A pilot study of “black chert” sourcing and implications for assessing hunter-gatherer mobility strategies in Northern England

Evans, Adrian; Wolframm, Y. B.; Donahue, Randolph E.; Lovis, William A.

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2007.03.007

Cited by 27 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…From this we can learn about the formation and depositional contexts of various lithic raw materials so as to begin to define specific source areas (Leudtke, 1992:39). The use of geochemical and mineralogical approaches to characterize the elemental and mineralogical composition of lithic materials has gained momentum in archaeology over the last several decades (e.g., Eerkens et al, 2007;Evans et al, 2007;Hull et al, 2008;Hess, 1996;Hoard et al, 1992Hoard et al, , 1993Jarvis, 1988;Leudtke, 1978Leudtke, , 1979Morrow et al, 1992;Malyk-Selivanova et al, 1998;Norman et al, 1989;Speilbauer, 1984). Those approaches most commonly used in chert sourcing studies are X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA), and inductively coupled plasma (ICP).…”

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, it is now being more widely adopted given its recent success in some preliminary studies (e.g., Evans et al, 2007). For ICP-MS analysis, samples are dissolved using a variety of acid-digestion techniques and the solutions are introduced to the plasma, where elements are ionized (Andrefsky, 1998:44;Odell, 2004:40).…”

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…ICP-MS requires bulk samples, and therefore the sample is completely consumed since it must be ground up and dissolved in solution prior to analysis. Evans et al (2007) recently used ICP-AES, ICP-MS, and laser ablation ICP-MS (LA-ICP-MS) to chemically determine the sources of four black cherts from northern England. Four samples, two from the southern Pennines and two from the northern Pennines, were tested to determine the trace element concentrations of these cherts.…”

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The results indicate that southern and northern cherts can be chemically distinguished from one another. The two southern chert samples are chemically distinct from one another, while the northern samples derive from a single continuous outcrop of chert (Evans et al, 2007(Evans et al, :2167. The authors also tested a small number of archaeological specimens and were able to successfully attribute them to the established source areas, proving unequivocally that local populations were exploiting these nearby toolstone sources.…”

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similarly, these methods can overinflate actual patterns of variability, since diversely colored toolstones deriving from the same deposit will be treated as different based on this attribute state (e.g., Milne, 1999Milne, , 2003. Geochemical techniques provide a level of precision unparalleled in comparison to visual methods, since they can unequivocally link raw toolstone samples and source areas to finished artifacts based on unique geochemical fingerprints (e.g., Evans et al, 2007;Hess, 1996;Hood 1992;Malyk-Selivanova et al, 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Combining visual and geochemical analyses to source chert on Southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada

2009

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A combined methodological approach using visual and geochemical methods is introduced and preliminary results of a study illustrating its effectiveness to determine chert source provenance are presented. This study focuses on lithic debitage and raw chert samples collected from the interior of southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada. Chert is abundant throughout this region yet it occurs as small, scattered surface nodules that are highly variable in color. Prior to this study, little was known about the provenance of this local toolstone and whether it derived from local outcrops, glacial till sheets, or both. Given the pronounced variability exhibited by this chert, we use individual attribute analysis and petrography to impose some kind of analytical order upon an otherwise random aggregation of rocks. Thereafter, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and secondary ion mass spectrometry are used to test the validity of these color categories to determine from how many geochemically distinct sources they derive. Using a standard that measures Al to a ratio of Ga/Zr, our results indicate that all of the raw chert samples derive from a single local source, while the debitage derives from four different sources, including the one that is local. We are confident that this combined methodological approach can be applied in other regions where chert variability is pronounced and source provenance is unknown.

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Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sourcing Chert: Visual Vs Geochemical and Mineralogical Appmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Combining visual and geochemical analyses to source chert on Southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada

2009

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Geochemical Sourcing of Flint Artifacts from Western Belgium and the German Rhineland: Testing Hypotheses on Gravettian Period Mobility and Raw Material Economy

Moreau

Brandl

Filzmoser³

et al. 2016

Geoarchaeology

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Identifying the geological and geographical origin of lithic raw materials is critical to effectively address prehistoric forager raw material economies and mobility strategies. Currently, Paleolithic archaeology in Belgium lacks a systematic sourcing strategy to effectively substantiate detailed interpretations of prehistoric hunter‐gatherer behavioral change across time and space. This pilot study evaluates the potential to “fingerprint” flint from the Mons Basin, western Belgium, using the laser ablation‐inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectrometry (LA‐ICP‐MS) technique and a multivariate statistical analysis of 87 geological samples and 39 Gravettian period chipped stone artifacts. We reappraise two hypotheses raised by previous scholars based on visual raw material identification: (1) the Gravettian occupants of Maisières‐Canal supplied themselves with “black flint” from one single source; (2) the sites Rhens and Koblenz‐Metternich yielded artifacts indicative of long‐distance transfer of western Belgian flint into the German Rhineland, ca. 260 km from the primary source area. Our results demonstrate the validity of LA‐ICP‐MS data with flint and compositional data analysis for fingerprinting discrete geological formations from the Mons Basin. We suggest multiple source provisioning for Maisières‐Canal. Geochemical characterization of other potential flint sources is required to validate the long‐distance transfer hypothesis of western Belgian “black flint” into the German Rhineland.

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Local and Nonlocal Procurement of Raw Material in Amud Cave, Israel: The Complex Mobility of Late Middle Paleolithic Groups

et al. 2016

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Studying the distribution of lithic raw materials around prehistoric sites, their procurement, transport, and use, are important for understanding organizational decisions of hunter-gatherers. Here we examine lithic technological organization in two stratigraphic subunits B4 and B1 (dated ß 68 and ß 55 ka, respectively) at the Neanderthal site of Amud Cave. The lithic assemblages are made exclusively of flint. An ArcGIS model is used to create a predictive model for daily exploitation territories (DETs) around the site. Using a battery of statistical methods (ANOVA, principal component analysis, and cluster analysis), we link flint visual types with geochemical characteristics (obtained through inductively coupled plasma (ICP) mass spectrometry and ICP atomic emission spectrometry) of both geological and archaeological flints. Results indicate that local materials are abundant in both subunits. Nonlocal raw materials (from areas beyond the modeled DET) amount to 30-40% across all technological categories, suggesting long-distance transport. The technological patterns of the nonlocal raw material differ between the two subunits. Pending results of additional work, we suggest that nonlocal flint types were likely obtained from distances >60 km. Mobility patterns inferred from this study suggest that Amud Cave was a focal location within its settlement system during both occupation periods, but the manner of site use and mobility patterns changed through time. C 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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A pilot study of “black chert” sourcing and implications for assessing hunter-gatherer mobility strategies in Northern England

Cited by 27 publications

References 20 publications

Combining visual and geochemical analyses to source chert on Southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada

Combining visual and geochemical analyses to source chert on Southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada

Geochemical Sourcing of Flint Artifacts from Western Belgium and the German Rhineland: Testing Hypotheses on Gravettian Period Mobility and Raw Material Economy

Local and Nonlocal Procurement of Raw Material in Amud Cave, Israel: The Complex Mobility of Late Middle Paleolithic Groups

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