolarite, can be found as pebbles(probably reworkedfrom distant geological formations) inPlio-Pleistocene marine and fluvial terraces.

Chalcedony is a peculiar type of silicification which largely contributes to form the lithicraw material potential of the area.Inside the 2 million years old volcanic rocks, chalcedonywasdeposited in nodules and concretions as a consequence of thehydrothermal circula-tion of silica-rich hot fluids.

Chalcedony is found today in the area considered for this study bothin its primary posi-tion and as pebbles in the Pleistocene marine andfluvial terraces. This kind of rock is,however, virtually unknown inboth the geological and archaeological literature for thearea. In the past, field survey across the Tolfa district led to therecovery of thousands ofknapped stone artefacts among which a Mousterian component made on chalcedony canbe recognized. At Ficoncella, on the other hand, chalcedony appears to be the leastexploi-ted material. A later interest, extending to protohistory, on this lithic raw material is sug-gested by some findings and could beconfirmed by future research.

Here we present petrographic information on the Tolfa Chalcedony together with theresults of the first surveys investigating both its geological and geographical distributionand the preliminary archaeological data on its exploitation during prehistory. This with theaim of evaluating the potential of this particular rock to investigate the ancient peopling ofthe Monti della Tolfa area and to evaluate the extent to which this very localized raw mate-rial canserve as a territorial marker for prehistory.


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THE MARINE CHERT FROM LAS LEZAS (BIEL, ZARAGOZA) AND ITS PREHISTORIC EXPLOITATION

- DOMINGO, Rafael ([email protected])- GARCÍA-SIMÓN, Luis M. ([email protected])- MONTES, Lourdes ([email protected])


The fm. Uncastillo, in the western piedmont of the Pyrenean External Ranges, is charac-terized by series of massive conglomerates.

Occasionally, this formation reaches a notable development, like at the relief known asLas Lezas, next to the village of Biel (Zaragoza). The main parts of the boulders embeddedin the conglomerate are limestones and sandstones, with a lesser proportion of silicifica-tions of marine origin whose employment by prehistoric people is well documented in thisarea. The Las Lezas conglomerates are deeply eroded by the Arba de Biel River, which dis-tributes the boulders along its riverbed.

The upper Arba de Biel Basin hosts an interesting archaeological ensemble composedby five sites that were occupied by human groups from the Upper Magdalenian until theChalcolithic (between ca. 14700 and 4400 years cal. BP).

This work present the results of the petrographic study of the local chert (Las Lezas),as well as the different strategies concerning its gathering, transport and exploitation inevery prehistoric cultural phase, in connection to other exogenous cherts: the sites regis-ter a recurrent use of the described local flint, accompanied by other varieties (i. e.Monegros-type) whose presence increases over time.

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S7- Lithotheques - collections of comparative raw materials

- Katalin Byro ([email protected])

- Otis Crandell ([email protected])

- Xavier Mangado ([email protected])

Organizers

Session Description

Archaeologists around the world that are working with prehistoric cultures are awareof the importance of understanding the lithic materials that people have used to maketheir tools in the past. By successfully identifying which toolstone materials past cultureshave used we can further define how they have interacted with their landscapes, either byidentifying past land-uses and movements or through the identification of past culturalexchanges and interactions. However, associating cultural lithic materials with geologicalsources can be a difficult task without appropriate regional data. Lithic materials can bevery similar from one location to another and a better understanding of each of thesesources is necessary. The creation of regional lithotheques or comparative lithic referencecollections allows us to better understand how, why, when and where past cultures procu-red such lithic raw materials. The principal objective is to establish an archaeological toolthat will allow us to better define past relationships between cultural and natural lithicmaterials. This session will explore the various uses that lithotheques can offer to archaeo-logical research, from macroscopic comparative identification of lithics to microscopic andgeochemical analyses. Presentations in this section may also be reports on specific lithicscollections, either private or public.


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A TEXTUAL SURVEY OF DIFFERENT RAW MATERIALS UTILIZED IN THE MANUFACTURINGOF PREHISTORIC POLISHED STONE TOOLS IN EASTERN INDIA

- BOSE, Paromita ([email protected])

Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, India

Eastern India, encompassing the states of West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar and Jharkhand hascontributed largely to the reconstruction of the prehistoric setting of the Indian subconti-nent. A series of field investigations in the area have brought to light different categoriesof lithic artifacts including palaeoliths, microliths, ground and polished stone tools andothers from various locales. These findings have been instrumental in establishing the pre-historic antiquity of the region since the beginning of Old Stone Age. Polished stone toolsor the so called ‘neoliths’ are found in different parts of Indian subcontinent, not onlyEastern India. A wide distribution of a variety of these kinds of tools (either debitages orunfinished specimens, or fully finished ones), reported by different scholars from diverseterrain of the region under study, provide an elementary aspect regarding the productionof such tools and the pattern of utilization of raw materials by the ancient settlers in abackdrop of varied archaeological contexts. However, except for typological attributes,other aspects of these kinds of tools, including the topic of raw materials, have hardly beenaddressed so far. Usage of a variety of rocks in knapping of these tools suggests that themanufacturer of these tools frequently utilized a vast range of raw materials which werecommonly available in the forms of surface rocks, outcrops, veins, river pebbles and cob-bles, and others. However, the distance of tool bearing zones from the raw material bea-ring landscape suggests that the process of procurement was actually dependent on theaccessibility of the raw materials and thus these could have been attained either from thelocally available sources or through a process of distant procurement network. Hence,such 9artifacts can be considered as an important device for extracting necessary informa-tion regarding the stones and the tools, and also the environmental and cultural settingfrom where the tools were picked up. This presentation is aimed at providing an overviewon the utilization of raw materials and the specification of stones utilized in manufacturingof prehistoric ground and polished stone tools reported from different parts of the terri-tory of Eastern Indian. In addition, an attempt will also be made to highlight future objec-tives of this field of study in the context of polished stone tools in Eastern India.


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FLINT SOURCES AND THEIR USAGE IN SARDINIA: RECENT ADVANCES

- BRESSY-LEANDRI, Céline ([email protected])Service régional de l'archéologie.DRAC de Corse

- MELOSU, Barbara

- LUGLIÈ, CarloDipartimento di Storia, Beni Culturali e Territorio - Università degli studi di Cagliari


In Sardinia, provenance studies of lithic raw materials have long been focused on obsi-dian. For about ten years, studies dedicated to flint have been developed and have wide-ned our understanding of lithic procurement, circulation and techno-economy during theSardinian Neolithic. Our approach is based on a robust knowledge of Sardinian flint sour-ces and on the analysis of lithic materials from well documented and dated sites.

We have started investigations in order to document Sardinian flint resources, from car-tography to characterization. Indeed, besides the Perfugas Basin, which is the better-known outcropping area of the island, Sardinia provides many other flint sources areas,which were, often more locally, exploited. A reference lithotheque has been built up andexhaustive sample characterization is in progress using a non-destructive petrographicapproach. A classification of Perfugas flint types has been proposed.

The analysis of knapped flint artifacts focused on 20 sites from the Early to FinalNeolithic. The study provides a better insight into the role of flint in Sardinian lithic assem-blages throughout the Neolithic and highlights development usage over time and accor-ding to site locations.

Flint procurement patterns of Sardinian sites are compared to similar obsidian data.Furthermore, our results are put in perspective with similar Corsican studies (Bressy et al.,2008) as Sardinian flints spread across the sea.

- C. Bressy, A. D’Anna, G. Poupeau, F.-X. Le Bourdonnec, L. Bellot-Gurlet, F. Leandri, P.Tramoni, F. Demouche (2008). Chert and obsidian procurement of three Corsican sitesduring the 6th and 5th millenniums BC, Comptes Rendus Palevol 7(4): 237-248.


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TOWARDS ‘LITHOTHECA III’

- BIRÓ, Katalin T. ([email protected])Hungarian National Museum

The comparative raw material collection of the Hungarian National Museum(‘Lithotheca’) is one of the oldest of its kind operating since 1986. The scope of interestwas basically focussed on knappable lithic raw materials from the territory of theCarpathian Basin, possibly in use by the prehistoric population of present-day Hungary. Asthe years went by, however, we had to extend the scope, spatially and chronologically, aswell as in respect of lithology. The team working on the HNM Lithotheca was facing moreand more problems that could not be simply solved by investigating siliceous raw mate-rials.

Another additional aspect was the fast and most pleasing accumulation of analyticalevidence, preparata and documents. These archaeometrical accessions far surpassed thesubject of lithic evidence so we have established special archaeometric collections in theHNM for documents (Archaeometry Archives) and tangible material (ArchaeometryComparative Collection). Obviously, the extension of the collecting activity raises somequestions relative to the Lithotheca as well. In the old system, these items were handledas part of the Lithotheca automatically.

HNM Lithotheca had, so far, two catalogues. The accumulation of new evidence isnecessitating a new synthesis and we would like to extend and renew the electronicallyavailable information as well. It is all the more important, as we are fortunately movingtowards a wide regional network of comparative raw material collections.

We have serious concerns for a stable informational background. The collection wassupported from the beginning by a bilingual database system (DBASE, DataEase). To avoidclones, we adopted in 1994 the official inventory system of the HNM, created in ORACLE(the application developed for this purpose was called MNYR). The price we had to pay wasthe operating English version. Two years ago, however, the museum shifted to a newsystem for the overall storage of the inventory data, which is still far from perfect. So weare back to the old problem: use parallel systems or make more compromises.

Biró, K. —Dobosi, V. 1991 LITOTHECA - Comparative Raw Material Collection of theHungarian National Museum. Budapest

Biró, K.—T. Dobosi, V.—Schléder, Zs. 2000 LITOTHECA - Comparative Raw MaterialCollection of the Hungarian National Museum. Vol. II. – Budapest

Biró, K. —Telcs, G 2000 LITOTÉKA / A Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum Kőeszköz NyersanyagGyűjteménye. LITHOTHECA / Comparative Raw Material Collection of the HungarianNational Museum http://www.ace.hu/litot/ Last accessed 2015-02-11.

Biró, K. 2014 LITOTHECA - Comparative raw material collections in support of petroarchaeo-logical studies: an overview. In: Aeolian scripts. New ideas on the lithic world. Studies inhonour of Viola T. Dobosi. Inventaria Praehistorica Hungariae Vol. XIII. - Budapest pp. 207-224.


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LITHIC RAW MATERIAL SOURCES OF SOUTHERN GERMANY

- SIEGERIS, Markus ([email protected])University of Tuebingen, CRC, 1070

The lithic raw material sources for producing chipped stone artifacts have always beenof great importance for Palaeolithic studies in Southwestern Germany. In the last fewyears, a lithic raw material collection has been established at the Department of EarlyPrehistory of the University of Tuebingen, set up based on several university theses (e.g.Burkert 1991, 2001; Siegeris in prep.) and other material analyses (e.g. Burkert & Floss2005; Bressy & Floss 2006.). The field surveys were aimed mainly at the variability of thevarieties of the Jurassic chert of the Swabian Alb plateau. Recently, other lithic raw mate-rials such as Keuperhornstein and Muschelkalkhornstein (Triassic chert) have also occu-rred more frequently in the scientific research. Knowledge about the raw materials of theregion were enriched in recent decades by further research such as that carried out by J.Affolter, B. Auffermann, B. Cep, M. Kaiser, Chr. Strien, C. Pasda and J. Hahn.

As part of the work of Collaborative Research Center 1070 "ResourceCultures" at theUniversity of Tuebingen and sub-project B01 "Variability of the use of Resources. SpatialExploitation by Late Neanderthals and Early Modern Humans in Europe" (project manage-ment: Harald Floss & Nicholas J. Conard; scientific researchers: Y. Chang, K. Herkert. & M.Siegeris) the lithic raw material theme has been brought up again with new and systema-tic methodologies.

The aim of this presentation is to show an intermediate stage of the work and to des-cribe an initial attempt at GIS and database-driven mapping.

BURKERT, W. 1991: Stratigraphie und Rohmaterialnutzung im Vogelherd. Magisterarbeit ander Geowissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Tübingen.

BURKERT, W. 2001: Lithische Rohmaterialversorgung im Jungpaläolithikum des südöstlichenBaden-Württemberg. Dissertation an der Geowissenschaftlichen Fakultät der UniversitätTübingen.

BURKERT, W. & FLOSS, H. 2005: Lithic exploitation areas in the Upper Palaeolithic of Westand Southwest Germany – a comparative study. In : Stone Age – Mining Age, Der Anschnitt,Beiheft 19, 2005, 35-49.

BRESSY, C. & FLOSS, H. 2006: Multiparametric characterization of Southwestern Germancherts : application to the study of raw material circulation during the Upper Paleolithicperiod. In : C. Bressy, A. Burke, P. Chalard et H. Martin (Dir.), Notions de territoire et de mobi-lité. Exemples de l’Europe et des premières nations en Amérique du Nord avant le contacteuropéen. Actes de sessions présentées au Xe congrès annuel de l’association Européennedes Archéologues, Lyon, 8-11 septembre 2004, ERAUL 116, 131-136.

SIEGERIS, M. in prep.: Lithische Rohmaterialversorgung im späten Mittel- und frühenJungpaläolithikum der Schwäbischen Alb und im südlichen Burgund (Arbeitstitel).Dissertation an der Geowissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Tübingen.


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THE IRISH LITHIC LANDSCAPES LITHOTHEQUE

- DRISCOLL, Killian ([email protected])Universite de Montreal

- BURKE, Adrian ([email protected])Enseignant-chercheur, Prof. Agrégé, Université de Montréal, département d’Anthropologie,Pavillon Lionel-Groulx, C. P. 6128, succursale Centre-Ville, Montréal, (Québec), H3C 3J7,Canada

- WARREN, Graeme

- ALCAINA, Jonas ([email protected])Institució Milà i Fontanals, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), C/Egipciaques 15,08001 Barcelona, Spain.

The Irish Lithic Landscapes project was initiated in 2013 to investigate the places whereprehistoric communities obtained the raw materials for their flaked stone tools in prehis-toric Ireland. The 2014 geoarchaeological prospection for the project centred on thenorthwest of Ireland, where we collected 350 geological samples from over 400 surveypoints, which included examining c. 250 outcrop groups. A significant part of this projectis the creation of a lithotheque reference collection of Irish cherts. This lithotheque will bephysically housed at the UCD School of Archaeology, Ireland and accompanied by a web-based, spatial database, open for use by other researchers. It is hoped that this lithothe-que will be added to over the coming years by expanding the collection to cover chert fromall of Ireland, as well as expanding it to include the range of stone tool raw materials usedduring Irish prehistory. This presentation will provide an overview of the fieldwork under-taken to collect the reference samples, and the designing and organisation of the physicalcollection and its online database.


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PRESENTING LUSOLIT: THE PORTUGUESE LITHOTHEQUE OF KNAPPABLE RAW MATERIALS

- PEREIRA, Telmo ([email protected])ICArEHB - Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution Human Behavior,University of Algarve

- FARIAS, Anne ([email protected])Núcleo dos Alunos de Arqueologia e Paleoecologia, Universidade do Algarve, CampusGambelas 8005-139 Faro PORTUGAL

- ANDRADE, Catarina ([email protected])Universidade do Algarve, Campus Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal

The knowledge of where past human populations collected their raw materials to pro-duce stone tools is crucial for understanding subjects such as their decision-making, terri-tory, mobility, range of acquisition, networks, and to infer their cognitive abilities.Therefore, the creation of lithic reference collections (i.e lithotheques) is of the utmostimportance.

In geological terms, Portugal is a highly complex region, with a plethora of igneous,sedimentary and metamorphic rocks dated from the Proterozoic to the present day. Suchdiversity considerably influenced human decision-making on the choices of raw material.It might also be one of the major reasons for the diversity seen throughout the diachronyof its archaeological record.

In order to help the archaeological and anthropological research in this territory, westarted a reference collection for this region, which is hosted at the University of Algarve:the LUSOLIT. Although in its early stages, this collection already has several hundred chertsamples from almost as many locations. We started with chert because it is the least ubi-quitous through the landscape and, consequently, that can provide better information.


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EVALUATING LITHIC RAW MATERIAL POTENTIAL IN A CONTEXT OF GEOLOGICAL COM-PLEXITY: THE CASE OF THE LITHIC RAW MATERIAL REFERENCE COLLECTION FROM THEMONTE AMIATA AND MOUNT CETONA RIDGES (SOUTHERN TUSCANY, ITALY)

The Cetona and Amiata Mts. are the highest peaks respectively of the Outer Tuscanyand the Mid Tuscany Ridges, two mostly parallel ridges of the Apennines in South-EasternTuscany. These mountains stand out, surrounded by hilly landscape formed from Neogenemarine sediments composed of clays, sands and gravels. Mt. Cetona is formed from rocksbelonging to the Mesozoic Tuscany succession, whereas Mt. Amiata is the remnant of aquaternary shield volcano.

In both areas, important prehistoric archaeological remains are present. The Mt.Cetona slopes host stratified Middle Palaeolithic contexts which were investigated manyyears ago (the sites and the assemblages are currently under study by some of theauthors), as well as pre- and protohistoric settlements. Mount Amiata features MiddlePalaeolithic to Bronze Age open air contexts which have never been properly excavated.

Lithotypes suitable for knapping outcrop largely on Mt. Cetona and in the surroundingsof Mt. Amiata, which are not covered by volcanic rocks. Fields surveys for sampling of lithicraw materials have been carried out. In this way a lithotheque and an inventory with infor-mation regarding petrography, macroscopic and microscopic aspect, and suitability forknapping were set up. The sampling was made both on primary outcrops and on derivedmarine and continental deposits. Flints and other types of suitable silicifications were indi-viduated starting from a desk-top study of the 1:10.000 scale geological maps freely avai-lable for the Tuscany Region. The more ubiquitous limestones were sampled selectively, inaccordance with what was observed in the known lithic assemblages.

In establishing this comparative collection we had to come to terms with the region’selaborate geology, which is characterized, among other features, by the following:

• Co-existence of different geological domains with rocks of the same chronology andsimilar characteristics but with different palaeo-geographic origins. This issue is parti-cularly challenging for discriminating between strictly local and more distant suppliedraw materials and is especially true for radiolarites, which are the main local compo-nent of the Middle Palaeolithic assemblages. Radiolarite has been generally classifiedas “jasper” in the study of lithic assemblages and was linked to the nearest jasper out-crops. Our classification shows how this rock can be linked to a more elaborate geogra-phical distribution and stratified economical value;• Complex tectonic history of the area, which resulted in some siliceous rocks-bearingformations being present in very localized outcrops which are not always indicated ongeological maps. This has important methodological implications on how to conductfield surveys for lithotheques; and• Presence of conglomerates and gravels belonging to Pliocene coastal contexts, con-taining clasts from the erosion of siliceous formations and deposited also at long dis-tances from primary sources. This indicates that this area is richer than previously sus-pected in terms of raw material suitable for knapping.

This work is intended as a general appraisal of the knappable lithic raw materials in thearea. The comparative collection which was created is currently being employed for thetechnological study of the extant archaeological lithic assemblages, and is providing newinformation about the economy of knappable rocks in the local Middle Palaeolithic. flint;the block morphology is very common regardless raw material provenance; allochthonousblocks were introduced preformed. Finally, flake cores are also a very common type of

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blank even if they are more frequent while considering exotic rocks. Similarly to the Proto-Aurignacian, the Noaillian, lithic procurement and technological issues demark a large suppl-ying territory. Where Riparo Mochi was occupied during the colder period of the year, within aseasonal long-distance mobility strategy, that interested the whole northern Tyrrhenian area.

- SCARAMUCCI, Sem ([email protected])Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences - R.U. Prehistory andAnthropology – University of Siena

- MODESTI, Valerio ([email protected])Facoltà di Lettere, Università degli Studi “Tor Vergata”, Roma, Italy

- PERESANI, Marco ([email protected])Università degli studi di Ferrara

- PIERUCCINI, Pierluigi ([email protected])Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy

- ROLFO, Mario FedericoFacoltà di Lettere, Università degli Studi “Tor Vergata”, Roma, Italy


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INFORMATICS SYSTEMS IN ARCHAEOLOGY: DATABASES IN THE STUDY OF LITHICINDUSTRY

- JURADO CORTÉS, Andrés ([email protected])Universidad de Granada

- LÓPEZ-RODRÍGUEZ, Mª Cristina ([email protected])Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Madrid, Spain)

Informatics Systems have been on the rise in many areas of archaeological investigationand they are becoming more important due to the volume of information, which is cons-tantly increasing. Data Base Systems are the proof of this fact because of their facility formanaging information and access to data. In this way, we can combine and connect all databetween them, making the treatment of this set of data easier. The field of lithic industrycannot lag behind in this aspect and the creation of “lithic libraries” and data bases asso-ciated with its fields of investigation (typology, technology, raw materials, and functiona-lity) must be a priority. We propose an approach to Archaeomatics, as is referred to bysome authors, in the field of the lithic industry, the same way it has been done in otherfields of archaeological research.

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S8 - Gemology –obsidian and quartz as gemstones

- Xavier Mangado ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

This session will look at a different application of obsidian and microcrystaline quartzfor ornamental purposes. One of the most common categories of material used to produ-ce gemstones is in fact quartz, often microcrystaline quartz varieties such as agate, opals,jaspers and many others. Presentations in this section may be reports on specific mate-rials, methods of processing the stones, gemstone workshops or historical examples ofstone jewellery. Presentations may be related to any time period from prehistory to thepresent and may be related to gemstones produced as a large scale industry, in small scaletraditional workshops or by hobbyists.


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SORCERY AND CEREMONY AND THE ASSOCIATION WITH QUARTZ

- EDMONDS, Vanessa ([email protected])Jacobs Group (Australia) Pty Ltd

The association of quartz crystals with men of magic and power has been well docu-mented in the Australian ethnographic literature. Quartz whether crystalline or milky isalso documented ethnographically as being used for ceremonial purposes, specificallyinitiation. This paper describes the finding of a cache of smoky quartz crystals in graniteoutcrops at Wehla Hill in north central Victoria (AUS). The paper interprets this cache asrepresentative of the ritual significance of the area which also provides evidence of othersite types such as Aboriginal rockwells, culturally scarred trees and artefact scatters ofcrystalline quartz. The paper explores the relationship of the quartz crystal cache andthese site types to present an argument for the ritual significance of Wehla Hill.

Crystalline and milky quartz is locally available as seams and gravels associated withthe granite outcrops. The very high percentage of crystalline quartz found in the raw mate-rial assemblage of artefact scatters at Wehla Hill indicates a preference for this materialand a possible focus for occupation at Wehla Hill. Interestingly, the White Swan QuartzMine operated in what is now Kooyoora State Park just to the east of Wehla Hill, duringWorld War II, producing industrial and ornamental quartz. There is also evidence at WehlaHill that for Aboriginal quarrying of quartz along the natural faults lines in the granite.Consequently, Kooyoora and Whela Hill have been important sources of crystalline quartzfrom at least 2,000 years ago (based on comparative dating) through to the 1940s and pre-sent with crystal fossickers still visiting the area.


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KNAPPING METAMORPHIC DOLOMITE TO MAKE BRACELETS: METHODS AND TECHNI-QUES OF KNAPPING IN THE BRACELETS QUARRY OF CORTIJO CEVICO (LOJA, GRANADA)

(1) - MARTÍNEZ-SEVILLA, Francisco ([email protected])(2) - MORGADO, Antonio ([email protected])(2) - JIMENEZ COBOS, Francisca ([email protected])(2) - GUTIÉRREZ RODRÍGUEZ, Mario ([email protected])(3) - LÓPEZ GARCÍA, Antonio (guitarra [email protected])(4) - LOZANO RODRÍGUEZ, José Antonio ([email protected])

1. Universidad de Granada; 2. Dpto. Prehistoria y Arqueología. Universidad de Granada; 3.Dip. S.A.G.A.S., Università degli Studi di Firenze; 4. Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra,CSIC-Universidad de Granada

Stone bracelets are one of the most outstanding elements of personal ornamentationof the ancient Neolithic in the south of the Iberian Peninsula (5500-4500 Cal. BCE). Theyare considered an element of cultural identity and a chronological marker. The study of theproduction processes of this ornament has brought a new approach to the social relationsof the early Neolithic groups of this area.

The objective of this study is to present the methods and techniques of knappingcarried out in the Cortijo Cevico Neolithic bracelet quarry. This quarry was recently disco-vered and excavated, and is the first site of its kind in the Iberian Peninsula. It is a rockyoutcrop in the Trias de Antequera geologic formation, comprised of metamorphic dolomi-tes. At the site extraction and the first transformation by knapping preforms were carriedout, with further processing of bracelets taking place in settlements.

The methodology is based on analysis of preforms and hammers, and recognition oftechnical knapping marks on the flakes. On these elements a diacritical analysis wasapplied in addition to experimental testing of the processes of extraction and knapping.The analytical development culminates with a statistical study of a set of 442 preforms and23 hammers.

The aim of this paper is to present, for the first time, the chaîne opératoires observedin this quarry to make lithic bracelets.


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S9- Experimental flint knapping

Javier Baena ([email protected])

Martin Shmidt ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

During the last decades, experimental approaches to technical and technological lithicprocess have become an essential methodology for of the lithic research. Reproduction ofChaines operatoires or lithic reduction sequences, by definition of lithic techno-logicaltypes are a basic tool for the recognition of technocultural entities in the archaeologicalrecord. In this respect, the adequate definition of experimental methods in the lithic analy-sis and it correct application of the experimental methodologies is crucial in the lithic rese-arch. In this session we propose the presentation of knapping examples for the lithic stu-dies, by using experimental cases, comparative experimental collections, economical inter-pretations and replicative sequences among other experimental models.


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EXPERIMENTAL INSIGHTS INTO DIFFERENTIAL HEAT IMPACT AMONG LITHIC ARTIFACTS

- BUSTOS PÉREZ, Guillermo ([email protected])

Independent researcher

In archaeology, it is common to find lithic artifacts that have suffered different types ofthermal alterations. The effects of thermal alterations can differ as a result of a widevariety of causes, such as the type of exposure that the flint has undergone or even thecharacteristics of the flint or blank itself. Here we present an experimental analysis inwhich different chert flakes were exposed to different types of thermal alteration. Thisexperimentation attempts to evaluate how lithic materials can change within the samesite as a result of differential exposure to fire. Attention is also paid to the alteration oftechnological features and the perception of behaviors, such as recycling.


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EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON FLINT HAMMERS USE IN ACHEULEAN AND MOUSTERIANWORKSHOP ASSEMBLAGES IN THE CENTER OF THE IBERIAN PENINSULA

(1) - LAMAS NAVARRO, Víctor ([email protected])(1) - TORRES NAVAS, Concepción ([email protected])(1) - BAENA PREYSLER, Javier ([email protected])(1) - CUARTERO MONTEAGUDO, Felipe ([email protected])

- DIAZ, Sara ([email protected])- DE LA SOTA, Paloma ([email protected])- MICHOS, Foivos ( [email protected])

1-4. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Recent discoveries on archaeological deposits in the peninsular center have providednew lithic assemblages. The most remarkable of these new sites are Los Ahijones and ElCañaveral (Madrid, Spain), both of them located in the same geomorphological contextand belonging to the Acheulean and Mousterian periods respectively.

Research in these two close sites allowed to define different reduction modes relatedto different types of hammers. These tools were made on flint in absence of other rawmaterial. (inmediato/oportunismo) It is possible to test the use efficiency of flint hammersby means of an experimental analysis of the technical features produced by their use. Inaddition, the viability of this type of hammers is verified by reproducing Levallois, discoidand bifacial reduction schemes.


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EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF FLUTING TECHNOLOGY IN SOUTHERN ARABIA

- CRASSARD, Rémy ([email protected])CNRS, Lyon

- VOSGES, Jérémie ([email protected])Arkéo Fabrik, Exoudun, France

Fluting of projectile points in southern Arabia has been firstly described in the early2000’s in Yemen and the Sultanate of Oman. The fluting technique appears in stratigraphyat the site of Manayzah (Yemen) and is dated to the late 7th / beginning of the 6th millen-nium BC Cal. This paper presents the chaîne opératoire of the fluting operations from exa-mination of fluted pieces and channel-flakes in stratigraphic contexts and from surfacesites.

In order to replicate Arabian fluting points, lithic experimentations were driven by twomain goals: to show the intention of fluting, as well as to try to understand the functiona-lity of such an operation on the Arabian points. The different possibilities of techniquesused during the Neolithic in southern Arabia (how was the flute obtained?) were also tes-ted, comparing the experimental material with the archaeological fluted material. First ofall, a bifacial preform – with plano-convex or biconvex section – is made from a thin chertslab or thick flake or laminar flake. The knapping technique used for this first step is directpercussion, using soft stone or organic soft hammer (wood, antler or bone). Future flutingsurface is carefully shaped using invasive pressure removals: the convexity of this surfacemust be regular in width and length. Bilateral removals must also rejoin in the median axisof the preform to form a “pseudo-crest”.

Then, the flaking platform is prepared with very accurate pressure removals. This plat-form must be prominent – not so far as forming a spur – and well abraded before flaking.The fluting techniques experiments were concentrated on direct percussion and pressure.We also made few tests using indirect percussion but the first results showed handling pro-blems, fractures and plunging, thus, this technique was excluded in the experimental pro-tocol. Nevertheless, more forthcoming experiments could allow gaining better knowledgeand control with this technique. Our analyses are based on a corpus of more than sixty flu-ted perform replications, made from 2013 and 2015. We present experimentations of 1)direct percussion with soft stone, 2) direct percussion with soft organic hammer, and 3)pressure technique.

This paper will discuss the functionality of the tools and the technical investment of theknappers, as well as some first analogies with the technological similarities and differen-ces of American fluted points (e.g. Clovis, Folsom).

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A FEW GOOD BLADES: EXPERIMENTAL TESTS ON PRODUCTIVITY OF BLADE CORESFROM THE CASA MONTERO EARLY NEOLITHIC FLINT MINE (MADRID, SPAIN)

- CASTAÑEDA, Nuria ([email protected])

Autonomous University of Madrid

The Early Neolithic flint mine of Casa Montero (5337-5218 cal. BC) was a productioncenter of blades that were probably distributed in a broad regional framework. Recentresearch on its lithic record has provided a method for the calculus of productivity for theblade cores based on the striking platform potential area. In contrast with the number ofcores abandoned in the site, the ratio of blades produced per core is smaller than expec-ted due of the several factors took into account for a blade to be discarded.

The high variability of shape, size and quality of raw material increased the difficulty ofthat approach. Several factors had been analyzed as the initial core shape and volume, theinitial shape and size of the striking platform, the reasons of early abandonment of thereduction process, the maintaining tasks of reduction and the variability of the resultingproducts.

The blade reduction at Casa Montero is determined by the raw material variabilitywithin a core, the occurrence of raw material defects and knapping accidents and the pre-sence of knappers with different skill levels. Most of the cores were discarded in differentmoments of the reduction process and only 40.51% reached the production of blades. Theestimation results show a ratio of 3 to 20 blades per core. Nevertheless, an amount of251,122 adequate blades were produced and potentially used in a time span of just a hun-dred years and in a context of very low population density as the Central Iberian Peninsulain early Neolithic was.

The experimental test offers the possibility of having a contrast corpus of reduced coresto compare with. The goal is to have an adequate number of ideal reductions. In order toreduce the variables to the minimum as possible, all the flaked based cores come from thesame nodule and the cores are reduced by one skilled knapper, and one less skilled knap-per. The distribution of all the types of produced blades in several reductions, both usefuland discarded ones, is the comparison tool used to adjust the initial estimation of produc-tivity.


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PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF DEKTON ARTIFICIAL ROCK FOR EXPERIMENTAL ARCHAEO-LOGY AND TRADITIONAL LITHIC TECHNOLOGY

- HARWOOD, Ray ([email protected])Flintknapping Magazine, Post Falls, Idaho, USA

- CRANDELL, Otis ([email protected] )Department of Geology, Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

Currently many flint workers have trouble acquiring material in adequate quantitiesand sizes suitable for knapping large pieces and large numbers of pieces, both for produ-cing their wares as well as for practice purposes to gain competence. Glass is often usedas a substitute for obsidian. Porcelain (often from toilets and electrical insulators) is some-times used as a substitute for chert. One possible source of raw material might be artifi-cial rock, such as those used for producing countertops. Not all artificial rock though is sui-table for knapping. The grain has to be fine and uniform, the material has to be durableenough to retain a sharp edge, and most off all the material must consistently break witha predictable conchoidal fractur e.

This study investigates the viability of using Dekton, a new material produced by theCosentino Group, a commercial counter-top material producer. This material is composedlargely of porcelain, quartz and glass particles which undergo a sintering process to fusethem together. The manufacturing process takes place under high temperatures and pres-sure at 5600 psi for about four hours. Samples of Dekton were evaluated by knapping theminto common tools and by testing its durability for use. The composition was investigatedby polarized light optical microscopy.

Based on the lithic grade system devised by Callahan (1979) to measure the ease atwhich materials can be knapped, Dekton is about 2.5 to 3.0. This is within the range of flintand even fine grained basalt. (Obsidian is 1.0 to 1.5.) Due to the manufacturing processDekton has a uniform composition. Use tests indicate comparable durability to naturalmaterials.

Several professional knappers who were introduced to this material expressed interestand noted that its suitability for producing large ceremonial dance blades (Figure 1c.) anddaggers. Slabs are available in 8 to 30 mm thicknesses which makes them ideal for knap-ping from preformed shapes.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by funds from the Romanian Ministry of Education andResearch projects PNII-ID 2241/2008 (CNCS-UEFISCDI) and PN-II-ID-PCE-2011-3-0881.

Callahan, E. 1979, The basics of biface knapping in the eastern fluted point tradition: Amanual for flintknappers and lithic analysts (1st ed.). Archaeology of Eastern North AmericaVol. 7(1).Eastern States Archeological Federation, Washington, Connecticut, 213 p.


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Figure 1. a. slabs of Dekton and an arrowhead knapped from them. b. prismatic blades knapped from Dekton. c.closeup of a prismatic blade. d.& e. Examples of a large dance blades or ‘Duck River Swords’ (made from natural stone)which require a large piece of raw material to produce each.


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EXPERIMENTAL APPROACHES TO INVESTIGATING THE CHAÎNE OPÉRATOIRE OF A GRA-VETTIAN PENDANT FROM MITOC – MALU GALBEN, ROMANIA

- VORNICU, Diana-Mariuca ([email protected])Institute of Archaeology, Romanian Academy - Iasi Branch

- CHIRICA, Vasile ([email protected])Institute of Archaeology, Romanian Academy, Iasi, Romania

- BODI, George ([email protected])Institute of Archaeology, Romanian Academy, Iasi, Romania

The archaeological site from Mitoc – Malu Galben is located on the right banks of thePrut River, in the North-Eastern part of nowadays Romania. An important component ofthe geological background of the area is represented by Cretaceous flints, suitable forknapping, which were intensively exploited by human communities all along Prehistory,from Middle Paleolithic to Late Bronze Age. At Mitoc – Malu Galben the Upper Paleolithicis represented by several Aurignacian layers which are overlapped by four Gravettianlevels. One of the most spectacular finds coming from the site is a pendant made in cortexwhich was discovered in a flint knapping workshop (assigned as number 27, during the1981 archaeological excavations) from the second Gravettian level (26.450±130 BP -24.070±180 BP).

The chalky cortex that constitutes its raw material is of local provenience and thus theartifact was most probably made at the site. The pendant is almost circular, has incisionson both sides and on its edges and a perforation at its upper part.

This artefact was recently submitted to microscopic analysis in order to trace the tech-nological markers with the final goal of reconstructing its chaîne opératoire. An experi-mental program was initiated in order to have a better understanding of the traces obser-ved on the pendant. Thus, several cortex pieces originating from the same geological out-crops as those at Mitoc were used as a support for the experiments. The cortex pieceswere abraded (both on fine grain and coarse grain rocks) and incised with different expe-rimental tools (flint burins and blades, bone points and wooden sticks). They were alsoperforated by unipolar and bipolar hand boring and also by using a drilling mechanism.The wear resulting from all these activities was compared with that observed on the pen-dant from Mitoc – Malu Galben.

The experiments also gave us the possibility to evaluate the time consumed and theeffort involved in creating such an item.


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IMPACT FRACTURES: AN EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

- SENATORE, Grabiele

- CURA, Pedro ([email protected])Instituto Terra e Memoria, Maçao, Portugal

- GRIMALDI, Stefano ([email protected])Università degli studi di Trento

Projectiles are usually interpreted as tools used for hunting purposes. Their ballisticproperties and killing effectiveness largely vary according to several features ranging froma)morphology of the projectiles (such as size, weight, penetration or cutting function, haf-ting technique, and many others), b) to environmental setting (such as the behavior of thehunted prey, the local vegetation and so on), c) to technical and ballistic properties (suchas inclination of the shot, the strength and dimension of the bow or other throwing tool),d) to the aim of the projectile (such as cutting or penetrating efficiency). These variablesare difficult to be managed in an experimental activity; the main reason is due to the largeamount of time, effort and costs that a rigid and well controlled experimental processrequires in order to verify the consequences – namely, impact fractures and microwears –according to any of these variables. In this paper, we present an experimental processaimed to detect patterns of impact. One hundred arrows have been shot against differenttargets under controlled shooting conditions. Morphologically standardized lithic arrowhe-ads - showing two alternate backed edges in order to avoid any archaeological resemblan-ce - have been produced; more, the aim of their function is to penetrate into the targetand not to cut it. The results allow to advance new insights into the projectile world.Experimental results have been compared to the Gravettian lithic assemblage coming fromthe Riparo Mochi (Balzi Rossi, Grimaldi caves, Italy) where hundreds of backed points havebeen found.


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WATER AND FLINT – “WATER TREATMENT” AND “FRESH FLINT”, TWO CONTRADICTORYCONCEPTS?

- ELBURG, Rengert ([email protected])

Archaeological Heritage Office Saxony

There are numerous recent and older studies on the water content of flint, but theseconsider nearly exclusively the effects of heat treatment. Many modern knappers howeverswear by water treatment of their raw material and blanks, being convinced the soaking inwater of flint greatly improves the workability (Waldorf, 2006, p. 12). The effectiveness ofthis procedure is very hard to prove and hasn’t been the subject of any quantitative rese-arch. On the same line of argumentation flint freshly extracted from its parent material isreputedly much easier to work, especially because of its natural water content. This cha-racteristic is often being given as the reason for (prehistoric) flint mining, where largeamounts of labour were invested to acquire ‘fresh’ material.

Clearly these two very much under-researched concepts are contradictory: Whenfreshly dug flint is of inherent superior quality, the loss of its original water content wouldbe expected to be irreversible. On the other hand, if water treatment constitutes a viablepossibility to improve the workability of the raw material, it would suffice to soak dried-out nodules in water to restore its ‘freshness’.

In the literature very little data on both concepts are to be found. Most modern knap-pers predominantly concentrate on practical issues and publish little on the more techni-cal and theoretical aspects of their craft. Publications with quantifiable data on the watercontent, porosity and the effect of water content in flint and chert mostly deal with pow-dered or otherwise artificially treated material (e.g. Micheelsen 1966; Schmidt et al. 2011),making a comparison with raw materials in their natural state nearly impossible. In orderto rudimentarily close this gap we here present a series of measurements on the dehydra-tion and rehydration of fresh flint and give an overview of the available literature.Although our results are still very preliminary, they show here lays a field of research thatin future might prove fruitful for practical as well as more theoretical purposes.

Micheelsen, H. (1966). The structure of dark flint from Stevns, Denmark. Meddelelser FraDansk Geologisk Forening, 16(3), 285–368.

Schmidt, P., Badou, A., & Fröhlich, F. (2011). Detailed FT near infrared study of the beha-viour of water and hydroxyl in sedimentary length-fast chalcedony, SiO2, upon heat treat-ment. Spectrochimica Acta. Part A, Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy, 81(1),552–559. doi:10.1016/j.saa.2011.06.050

Waldorf, D. C. (2006). The art of flint knapping (5th ed.). Branson Mo.: Mound Builder.

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S10- Stirring the wheel on human behaviour: Mechanical devices for testing material performance

Telmo Pereira ([email protected])

João Marreiros ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

This session will cover research involving mechanical devices to test the performanceof raw materials and artifacts. We are specifically interested in the presentation of success-ful and unsuccessful experiments that were intended to retrieve measurable, high-resolu-tion and un- or at least low subjective data using mechanical devices.

Papers are open to tests done on raw materials and artifacts used during pre, proto andhistorical times all over the world, with global, regional or local scope.


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S10 - Stirring the wheel on human behaviour: Mechanical devices for testing material performance

THE EQUOTIP HARDNESS TESTER: AN UNAGGRESSIVE METHOD FOR ASSESSING THEHOMOGENEITY OF LITHIC RAW MATERIALS

(1) - RODRÍGUEZ-RELLAN, Carlos ([email protected])(2) - LANTES SUÁREZ, Oscar ([email protected])(2) - FEAL-PÉREZ, Alejandra ([email protected])(2) - BLANCO-CHAO, Ramón ([email protected])(2) - DE LOMBERA HERMIDA, Arturo ([email protected])(2) - FÁBREGAS VALCARCE, Ramón ([email protected])

1. Université de Nantes/ Laboratoire de Recherches Archéologiques; 2 Universidad deSantiago de Compostela, Santiago. Spain






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EVALUATING THE FEASIBILITY OF ROBOT-AIDED MICROWEAR ANALYSIS: PRELIMINARYRESULTS OF THE ROBOCUT PROJECT

1.- PFLEGING, Johannes ([email protected])Agile and Dexterous Robotics Lab, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland

2.- IOVITA, Radu ([email protected])Monrepos Archaeological Research Centre and Museum, RGZM

3.- STÜCHELI, Marius ([email protected])Product Development Group Zurich, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland

4.- BUCHLI, Jonas ([email protected])Agile and Dexterous Robotics Lab, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland

Humans are set apart from animals by the fact that we use tools to manipulate oursurroundings in a very systematic and creative way. The question of how tools and techno-logy influenced human evolution is one of the most important in anthropology, yet we stillknow relatively little about how individual tools found in the archaeological record wereused. Along with residue analysis, lithic microwear analysis (MWA) constitutes our besthope of reconstructing tool use in the most ancient periods of human evolution.

MWA is a method that relies heavily upon analogical reasoning to link observed wearpatterns on archaeological pieces with those obtained during replicative experiments.Initial criticisms of the method during the 1980s stressed the inability of the analysts toagree in their interpretation of patterns. Most of the proposed solutions to this problemhave focused on improving the documentation technology, i.e., better microscopes, bet-ter standards for documentation (see J. Arch. Sci., vol. 48(C) - a special issue on standardi-zation and calibration), etc. and have improved rates of identification in blind tests (e.g.,Evans, 2014). Comparatively little emphasis has been put on improving experimental pro-tocols, especially that which concerns controlling the many variables that have a causalinfluence on the production of particular wear patterns. Typically, researchers still carryout a reconstructed prehistoric task using inspiration from the ethnographic literature ortheir own imagination, and then compare the resulting wear with that found on archaeo-logical pieces. Yet, the few studies that have focused on wear formation (e.g., Šmit et al.,1999; Evans and Donahue, 2005.) have shown how complex of a process it is, and howmany variables (contact materials and geometry, velocity, force, torque, etc.) are likely toaffect it.

However, humans cannot control such variables in a cost-effective and reproducibleway. For this reason, we initiated the RoboCut Project, which aims to develop a system ofrobot-aided microwear analysis. We present results from the two aspects of the project:1) the investigation of the physical parameters associated with a human performing a typi-cal task through dynamic monitoring of the tool (scraping fresh hide, showing the mecha-nical differentiation between a pulling and pushing motion); and 2) the implementation ofthese parameters by a KUKA-LWR force and impedance controlled robot (FICR). By repla-cing the human with an FICR, we are able to precisely set, vary and monitor all relevanttask variables (number of cycles, force, angle, torque, speed, etc.). We then evaluate thedifferences between the microscopic patterns obtained by the human subjects and therobotic subject. Through the investigation of the two subjects (human and robotic), wegain insights into how humans respond to changing conditions (e.g., material hardness,different hafting arrangements, etc.), and we can evaluate which aspects of task recons-truction are more feasible than others.


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Evans, 2014, J. Arch. Sci. 48(C), 5–14

Šmit et al., 1999, Nucl Instrum Meth B 150, 565-570

Evans & Donahue, 2005, J Arch Sci, 32(12), 1733–1740


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EDGE REDUCTION VARIABILITY IN QUARTZITE AND CHERT: EXPERIMENTAL RESULTSUSING A MECHANICAL DEVICE TO CONTROL MULTIPLE VARIABLES

(1) - MARREIROS, Joao ([email protected])(2) - PEREIRA, Telmo ([email protected])(2) - MARTINS, Rui

1. Universidade do Algarve / CSIC; 2. ICArEHB; Núcleo dos Alunos de Arqueologia ePaleoecologia, Universidade do Algarve

Stone tools were a major advance in human development that helped early homininesto succeed when competing with other animals and to survive through dramatic environ-mental changes. Therefore, understanding the use of stone tools is a major goal ofarchaeological and anthropological research. That has been possible through actualisticstudies such as ethnography, experimental programs and laboratory analysis. Together,they have allowed researchers to create proxies for the record of humans in the past. Inexperimental programs, archaeological artifacts are replicated, used in different ways andthe wear marks created are compared with those seen on artifacts and which can lead tofunctional interpretations.

However, the results and comparisons made in use-wear analysis are often criticizeddue the low control of the variables associated with the production of the wear marks thatare afterwards used as references to interpret prehistoric tools. Ultimately, such unreliabi-lity of the results and comparisons lead some people to be skeptical about the disciplineas a whole or to disbelief in it for the most part or even completely. To help solve this pro-blem, we developed a mechanical device that allows one to control multiple variables.

In this presentation we showcase the results of an experiment intended to explain edgereduction variability between two very different but very commonly used raw materials:quartzite and chert. We knapped 40 statistically similar flakes, equally divided betweenchert and quartzite, and used them in a back-and-forth movement over pine boards per-pendicular to the grain of the wood. Our results showed that not only did quartzite andchert edges reduce differently under similar circumstances but also that the wear causedto the edges was not the same throughout the experiments. Since the only variable thatchanged was the raw material, these results seem to suggest that edge performance mightbe related with the physical properties of each raw material.

Considering the frequency with which these two raw materials were used, these resultsmight help to shed light on aspects of past human decision making, in particular concer-ning the acquisition and use of raw material along with the production and use of toolswith relevance to human cognition.


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EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN AND INFERENCE IN LITHIC STUDIES: A CONTROLLED EXPERI-MENT PERSPECTIVE

(1) - LIN, SAM C. ([email protected])(2) - REZEK, ZELJKO ([email protected])(2) - DIBBLE, HAROLD L. ([email protected])

1. Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology; 2. University of Pennsylvania,Philadelphia, U.S.A.

From flake fracture to assemblage formation, archaeologists rely on experimentation asone of the primary means to generate behavioral inference from archaeological lithic arti-facts. To date, the majority of lithic experiments have been conducted by human knap-pers under actualistic settings, where much of the relevant variables are uncontrolled. Thismakes experimental outcomes more difficult to interpret due to the influence of confoun-ding, though unknown, variables.

From a theoretical standpoint, the common emphasis on “replication” of particularartifact forms, so-called “desired end products”, adds further complications to the validityof the experimental inference.

In this study, we examine the nature of scientific experiment and how conventionalknapping experiments depart from its criteria. More importantly, the potential consequen-ce of such departure on the archaeological applicability of the experimental outcome isconsidered. We then discuss our experience in implementing a more controlled, objectiveexperimental design to study the formation of stone flakes through the use of a mechani-cal apparatus.

The research design has successfully verified the effects of several important factorsassociated with flake formation under controlled setting. However, we also frequentlyencountered both theoretical and practical challenges in conducting controlled lithic expe-riments, namely the operationalization of variables, interpretation of complex interactionsamong variables, and comparability with archaeological artifacts. We argue that while theuse of mechanical device in lithic experimentation is important, researchers also need tobe aware of the ramifications of their experimental design on the inferential validity andapplicability of the experimental result.


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THE ROLE OF QUALITY IN RAW MATERIAL CHOICE: CHERT OF CENTRAL (ESTREMADU-RA) AND SOUTHERN (ALGARVE) PORTUGAL

- FARIAS, Anne ([email protected]) Universidade do Algarve

- ANDRADE, Catarina ([email protected])Núcleo dos Alunos de Arqueologia e Paleoecologia, Faro, Portugal

- PEREIRA, Telmo ([email protected])Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior, Faro, Portugal

The choice of different raw materials strongly influences the production of stone tools.The choice of a source of raw material with better knapping characteristics can make adrastic difference on the outcome of production. Chert usually has good knapping proper-ties because it tends to fracture in predictable ways. Recently, a variety of analyticalmethods have been applied to characterize the raw materials from archaeological con-texts. However, their quality is an issue which is still under explored and, when it is, it isusually by subjective means.

In this presentation we focus on the chert sources of Central (Estremadura) andSouthern (Algarve) Portugal where multiple, heterogenic primary and secondary chertsources were used throughout prehistory. In general, the chert from Algarve seems tohave poorer knapping properties when compared with that from Estremadura.

The aim of our ongoing investigation is to systematically test geological chert samplesin order to determine the variation in their mechanical properties and, ultimately, quan-tify these properties. The data will allow us to understand, for instance, possible discretevariations between geological formations within the same region. To reach our objectiveswe used the rebound value taken with a Schmidt Hammer. This method allows one to eva-luate the uniaxial compressive strength and elastic modulus of the rock. All samples hadsimilar dimensions and were held in a vise attached to a flat concrete base. Each samplewas tested 30 times on the longest axis, which was always at least 10 cm long. Becausegreat variety can occur due to small differences in the inclination of the Schmidt Hammer,the 10 values that were furthest from the median were eliminated. This produces strongstatistical data.

Our preliminary results are very promising in that they show, for instance, considerablerebound values from different chert sources. This might be related with features such astectonic fracturing of the nodules or different degrees of silicification. With its continua-tion, this study will help to better understand the preferences in lithic raw material selec-tion observed in the archaeological record, reconstruct the reasons for mobility routes ofraw material procurement and acquisition and, ultimately, the behavioral patterns of theprehistoric populations on the westernmost coast of Eurasia.

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S11- Gunflints: Production, distribution and use

- Otis Crandell ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

This session will focus specifically on papers related to flintlock weapons, and the pro-cessing and use of flint during the historical period in the gunflint industry.


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GUNFLINTS FROM THE FORTRESS OF ZAMOŚĆ: ACCESSORIES FOR OBTAINING MECHA-NICALLY PRODUCED SPARKS

- MĄCZYŃSKI, Piotr ([email protected])University of Rzeszów

- LIBERA, Jerzy ([email protected])Maria Curie Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland

The gradual decline in flintknapping production around the middle of the first millen-nium CE within Polish territory (as well as in neighbouring areas) resulted in the disconti-nuation of the mass production of items such as tools and weapons made from siliceousrocks.

Contrary to the prevailing belief that there was a decline of the interest in this rawmaterial, it was still used during the protohistoric and early historic periods as well as inmodern history, though its utilitarian nature became very limited. For many centurieschert (often flint) remained the main stone that would "produce sparks". This utilitariannature was common, as it was related to a basic activity of a daily life - striking fire. Theinvention in the late sixteenth century of the flintlock mechanism used in firearms initia-ted a renaissance of flint-knapping production associated with the mass scale productionof gunflint pieces for muzzle-loaded rifles.

An opportunity to investigate the topic of the use of flint arose in 2011, when, in thecourse of archaeological survey carried out at the fortress of Zamość (Central-EasternPoland), a discovery of a large assemblage of modern flint products was made (Fig. 1, 2).Gunflints constituted the majority of them (4960 pieces). A further 848 were interpretedas strike-a-lights and 107 pieces as waste. This assembly of artefacts was deposited pro-bably between the years 1810 and 1850. The discovery inspired a study on the topic ofgunflint usage. The deposit analysed is heterogeneous both morphologically as well asmorphometrically. The significant predominance of horseshoe-shaped forms is obvious asthey comprise up to 85% of the entire collection and the remaining discovered specimensare trapezoid-shaped gunflints (Fig. 3).

Despite the rather wide variety of the raw material, the set seems to be based solelyon the so-called Volhynian flint (Fig. 1), which has a broad range of body-colour, mostlydark navy blue. The body is often blotched, dotted and striped. Deposits of raw materialwith similar characteristics are primarily located within vast areas of Western Volhynia andPodolia.


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GUNFLINT ORIENTED FLINT MINES IN SOUTHERN POLAND REVEALED BY AIRBORNELASER SCANNING: FIRST APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF MODERN FLINT MINING INPOLAND

- BUDZISZEWSKI, Janusz ([email protected])- SZUBSKI, Michal ([email protected])- JAKUBCZAK, Michal ([email protected])

Institute of Archaeology, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw

Study of gunflint materials has not been one of the most investigated subjects in Polishlithic studies. Over the last few years though, it has become a more popular topic. The sub-jects of raw material sources and mining methods are no longer problems of research inthis field. We know, from historical sources, that the largest area of mining was located insouthern Poland and based on Jurassic flint. The largest manufacturing of gunflints inPoland took place from the 18th to 19th century.

Due to airborne laser scanning (ALS, LiDAR), the study of flint mines with anthropoge-nic mining relief has become easier. In recent years, the Institute of Archaeology atCardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw has been investigating different flint minesin Poland using ALS. Along with Project ISOK, which provided free ALS data for Poland, wehave been checking all presumed areas, searching for prehistoric mines, such as thosementioned in the literature, like the forest in Zelków near Krakow.

Several flint mines covers the entire area of this forest preserved or partly preserved,having a different anthropogenic relief. The mine areas are also overlaid by large flintworkshops located on top of forest ground cover. Most of the sites are doubtlessly gunflintmines, yet at least one, which was identified, is probably prehistoric. The first investigationbased on analysis of ALS data and field walk prospection revealed that gunflint mines havevery different a relief among each another. Especially interesting is one with huge pits withevidence of large-scale exploitation with modern tools. A difference in morphology is alsoconnected with a diversity in knapping technology between field mines. Cores found atsites represent assorted reduction methods oriented toward blade production. It gives usa unique opportunity to study not only finished gunflint as a product but the entire chaî-ne opératoire.

Our research is still in the early phases, being an initial approach to the study of gun-flint mining in Poland. New technologies, such as ALS, give us a new and unique opportu-nity to investigate Polish gunflint manufacturing on a larger scale than before.


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GUNFLINTS IN COLONIAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES IN PATAGONIA (ARGENTINE REPU-BLIC): AN APPROACH TO THEIR ORIGINS AND USE

- BUSCAGLIA, Silvana ([email protected])IMHICIHU-CONICET. Buenos Aires

- ÁLVAREZ, Myrian ([email protected])CADIC-CONICET. Ushuaia, Argentina

- ALBERTI, Jimena ([email protected])IMHICIHU-CONICET. Buenos Aires

The aim of this paper is to present the results of analysis of five gunflints from two colo-nial archaeological sites located in Patagonia (Argentine Republic). In Argentine Republicthere is a long record of importation of these artifacts between the sixteenth and ninete-enth centuries. However, analysis of flints in this country has a short history and still thereis no specialized field within the larger field of lithic artifacts studies. Thus, this work cons-titutes a new contribution to the study of this technology and to the developments of thistopic in other parts of the world than Europe.

First the state of detailed analysis of gunflints in Argentine Republic is presented; this isfollowed by a discussion of their presence in archaeological sites in Patagonia. A brief pre-sentation is made of general information regarding the production, supply and use in thecolonial context of South America, and finally the presentation focuses on the sample ofartifacts recovered in two colonial sites of the eighteenth century in Patagonia - The NewColony and Fort of Floridablanca (St. Julian, Santa Cruz province) and San José fort (Valdéspeninsula, Chubut province) (Figure 1). Both settlements were created as part of a plan bythe Spanish Crown to colonize the Patagonian Atlantic coast, where officials, soldiers, pea-sants, and prisoners, among others, were participants and who interacted with indigenouspeople in different ways.

181


S12- Silcrete as a lithic raw material in global context: geology, sourcing and techno-economics

- Rebecca Wragg Sikes ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

The exploitation of silcrete deposits by humans for tool production is a subject gainingincreasing focus in international research, and is at the heart of recent discoveries relatingto the evolution of technology and other aspects of human behaviour in various contexts(e.g. Brown et al. 2009; Schmidt et al. 2013).

A siliceous stone formed in diverse contexts, silcrete is found across all inhabited con-tinents, but is highly variable in terms of its geological context and its qualities in regard toknapping. Perhaps due to its complexities it has not received attention as a lithic categoryin the same way as other rocks such as flint or quartzite, despite its potential for throwinglight on human approaches to such a widely distributed material. This session is aimed atbringing together researchers working on silcrete in the global archaeological record, inorder to promote exchange of methodologies and results from very different time periodsand regions.

Contributions focusing on the formation of silcrete, its characteristics and identifica-tion, as well as sourcing will allow a “state-of-the-art” presentation of geological researchon this stone type. Additionally, papers examining the techno-economics of silcrete exploi-tation (quarrying/acquisition, knapping technology, heat-treatment, hafting, modalities oftool transfer/ exchange) as well as the wider contexts of use and deposition of this mate-rial will allow researchers to exchange data, ideas and approaches to studying the archaeo-logy of this stone.


182


WHAT FACTORS GOVERN THE PROCUREMENT AND USE OF SILCRETE DURING THE MID-DLE STONE AGE OF THE WESTERN CAPE IN SOUTHAFRICA?

- WILL, Manuel ([email protected])Schloss Hohentübingen

- MACKAY, Alex ([email protected])Centre for Archaeological Science, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University ofWollongong, Australia

Fluctuations in the frequency of silcrete in lithic assemblages has been an importantfocus of MSA research in southern Africa during the last few decades. Most prominently,many studies in the Southern and Western Cape found a strong increase in the procure-ment of silcrete and other fine-grained raw materials during the Still Bay and HowiesonsPoort industries, associated with many other elements of an early complex material cultu-re. Here, we provide a detailed review of temporal and spatial variation of silcrete use onthe Western Cape of South Africa and discuss factors that might drive differential acquisi-tion and treatment of this raw material. We hypothesize that the procurement and use ofsilcrete by human populations could be dependent on a number of external and internalfactors which are not mutually exclusive: i) availability and transport distance ; ii) functio-nal constraints (e.g. manufacture of particular tool types); iii) environmental circumstan-ces (including availability of fire wood for heat treatment); 4) site and land use strategies,mobility patterns and organization of technology; 5) social-cultural factors (e.g. preferen-tial choice of “valued” raw materials; exchange between groups).

In order to explore the relative influence of these factors , we combine our own dataon silcrete use from Diepkloof, Hoedjiespunt 1, Klein Kliphuis, Klipfonteinrand, Mertenhof,Uitpanskraal 7 and Varsche Rivier 003 with other published sources from the WesternCape. We collect information on the presence and abundance of silcrete, the complete-ness of reduction sequences and the types of products manufactured within assemblages.Furthermore, we examine the types of silcrete used as well as their potential origins andtransport distance. Finally, we try to explain the observed chronological and geographicalvariation in silcrete use by integrating these data with environmental and contextual infor-mation. Results of this study can help to embed the acquisition and treatment of silcreteby MSA people in a wider behavioral and evolutionary framework.flint; the block morpho-logy is very common regardless raw material provenance; allochthonous blocks wereintroduced preformed. Finally, flake cores are also a very common type of blank even ifthey are more frequent while considering exotic rocks. Similarly to the Proto-Aurignacian,the Noaillian, lithic procurement and technological issues demark a large supplying terri-tory. Where Riparo Mochi was occupied during the colder period of the year, within a sea-sonal long-distance mobility strategy, that interested the whole northern Tyrrhenian area.


183



- WRAGG SIKES, Rebecca ([email protected])Universite de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France

- DELVIGNE, Vincent ([email protected])Universite de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France

- FERNANDES, Paul ([email protected])Paleotime

- LAFARGE, Audrey

- PIBOULE, Michel21 rue General Ferrié. 38100 Grenoble

- LIABEUF, ReneSRA, DRAC Auvergne, Hôtel de Chazerat, rue Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France

- RAYNAL, J.P.Departement of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.Leipzig, Allemagne

While the study of silcrete forms a major area of research in the Southern Hemisphere,particularly Australia and southern Africa, its exploitation as a lithic resource is less wellstudied within Europe. Instead, flint and chert have received the bulk of attention, in partdue to the less common deposits of silcrete in Europe. But this gap in research may alsobe a result of confusing silcrete, an often highly variable material, with other siliceousrocks due to unfamiliarity.

Within the French Massif Central, in a highly volcanic geological context, the presenceof any siliceous stone in assemblages attracts special interest, with the result that a uni-quely detailed sourcing program has identified multiple chert and silcrete sources exploi-ted at Palaeolithic sites (Fernandes and Raynal, 2006 ; Fernandes et al., 2006, 2007, 2008;Delvigne, 2012).

This paper presents an overview of the variety of silcretes used in the Velay area of theMassif Central (Haute-Loire), both from geological and archaeological perspectives, as partof a wider landscape project (Raynal et al., 2013). Assemblages from Middle Palaeolithic,Badegoulian, Magdalenian and Epipalaeolithic levels in the region's caves are discussed.Additionally, early results are presented from fieldwork at a newly discovered silcreteextraction site, at the summit of a hill in Saint-Pierre-Eynac. This silcrete was previouslyknown from both Middle and Upper Palaeolithic sites, and informal collection of surfaceartefacts from the environs of the hill demonstrated prehistoric presence at the source.However, the spatial focus and intensity of extraction activity was unknown until fieldworkin 2014, which discovered an extremely rich workshop locale at the very summit of the hill,adjacent to silcrete outcrops. This attests to the importance of this raw material, known tohave been transported.


184


SILCRETE REDUCTION PROCESSES IN THE AUSTRALIAN DESERT

- HISCOCK, Peter ([email protected])- TABRETT, Amy ([email protected])

University of Sydney

This paper depicts the range and diversity of silcrete reduction present in Australiandeserts, using the example of the Olympic Dam region. Silcretes in this area are diverse intexture and character, and were employed for the production of many kinds of flaked arte-facts. Our analysis focuses on a quarry and adjacent knapping areas that were intermit-tently exploited over the last 15,000 years.

These sites display the entire reduction sequence of silcrete boulders, from initial corereduction to fine retouching of microliths. The silcrete sequence involves many differentstrategies and techniques, reinforcing the versatility but also limitations of the material.Core reduction began with large flake production, sometimes anvil rested, with both coresand flakes exported from quarries. Subsequent production processes included heat treat-ment, small core reduction, and retouching of microliths and unifacial points. These manu-facturing processes are spatially dispersed and they display change through time. In mostlocations silcrete was the highest ranked lithic resource, and use of silcrete in theAustralian desert was varied and contextually dynamic.


185


THE USE OF BIPOLAR PERCUSSION TO DETACH LEVALLOIS FLAKES AT HOWIESONSPOORT SHELTER, SOUTH AFRICA

- TABRETT, Amy ([email protected])University of Sydney

In the southern African archaeological sequence, the Levallois strategy of core reduc-tion is considered to be a distinctive feature of the Middle Stone Age (MSA), decliningtowards the end of the MSA when prismatic blade production and bipolar core reductionbecome dominant. Reanalysis of material recovered from Howiesons Poort Shelter - theeponymous site for the Howiesons Poort phase of the southern African MSA - has revea-led that a significant number of the Levallois cores from the site were knapped using bipo-lar percussion to detach their key products. This paper describes the trends in core reduc-tion processes associated with this Levallois-by-bipolar strategy. By investigating thesetrends it is possible to reconstruct the stage in the reduction trajectory of the cores whenbipolar percussion was introduced. As well as adding to a growing image of the technolo-gical and cognitive complexity of Howiesons Poort (and indeed MSA) hominins, these dis-coveries have important implications for our understanding of both the Levallois reductionstrategy and the bipolar percussion method.


186


HEAT TREATMENT OF SILCRETE: THERMAL TRANSFORMATIONS, HEATING PARAMETERSAND IMPLICATIONS FOR THE SOUTH AFRICAN MSA

- SCHMIDT, Patrick ([email protected])Eberhard Karls Universität in Tübingen , Department of Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology

Silcrete is a tool stone of good quality; it was extensively used for knapping at variousperiods in Southern Africa, Western Europe and Australia. From the South African MiddleStone Age (MSA) on, stone knappers did not content themselves with the naturally availa-ble silcrete types but began to transform their properties by heat treatment. However, theabsence of detailed studies about the mineralogy, crystallography and physical propertiesof silcrete led some researchers to compare silcrete heat treatment with heat treatmentof flint as it was practised much later in Europe and North America. This comparison andits implications for understanding the MSA heat treatment instigators are problematicbecause silcrete behaves very differently upon heating than flint, hence it demands a dif-ferent tempering procedure, a different investment in time and resources. In this paper,the heat-induced transformations of silcrete, the heating parameters resulting from thesetransformations, the appropriate heating environments and the procedures that bestallow silcrete heat treatment are described. Direct archaeological data on the procedureactually used for silcrete heat treatment during the South African MSA is then presented.flint; the block morphology is very common regardless raw material provenance; alloch-thonous blocks were introduced preformed. Finally, flake cores are also a very commontype of blank even if they are more frequent while considering exotic rocks. Similarly to theProto-Aurignacian, the Noaillian, lithic procurement and technological issues demark alarge supplying territory. Where Riparo Mochi was occupied during the colder period ofthe year, within a seasonal long-distance mobility strategy, that interested the whole nor-thern Tyrrhenian area.


187


AUSTRALIAN SILCRETES: GEOLOGICAL AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL VARIATION IN PROCURE-MENT AND MANUFACTURE

- DOELMAN, Trudy ([email protected]) University of Sydney

- WEBB, John ([email protected])Environmental Geoscience, Department of Ecology, Environment and Evolution, La TrobeUniversity

Silcretes in Australia can be classified by geological origin, geography and physical com-position. Each of these variables influence the physical characteristics of the source area,the overall abundance of the material, the quality (flaking properties) of the material andthe ease of extraction or accessibility; factors which directly influence the decisions peo-ple made in the past to procure and work particular stone resources. This paper presentscase studies from three distinct regions in Queensland and New South Wales examine howits geological variation impacted on its archaeological use.

189


S13-Obsidian – methodological issues of obsidian provenance studies and a new perspecti-ve of archaeological obsidian

- Dr. Robert H. Tykot ([email protected])

Organizer

Session Description

This session will look at a different application of obsidian and microcrystaline quartzfor ornamental purposes. One of the most common categories of material used to produ-ce gemstones is in fact quartz, often microcrystaline quartz varieties such as agate, opals,jaspers and many others. Presentations in this section may be reports on specific mate-rials, methods of processing the stones, gemstone workshops or historical examples ofstone jewellery. Presentations may be related to any time period from prehistory to thepresent and may be related to gemstones produced as a large scale industry, in small scaletraditional workshops or by hobbyists.


190

S13 - Obsidian – methodological issues of obsidian provenance studies and a new perspecti-ve of archaeological obsidian

THE EXPLOITATION OF OBSIDIAN IN THE CENTRAL PLATEAU OF SANTA CRUZ, ARGENTINA

- CUETO, MANUEL ([email protected])- FRANK, ARIEL D. ([email protected])- SKARBUN, FABIANA ([email protected])

Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), División Científica deArqueología, Museo de Ciencias Naturales de La Plata, UNLP. Argentina

La María Archaeological Locality is located in the Central Plateau, in the province ofSanta Cruz, Argentine Patagonia. Research in the area has shed a more light on the way oflife of the hunter-gatherer societies which initially settled in Patagonia. Furthermore, it hasprovided valuable information for the discussion of the first peopling of the Southern Coneof America. This area presents abundant lithic raw materials of very good quality for knap-ping including flint, chalcedony and silicified wood. These raw materials were commonlyused by the inhabitants of the region from the end of the Pleistocene until recent histori-cal times. As well, in the archaeological sites we have recorded the exploitation of exoticstones in low proportions. Among these, the prevalent is obsidian which comes from sour-ces located more than 200 km away. In this context, the use of a raw material whichdemands high costs of acquisition implies that this technology should be evaluated interms of social and symbolic issues.

Presently, we are interested in examining the strategies of acquisition, exploitation andconsumption of the obsidian found at the La María Archaeological Locality sites. Amongthem, the Casa del Minero 1, La Ventana, La Mesada and Cueva Túnel sites are being analy-sed. Technomorphological and functional analysis of the obsidian remains from these sitesare being carried out. In this way, itis possible to understand the way this raw material cir-culated throughout the region, the strategies affecting the production sequences, thework applied in the manufacture and design of the tools, and the activities in which theywere used. Finally, the patterns reached during the analysis, are compared and evaluatedwith the information available for nearby areas. This will enable the incorporation of thisregion into the general discussions about the exploitation of obsidian which are takingplace in Patagonian archaeology.


191


NEW STUDY OF OBSIDIAN BLADES DEBITAGE AT KAŠOV-ČEPEGOV I (BÜKK CULTURE),SLOVAKIA

(1) - ALLARD, Pierre ([email protected])(1) - KLARIC, Laurent(2) - HROMADOVA,Bibiana

1. CNRS. UNIVERSITY PARIS X- NANTERRE. UMR 7055; 2. Institute of Archaeology. SlovakAcademy of Sciences

This paper will present the result of a new study of the site of Kašov-Čepegov I in eas-tern Slovakia. Excavations at Kašov were led by Ladislav Banesz during the middle of eigh-ties. Excavations revealed one pit with hundreds obsidian wastes concentrations and theassociated decorated pottery shards belong to Bükk Culture (Bánesz 1991). The site is loca-ted near obsidian outcrops of eastern Slovakia and northern Hungary. The exploitation andtrade of obsidian is usually linked to the Bükk Culture. Previous analysis of chipped stoneindustries from various sites have shown that obsidian played a major role especially withthe existence of so-called specialized on-site workshops where blocks were preliminaryworked and partially exploited to produce blades. Thus, Kašov is always quoted in littera-ture as a site specialized on the exploitation of obsidian (Kaczanowska, M., Kozłowski, J. K.,2008). New research conducted on the lithic assemblages leads us to explore this pheno-menon of obsidian blades production with two main questions. First, did Kašov was reallya sort of workshop dedicated to obsidian blade production ? Second, did the flint-knappersuse pressure technique for blade debitage? As pressure technique is always associatedwith blade debitage on obsidian (especially for products designed to enter circulation net-work), this question seems quite critical. The detailed technological study of the concen-trations shows that the chaîne opératoire of obsidian knapping at Kašov is quite an origi-nal neolithic obsidian debitage made by punch technique (indirect percussion). The pro-duction is not so regular and shows « macro blade debitage » as well as smaller blades.Evidences of flint-knapping apprenticeship have also been detected thanks to the presen-ce of small and clumsy flake cores (very likely made by unskilled knappers). Finally, wedemonstrate that Kašov can rather be interpreted as domestic assemblage. The obsidianproduction doesn’t differ quite much from other blade productions made on limnoquart-zite or radiolarite described on other Bükk sites.

Banes, L., 1991 – Neoliticka dielnanavyrobuobsidianovejindustrie v Kasove.Vychodoslovensky Pravek III, pp. 39-68.

aczanowska, M., Kozłowski, J. K., 2008 – The Koros and the early Eastern Linear Culture inthe northern part of the Carpathian basin: a view from the perspective of lithic industries inLuca S. A. (ed.): The Carpathian Basin and its Role in the Neolithisation of the BalkanPeninsula, Acta Terrae Septemcastrensis VII, pp. 9-38


192


OBSIDIAN IN THE DANUBE BEND: USE OF A LONG DISTANCE RAW MATERIAL IN THEEPIGRAVETTIAN PERIOD

- MARKÓ, András ([email protected]) Hungarian National Museum

Some of the few obsidian sources in continental Europe are found in the CarpathianBasin: in eastern Slovakia, in north-eastern Hungary and in Transcarpathian Ukraine. In anarchaeological context, after the questionable data from the Lower Palaeolithic, the use ofthis raw material is clearly known from the last Interglacial period. In the millennia duringand after the last Würmian Pleniglacial, a large part of Central Europe was more or lessdepopulated: from the areas north of the Carpathian chains and the Alps very few tracesof the human occupation are known. In Hungary, however, a large number of huntingcamps from this period have been excavated. The best-known cluster of sites is found inthe Danube Bend, lying more than 200 km from the obsidian outcrops. The excavatedassemblages from Pilismarót, Dömös, Szob and Veroce show various strategies of rawmaterial use. The evidences of local reduction of the extra-local rocks together with thefield observations and the analysis of the artefacts of other raw materials suggest shortterm occupations and increased mobility of Palaeolithic humans living in the period imme-diately following the coldest event of the last glacial period. flint; the block morphology isvery common regardless raw material provenance; allochthonous blocks were introducedpreformed. Finally, flake cores are also a very common type of blank even if they are morefrequent while considering exotic rocks. Similarly to the Proto-Aurignacian, the Noaillian,lithic procurement and technological issues demark a large supplying territory. WhereRiparo Mochi was occupied during the colder period of the year, within a seasonal long-distance mobility strategy, that interested the whole northern Tyrrhenian area.


193


THE OBSIDIAN CHIPPED STONE INDUSTRY IN THE PREHISTORY OF BOHEMIA (CZECHREPUBLIC, CENTRAL EUROPE)

- BURGERT, PAVEL ([email protected])

Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Arts

Concerning the distribution of obsidian, Bohemia is in a peripheral area, being circa 500km from the Carpathian resources. On the basis of a revision of old assemblages and a pro-cessing of material from recent excavations assemblages from approximately 35 archaeo-logical sites have been identified, in which the obsidian was present. It is possible to findobsidian in the assemblages of Bohemia continually from the Upper Palaeolithic until theBell Beaker Culture. However, most of the sites are dated to the Late Neolithic, when itssupply culminated during the early phase of the Stroked Pottery Culture (4900-4300 cal.BCE).

The raw material was brought to the sites in the form of unworked nodules. This fact isproven by the existence of preparatory and technical flakes in the assemblages.Considering the trace amount of raw material (never more than 5% representation, evenduring the peak phase of distribution), it is impossible to assume a need for its import,which occurred for economic reasons. Still, it is possible to perceive its increase during theLate Neolithic within a context of the then large social changes (e.g., rondels, change insettlement site structures,handling of discarded materials, etc.), which accompanied thisperiod.


194


OBSIDIAN IN THE NORTHERN COAST OF PATAGONIA (SAN MATÍAS GULF, ARGENTINA)

(1) - CARDILLO, MARCELO ([email protected])(1) - ALBERTI, JIMENA ([email protected])(2) - FAVIER DUBOIS, CRISTIAN M. ([email protected])(3) - STERN, CHARLES ([email protected])

1. IMHICIHU-CONICET. Buenos Aires; 2. INCUAPA-CONICET. Facultad de Ciencias Sociales,Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; 3. Department ofGeological Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado

The study of the presence of obsidian at different archaeological sites in the northerncoast of Patagonia (Argentina) has begun to be systematized in recent years. In particular,on the coast of the San Matías Gulf (Río Negro province) it has been determined that thisraw material is mostly represented along the west coast of the gulf (Figure 1) and there hasbeen a general pattern of declining abundance from South to North. That is, on the nor-thern coast of the study area, the representation of this rock is significantly lower (Cardilloand Scartascini 2007). Different sources of origin of this rock have been detected throughgeochemical studies of recovered samples: Telsen and Sacanana in Chubut province (225and 380 linear km distant, respectively), the Somuncurá Plateau and Cantera Lolog(Neuquén province), the latter located 560 linear km from the study area (FavierDubois etal. 2009). Through the implementation of new geochemical analyses a sample from a newsource has been detected on the west coast of the gulf. This sample comes from PortadaCovunco in Neuquén province, 500 linear km away (Stern et al. 2012). This finding is of par-ticular importance since it is the first time that this type of obsidian, that has a visually dis-tinctive red and black banding and is also found on the Pacific Coast in Chile, is found onthe Atlantic coast of Patagonia. In this paper, we characterize the obsidian types present atthe coast of the San Matías Gulf, we perform a techo-morphological analyses of the reco-vered artifacts, and we make comparisons with archaeological sites of the northern coastof Chubut (central Patagonia) to detect, in different parts of the coast, samples that comefrom the same sources. By this means we hope to better evaluate trends in the circulationand use of this raw material at San Matías Gulf during the Middle and Late Holocene.


195


PROVENANCING OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL OBSIDIANS FROM PREHISTORIC ROMANIA: THECURRENT STATE OF RESEARCH

- BONSALL, Clive ([email protected])Archaeology, Old Medical School, Teviot Place

- BORONEANȚ, Adina ([email protected])Romanian Academy Institute of Archaeology, Bucharest

This paper reviews the current state of research on the exploitation and exchange ofobsidian by prehistoric communities in Southeast Europe. Non-destructive pXRF analysisof obsidian artefacts from seven Epipalaeolithic, Neolithic and Eneolithic sites in Romaniashows that some sites have obsidian from more than one source. We attempt to identifythe primary sources and discuss the procurement strategies employed.


196


CHARACTERISTICS OF ROCK MICRO-TEXTURE OF OBSIDIAN FOR SOME OBSIDIANSOURCES ON THE ISLANDS OF JAPAN

- WADA, Keiji ([email protected])Hokkaido University of Education

- SANO, Kyohei ([email protected])Shirataki-Geopark Promotion Department, Engaru, Japan

- GOTO, Yoshihiko ([email protected])Muroran Institute of Technology, Muroran, Japan

Obsidian is one of the most important rocks in the study of prehistoric human activity.Studies of obsidian distribution networks in prehistoric societies have been conductedthrough source identification of artifacts on the basis of obsidian chemical composition.Wada et al. (2014) revealed the geological and petrological features of obsidian sources inHokkaido, northern Japan, having been characterized by two types of determination of thechemical compositions of obsidian (whole-rock and glass).

However, detailed analyses of rock micro-texture of obsidian are hardly ever observed.To understand the obsidian formation process it is important to describe the micro-textu-re of various types of obsidian. We examined characteristics of petrological description ofobsidian from Shirataki (northern Hokkaido), Rishiri (eastern Hokkaido), Kozushima (one ofthe Izu islands south of Tokyo), and Shinshu (Nagano prefecture) obsidian sources inJapan. The difference in phenocryst content, microlite texture and number density,groundmass texture, and glass composition are recognized among these obsidians, sho-wing the diversity of rock texture; Shirataki obsidian has no phenocrysts and abundantmagnetite microlites showing a clear jet-black luster, Rishiri obsidian has many phe-nocrysts and microlites, Kozushima obsidian has biotite phenocrysts, and Shinshu obsidianhas no phenocrysts and rare microlites showing a high degree of transparency.

Heat experiments were performed on obsidian in an electric furnace to transform theperlite into a form like pumice in vitreosity, because the remaining water in obsidian beco-mes gas and makes air bubbles by heating. We examined the foaming temperature of theobsidians from different sources, and the relations between its foaming temperature andthe water content of the obsidians. In addition, the heating temperature and the heatingtime were varied and the resulting differences in foaming form of the perlite were exami-ned. Finally, relations between foaming process of the obsidians and the internal structu-re of the perlite were considered through microscopicanalysis of the perlite.


197


OBSIDIAN PROVENANCE DURING THE TRANSITION TO FOOD PRODUCTION IN ANTOFA-GASTA DE LA SIERRA (SOUTHERN ARGENTINEAN PUNA, SOUTH-CENTRAL ANDES),4500-1100 BP

(1) - HOCSMAN, Salomón ([email protected])(2) - ESCOLA, Patricia Susana ([email protected])(1) - BABOT, María del Pilar ([email protected])

1. Instituto Superior de Estudios Sociales, San Miguel de Tucuman, Tucuman, Argentina; 2. Escuela de Arqueología, San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca, Catamarca, Argentina

This study attempts to produce a close understanding of obsidian procurement and dis-tribution during the transition from hunter-gatherer to agro-pastoralist societies (ca.4500-1100 BP) in Southern Argentinean Puna. Obsidian regional circulation in a high elevationdesert environment, emphasizing differential distribution and use of this raw material, isdiscussed. Additionally, this obsidian research supports the occurrence of exchange net-works based on use of different extra-regional obsidian sources located in NorthernArgentinean Puna.

The Argentinean Puna is a natural continuation of the Peruvian–Bolivian high mountainplateau and is part of the Atacama Puna. From an environmental point of view, the Punais a high desert biome characterized by an arid and cold climate, intense solar radiationdue to the altitude, an ample day and night thermal range, poor summer rains, low atmos-pheric pressure and marked seasonality. For this study, non-destructive elemental analy-sis of obsidian artifacts was conducted using two different X-ray fluorescence spectrome-ters (ED-XRF).

All obsidian samples (112) come from archaeological sites, locatedin the ArgentineanPuna at the Antofagasta de la Sierra Basin (Catamarca, Argentina), with stratified archaeo-logical remains. Sixty obsidian samples are, on one hand, from four rock-shelters which areresidential bases with late hunter-gatherer occupations dated to ca. 4500-3000 BP. On theother hand, fifty-two obsidian samples come from two open air sites which also are resi-dential bases but with consolidated agro-pastoral contexts dated to ca.2100-1100 BP. Theresults obtained indicate differential patterns of procurement and use of obsidian duringthe time span considered. First, between 4500-3000 BP, all five regional obsidian sourceswere used by hunter-gatherers in transition to food production but with differential useintensity and showing a preferential utilization of the northern regional sources, 60 to 100km distance from the sites. Second, between 2100-1100 BP, a different pattern in the useof the different types of obsidian is clearly noted. Specifically, the data show that one ofthe northern sources was the most utilized, with small proportions of obsidian supplied bytwo sources located 75 km south and 30 km east of the sites. Third, both late hunter-gathe-rer and agro-pastoralist societies maintained extra-regional contacts evidenced by the pre-sence of obsidian from far-distant sources between 200 and 360 km away.

Finally, the mobility, territoriality and exchange developed by humans in high elevationdesert environments are considered.

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