Reviewing the Role of Experimentation in Reconstructing Paleoamerican Lithic Technologies

Jennings, Thomas A.; Smallwood, Ashley M.; Pevny, Charlotte D.

doi:10.1080/20555563.2020.1848269

Cited by 19 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…The use of standardized modern materials as cutting substrates is common and has also included rope, plastic tubing and clay (e.g., Key, Young, et al, 2018). Future experiments can further investigate the edge curvature and cutting efficiency on more 'actualistic' materials (Eren & Lycett, 2016;Jennings et al, 2021) and compare those results with the ones presented in this study.…”

Section: Cutting Substratementioning

confidence: 91%

Experimental assessment of plan‐view and profile‐view gross‐edge curvature on stone flake slicing efficiency

et al. 2022

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Separating two or more aspects of an object via cutting was likely an important factor in the origin and evolution of flaked stone technology. In recent years experiments have demonstrated that several stone tool attributes can influence different kinds of cutting behaviour: slicing, cleaving, scraping, sawing, drilling, piercing and abrading. Here we experimentally assessed the role of stone flake plan‐ and profile‐view gross‐edge curvature in a controlled slicing task. We also assessed the role of edge length. A total of 21 participants, using 252 stone flakes with distinct gross‐edge curvatures and edge lengths, were asked to cut through a standardized substrate, and their efficiency in the task was measured over time. Flakes with longer edge lengths increased the efficiency of the cutting task, but increasing either plan‐ or profile‐view edge curvature decreased the efficiency of the cutting task. These results have implications for the emergence of particular tool forms or reduction sequences throughout the Pleistocene, and may in part explain why certain forms were favoured by Paleolithic people, leading to their convergent evolution or widespread transmission.

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Section: Cutting Substratementioning

confidence: 91%

Experimental assessment of plan‐view and profile‐view gross‐edge curvature on stone flake slicing efficiency

et al. 2022

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“…Researchers were particularly keen to better conceptualize the production and possible uses of fluting, as the contrast between fluted and nonfluted points was thought to be crucial. These knapping attempts were never strictly experiments in the truest sense: they did not seek to control variables and falsify a null hypothesis, but instead hoped to simply try different methods and to record successes and failures (Eren et al, 2016;Jennings, Smallwood, & Pevny, 2021). While they at times offered direct comparisons to archaeological specimens, discussed manufacturing stages, and implied certain considerations of the broader hunter-gatherer economy, explicit consideration of this was typically minimal.…”

Section: Replicating Folsommentioning

confidence: 99%

A History of Lithic Technological Studies in the Paleoindian Archaeology in the United States of America

Potter¹,

Sellet²

2023

Rev. Mus. Antrop.

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Lithic analyses have long been at the core of Paleoindian studies in the United States, but despite crucial changes in method and orientation, the earliest typological approaches continue to exert a strong influence on archaeologists’ understanding of Paleoindian assemblages. This chapter argues against these normative approaches by advocating in favor of dynamic perspectives on human behavior. It does so by outlining the historical contributions of technological studies to the discipline, from the early European influences to the more holistic frameworks used today. Our discussion underscores three fundamental phases of development, starting with key experimental work on the Folsom point in the mid-twentieth century. This led to an increased focus on the technological aspects of tool production and use. The second phase is heavily influenced by the development of processual archaeology, which had a profound effect on the conceptualization of lithic assemblages. It generated a wealth of systems-oriented approaches focused on the economy of lithic raw materials. Finally, and most recently, the boom in cultural ecological studies has again reshaped this landscape by creating modes of analysis that understand lithic technology as a strategic adaptation rather than a cultural fossil. To integrate these developments within the broader field of Paleoindian studies, we consider seminal papers and their role in heralding new orientations, alongside data illustrating these trends in publication.

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“…Some suggest that flutes may have increased animal bloodletting after penetration (Cook 1928:40). Recent experimental studies have tested durability hypotheses (for review, see Jennings et al 2021). Snyder (2017) shows that partially fluted Clovis points are more durable than fully fluted Folsom and unfluted Midland points, although more work is needed to determine the role of other factors such as point size and shape differences.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using 3D Models to Understand the Changing Role of Fluting in Paleoindian Point Technology from Clovis to Dalton

et al. 2022

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Fluting is a technological and morphological hallmark of some of the most iconic North American Paleoindian stone points. Through decades of detailed artifact analyses and replication experiments, archaeologists have spent considerable effort reconstructing how flute removals were achieved, and they have explored possible explanations of why fluting was such an important aspect of early point technologies. However, the end of fluting has been less thoroughly researched. In southern North America, fluting is recognized as a diagnostic characteristic of Clovis points dating to approximately 13,000 cal yr BP, the earliest widespread use of fluting. One thousand years later, fluting occurs more variably in Dalton and is no longer useful as a diagnostic indicator. How did fluting change, and why did point makers eventually abandon fluting? In this article, we use traditional 2D measurements, geometric morphometric (GM) analysis of 3D models, and 2D GM of flute cross sections to compare Clovis and Dalton point flute and basal morphologies. The significant differences observed show that fluting in Clovis was highly standardized, suggesting that fluting may have functioned to improve projectile durability. Because Dalton points were used increasingly as knives and other types of tools, maximizing projectile functionality became less important. We propose that fluting in Dalton is a vestigial technological trait retained beyond its original functional usefulness.

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Reviewing the Role of Experimentation in Reconstructing Paleoamerican Lithic Technologies

Cited by 19 publications

References 85 publications

Experimental assessment of plan‐view and profile‐view gross‐edge curvature on stone flake slicing efficiency

Experimental assessment of plan‐view and profile‐view gross‐edge curvature on stone flake slicing efficiency

A History of Lithic Technological Studies in the Paleoindian Archaeology in the United States of America

Using 3D Models to Understand the Changing Role of Fluting in Paleoindian Point Technology from Clovis to Dalton

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