An Experimental Approach to Degrees of Rounding Among Lithic Artifacts

Bustos‐Pérez, Guillermo; Díaz, Sara Pérez; Baena, Javier

doi:10.1007/s10816-018-9409-8

Cited by 15 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Despite the lower resolution of the non-destructive approach, we have filled the gap between petrographic and nondestructive characterisation using a solid geoarchaeological procedure. An increase in the number of quartzites analysed, the application of data mining and machine learning software on micro-pictures or even better recognition of weathering effects could improve the presented methodology (Bustos-Pérez et al 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From petrographic analysis to stereomicroscopic characterisation: a geoarchaeological approach to identify quartzite artefacts in the Cantabrian Region

Prieto

Yusta

Arrizabalaga

2020

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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Several isolated studies have tried to understand quartzite from an archaeological perspective by applying two different methodological approaches. The first one is based on non-destructive characterisation, aiming to understand human procurement and management of quartzite, without solid geoarchaeological criteria. The second characterised the material from archaeological sites using only petrographic or geochemical perspectives of a limited sample. Currently, both perspectives are unconnected, creating a methodological gap that needs to be solved to study the procurement and management of quartzite in greater depth. The present study, mainly methodological, will explore the gap between petrographic analysis and non-destructive characterisation. Doing so, we could fill this vacuum of information and generate a solid geoarchaeological basis to characterise not only a sample but complete assemblages. To this end, we analyse the lithic assemblages at El Arteu and El Habario, two Middle-Palaeolithic sites in the Cantabrian Region, northern Spain. We summarise the main results derived from petrographic analysis, but especially we will focus on non-destructive criteria to characterise the lithic surfaces of archaeological quartzite using stereoscope microscopy. This process allows us to understand the complete assemblage but also, through technological characterisation, understand the management of different quartzite petrogenetic types in both sites.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From petrographic analysis to stereomicroscopic characterisation: a geoarchaeological approach to identify quartzite artefacts in the Cantabrian Region

Prieto

Yusta

Arrizabalaga

2020

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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“…The large bone tools are also more abraded than the large stone tools (S4 Table in S1 File ). We know that abrasion on bone develops much more rapidly than on flint [ 49 , 50 ]. Comparisons in morphology and typology of large tools of bone ( Table 4 ) and of stone ( Table 5 ) show evident similarities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Elephant bones for the Middle Pleistocene toolmaker

et al. 2021

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The use of bone as raw material for implements is documented since the Early Pleistocene. Throughout the Early and Middle Pleistocene bone tool shaping was done by percussion flaking, the same technique used for knapping stone artifacts, although bone shaping was rare compared to stone tool flaking. Until recently the generally accepted idea was that early bone technology was essentially immediate and expedient, based on single-stage operations, using available bone fragments of large to medium size animals. Only Upper Paleolithic bone tools would involve several stages of manufacture with clear evidence of primary flaking or breaking of bone to produce the kind of fragments required for different kinds of tools. Our technological and taphonomic analysis of the bone assemblage of Castel di Guido, a Middle Pleistocene site in Italy, now dated by 40Ar/39Ar to about 400 ka, shows that this general idea is inexact. In spite of the fact that the number of bone bifaces at the site had been largely overestimated in previous publications, the number of verified, human-made bone tools is 98. This is the highest number of flaked bone tools made by pre-modern hominids published so far. Moreover the Castel di Guido bone assemblage is characterized by systematic production of standardized blanks (elephant diaphysis fragments) and clear diversity of tool types. Bone smoothers and intermediate pieces prove that some features of Aurignacian technology have roots that go beyond the late Mousterian, back to the Middle Pleistocene. Clearly the Castel di Guido hominids had done the first step in the process of increasing complexity of bone technology. We discuss the reasons why this innovation was not developed. The analysis of the lithic industry is done for comparison with the bone industry.

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“…Artefact edge roundness is a sensitive indicator of fluvial disturbance (Bustos-Pérez et al, 2019;de la Torre and Wehr, 2018;Petraglia and Potts, 1994;Shea, 1999).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Site formation processes at Cenjiawan (Nihewan Basin, North China): a case study on the structure of the Early Pleistocene archaeological record in lakeshore environments

DONGDONG

Pei

Xie

et al. 2022

J Quaternary Science

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Lakeshore environments offer an excellent opportunity to explore how early humans adapted to changing landscapes and environments. The Nihewan fluviolacustrine sequence in North China contains one of the densest concentration of Early Pleistocene Palaeolithic sites out of Africa. Among these, the Cenjiawan site, dated at 1.1 Ma, draws attention due to the large number of stone tool refits. We present here Cenjiawan´s sedimentary context, artefact spatial patterns, size distribution and taphonomic features, which are complemented by an experimental programme to better understand archaeological debitage size patterns, thus enabling a detailed analysis of formation processes at the site. The Cenjiawan assemblage is also interpreted in the light of its geographic and geological context, where a synsedimentary fault induced a minor topographic relief across the lacustrine lakeshore. This resulted in a shallow water setting in the down-thrown hanging wall of the fault compartment, and a fluvial environment in the uplifted footwall. Our results indicate that Cenjiawan, situated in the hanging wall of the fault, underwent minimal disturbance, constituting a remarkable example of optimal preservation of archaeological assemblages in Early Pleistocene lakeshore environments.

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An Experimental Approach to Degrees of Rounding Among Lithic Artifacts

Cited by 15 publications

References 20 publications

From petrographic analysis to stereomicroscopic characterisation: a geoarchaeological approach to identify quartzite artefacts in the Cantabrian Region

From petrographic analysis to stereomicroscopic characterisation: a geoarchaeological approach to identify quartzite artefacts in the Cantabrian Region

Elephant bones for the Middle Pleistocene toolmaker

Site formation processes at Cenjiawan (Nihewan Basin, North China): a case study on the structure of the Early Pleistocene archaeological record in lakeshore environments

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