Handaxe‐Hurling Hominids: An Unlikely Story

Whittaker, John C.; McCall, Grant S.

doi:10.1086/322547

Cited by 35 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Paleolithic contexts earlier than 250 Ka have thus far produced no clear examples of projectile weapon armatures. Claims that particular Early Paleolithic stone tools, such as Acheulean handaxes [26,112] and spheroids [32] may have been dedicated projectile weapons are not supported by experimental studies [125,159].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The origins of lithic projectile point technology: evidence from Africa, the Levant, and Europe

Shea

2006

Journal of Archaeological Science

373

283

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The origins of lithic projectile point technology: evidence from Africa, the Levant, and Europe

Shea

2006

Journal of Archaeological Science

373

283

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“…The rock was not only tiresome because of its weight, but it was ineffective in flight, producing drastically lower distances than the handaxes. Whittaker and McCall (2001) present several arguments in opposition to the lethal projectile hypothesis. Their arguments focus on reported inaccuracies in the technique and therefore on the large number of throws necessary to take down an animal.…”

Section: The Expeninentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stones of Contention: The Acheulean Handaxe Lethal Projectile Controversy

Samson

2006

Lithic Technology

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“…They have continued to receive attention by virtue of their striking formal characteristics and archaeological patterning. There has been a surge in the scholarship on handaxes in the last decade (Grosman et al 2008;Kohn and Mithen 1999;McCall and Whittaker 2007;McNabb et al 2004;McPherron 2000;Nowell and Chang 2009;Roberts and Parfitt 1999;Stout 2002;Whittaker and McCall 2001), and handaxes also have been the subject of the organizational approach (Ashton and White 2003;Binford 1987).…”

Section: Learning About the Technological Properties Of Stone Tools-pmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnoarchaeology and the Organization of Lithic Technology

McCall

2012

J Archaeol Res

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Although the modern production and use of stone tools is rare, ethnoarchaeological research on this subject has provided important perspectives on methodological approaches to archaeological lithic analysis. Recent ethnoarchaeological research on lithics frequently takes the form of ''cautionary tales,'' warning against the primacy of functional variables most commonly invoked by lithic analysts. I argue that lithic ethnoarchaeology would benefit from a comparative organizational framework for explaining variation in patterns of stone tool use that takes into account the predictability and redundancy of the location and timing of technological activities. Understanding the underlying causes of modern patterns of stone tool use, in turn, offers a framework for exploring sources of lithic technological variation in the archaeological record. I also argue that technological analytical perspectives, such as the chaîne opératoire and sequence of reduction approaches, can benefit from the insights gained through lithic ethnoarchaeological research, helping us define important analytical concepts and identify appropriate units of analysis.

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Handaxe‐Hurling Hominids: An Unlikely Story

Cited by 35 publications

References 17 publications

The origins of lithic projectile point technology: evidence from Africa, the Levant, and Europe

The origins of lithic projectile point technology: evidence from Africa, the Levant, and Europe

Stones of Contention: The Acheulean Handaxe Lethal Projectile Controversy

Ethnoarchaeology and the Organization of Lithic Technology

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