Macro-lithic tools

Natural, technical and social factors led to the use of a wide range of rocks for the production of macrolithic artifacts during the later prehistory. In the case of some artifact types, such as the grinding stones, rocks with very different petrographic qualities appear. Analysis of the material behavior, as developed by material sciences, provides a tool which allows the translation of these petrographic characteristics into mechanical properties. Experiments with a group of rocks subjected to different forms of abrasion in industrial machines allow an evaluation of the adjustment between the mechanical properties of the rock and the functions for which they were chosen by prehistoric societies. Finally, the understanding of the mechanical properties of the raw materials together with their forms of exploitation, distribution and use allows the designation of social and economic meaning to the production systems linked to the macrolithic tools.

This volume is a synthesis of the management systems of the macrolithic tools from three key Square Mouthed Pottery Culture sites located in Northeastern Italy. The tools were examined with an integrated approach that involves morphology, technology, use-wear analysis and experiments. The stone assemblages are classified into the following categories: tools for grinding, tools for abrading/polishing, tools for cutting, percussion tools and multifunctional implements. The raw materials include local, regional and allocthonous rocks. Local and regional rocks were exploited with attention to the morphology and size of the blocks; only querns and handstones present working traces via pecking and the rejuvenation of the active surface. More complex, and probably only partially done locally, was the production by flaking, pecking, polishing and periodic resharpening of the axe blades made of allocthonous greenstones. The results of the use-wear analysis and experiments show a wide range of substances used for food and craft tasks, according to the consolidation of the productive economy.

Macro-lithic tools are among the most abundant artefact categories in the archaeological record. They are made from a wide range of rocks, worked through various techniques and served to carry out a large array of tasks, beginning in the Palaeolithic and continuing to early historic times. Despite their relevance to the economic and social organisation of past societies, it is only recently that archaeologists have begun to develop specific research methodologies for the study of macro-lithic artefacts. One aspect that deserves increasing attention is the description and analysis of traces on stone surfaces specific to production, maintenance and use. The aim of this paper is to compare the different approaches to functional analyses of macro-lithic tools and to achieve a consensus about terms and analytical categories. Issues discussed include the factors governing the formation of wear traces, the manifestation of wear on surfaces of various rock types, comparisons between macroscopic and microscopic approaches and the possibilities for photographically documenting observations. The final objective is to standardize methods for functional analyses, thereby facilitating a better technological understanding of the means of production used by pre-industrial societies.

Ground Stone Tools from PPNA Cyprus: Ayios Tychonas Klimonas

This study analyzes and compares macro-lithic tool assemblages, dating to the PPNA, from several sites of the Near East. It also examines the macro-lithic tools from Ayios-Tychonas Klimonas, analyses the technology and everyday life activities at this site, and contextualizes this site within the PPNA. This analysis explores existing correlations between specific types of macro-lithic tools and other elements of the technological system, for example, the use raw materials, the context of use, and the final deposition of tools. A primary functional analysis is later performed to define the function of tools. Such an approach, however, is incomplete unless it reconstructs the cycles of the tools utility, taking into account the functions for which the tools were originally made, their possible reuse, and their final disposal or deposition. This exploration shows the ‘chaînes opératoires’ of transformation and re-use within which the tools were integrated. Lastly, it “reinserts” the tools in their archaeological context of discovery, and examines them within that final context of deposition or discard and offers an additional layer of analysis and interest. General initial results discuss the status of the tools within the tool management system of the PPNA. The analysis of adjacent activities, other than grinding grain, allows people to understand the equipment used at Klimonas from a social perspective and sheds light onto the social organisation of the community which occupied this site. With this approach, this study will contribute to knowledge of stone tools and understanding of their status in the lives of the first farmers of Cyprus, within a PPNA context.

The data from recent excavations in the Oman peninsula, especially in the Ja’alan and the Jebel Qara (Sultanate of
Oman) enable us better to refine certain cultural entities and to define new ones, to help determine the chronology of a part of the late prehistory of south-eastern Arabia. To begin with, the “empty quarter of the early Holocene” is half
full: “Fasad facies” characterizes one of the earliest Holocene hunter-gatherers occupation in Oman (8000–7500 BC).
Today we possess data from several stratified sites, enabling definition of two quite distinct Neolithic techno-facies,
which appear in succession: the trihedral points facies between 6500 and 4500 BC, and the facies of  the points with diamond-shaped section between 4500 and about 3800–3700 BC.

El objetivo de esta publicación es desarrollar nuevas posibilitades de análisis socio-económicas en la arqueología a partir de uno de los poblados prehistóricos más notables de la península Ibérica. Para lograrlo, se propone una teoría económica para la arqueología y se presenta un nuevo método para el estudio de los instrumentos de trabajo macrolíticos. Sobre esta base se analizan los miles de artefactos líticos recuperados dentro del yacimiento desde el punto de vista de la procedencia de las materias primeras, los procesos de producción de los instrumentos de trabajo, su función y valor económico, así como la distribución temporal y espacial de los medios de producción dentro del poblado. Finalmente, se ubican los resultados obtenidos en un contexto más general y se proponen diferentes modelos de desarrollo socio-económico para los grupos arqueológicos de Los Millares, El Argar y Post-argar.

Macro-lithic tools are among the most abundant artefact categories in the archaeological record. They are made from a wide range of rocks, worked through various techniques and served to carry out a large array of tasks, beginning in the Palaeolithic and continuing to early historic times. Despite their relevance to the economic and social organisation of past societies, it is only recently that archaeologists have begun to develop specific research methodologies for the study of macro-lithic artefacts. One aspect that deserves increasing attention is the description and analysis of traces on stone surfaces specific to production, maintenance and use. The aim of this paper is to compare the different approaches to functional analyses of macro-lithic tools and to achieve a consensus about terms and analytical categories. Issues discussed include the factors governing the formation of wear traces, the manifestation of wear on surfaces of various rock types, comparisons between macroscopic and microscopic approaches and the possibilities for photographically documenting observations. The final objective is to standardize methods for functional analyses, thereby facilitating a better technological understanding of the means of production used by pre-industrial societies.

The work is focused on the distribution of macrolithic artefacts (MA) dated to the Middle Chalcolithic from the Güvercinkayası site. The site is uniquely located on a rhyolite rock, which protects it from the south. At least four main construction phases have been detected. From the third phase on, a spatial division of the settlement can be observed with two basic parts, the upper plateau and the lower terrace, which are divided by a defensive system consisting of a massive wall and two tower-like structures. MA go through “life cycles” similar to those of other artefacts, including numerous secondary uses. Our analyses have been focused on the monitoring of the occurrences of various categories of MA. Perhaps the most important discovery based on the occurrence of MA is an increased concentration of production activities connected, not exclusively, with kitchen practices and storage activities in the area of the upper plateau. The exceptional position of this part of the settlement might be confirmed by an increased occurrence of stone spheres, which could have served as weapons, which could be evidence of attacks by other communities.

Klaus Gerken, Studien zur jung- und spätpaläolithischen sowie mesolithischen Besiedlung zwischen Wümme und Oste. Mit Beiträgen von Holger Freund und Ulrich Staesche. Archäologische Berichte des Landkreises Rotenburg (Wümme) 9/2001. Kommissionsverlag Isensee Verlag. Oldenburg 2001. ISBN 0946-8471. 360 S., zahlreiche Tab., 40 Abb., 139 Tafeln, 1 Kartenbeilage ca. 42 x 70 cm. Euro 21,00.

New electron micro-probe analysis of residues found on the median 'stitched-seams' of Scandinavian flint daggers dating to the late Neolithic are presented and linked to previous work on the mode of production of this artefact type. Analysis suggests that previous interpretation of the production sequence requires revision with consequences for the understanding of social organization of craft production in Southern Scandinavia.

Pour consulter l'article intégral : http://journals.openedition.org/tc/10786

Les cavités artificielles hypogées sont présentes dans plusieurs régions de Méditerranée occidentale à la fin du Néolithique. Leur architecture pouvant être spécifique et leur nombre important sur certains territoires interrogent quant à leur développement et aux techniques mises en place dans leur élaboration. Plusieurs outils utilisés au cours des différentes phases de creusement de ces architectures souterraines sont ainsi connus. Ils sont présents dans divers contextes aussi bien en Sardaigne que dans le Sud de la France. Ces objets, découverts in situ, ne sont pas abandonnés dans ceux-ci mais bien déposés sous des formes particulières. Le mobilier de creusement est un outillage simple issu d’une chaîne opératoire de façonnage opportuniste. La présence de dépôts, dans les cavités artificielles, d’instruments utilisés pour les creuser n’est pas anodine et revêt sans doute différentes significations. Plusieurs interprétations ont été proposées dans la littérature et ce généralement en fonction des cas, allant du dépôt relatif aux défunts au dépôt collectif lié à l’architecture.
Nous proposons donc une analyse comparative de cette pratique grâce à l’étude de plusieurs sites et types de données afin d’offrir une vision d’ensemble de ce phénomène et d’interroger la valeur symbolique de cet acte. Le dépôt d’outils dans les hypogées ayant été utilisés dans le creusement de ceux-ci interpelle en ce qui concerne leur phase de creusement et de mise en place, et quant à l’importance de la représentation symbolique au sein du groupe que la construction de tels monuments devait porter. Le creusement des hypogées nécessite un effort collectif notable, traduit sans doute par une organisation importante des groupes humains. Le dépôt des outils utilisés au cours de cette activité collective, lors de laquelle un grand nombre de personnes appartenant au groupe (voire des personnes venant de l’extérieur) participent, peut être associé à la volonté, le désir, de représenter cet aspect du collectif. Il scelle un moment majeur pour la communauté au cours duquel des efforts importants sont fournis par celle-ci.

The study includes an overview of the so-called "archers wrist-guards" of the Balearic Islands. The functional and contextual analysis suggests that these macro-lithic stone tools were probably used as sharpening stones (whetstones), as has also been observed in other Mediterranean regions and had nothing to do with archery.

Abstract

Having worked on my master thesis on the macro-lithic tools from the Neolithic sites of the central part of Serbia or so-called Middle Morava valley, we noticed that there is not enough interest in this archaeological category in the central Balkans. The short research tradition and the small number of researchers explains the limited amount of published research results. This situation limits the implementation of new methodological approaches, such as those developed in the other parts of southern and central Europe, and impedes the advance of the archaeological knowledge on prehistoric economies.
In order to overcome these problems, we have examined 2174 macro-lithic tools from the 12 Neolithic settlements (c. 5900 - 4650/4600 BC cal) from the Central Balkans. This material has been scrutinised from a geological, morpho-technical and functional perspective, oriented towards the scientific questions reslting from a specific economic theory.
The study starts with the presentation of the settlement context in which the analysed artefacts were found, as well as paleoof -environmental and geomorphological settings of the Central Balkans. It continues explaining the results of the petrographic analysis of raw material from macro-lithic tools and of samples from geological outcrops from the Central Balkans. The geoarchaeological approach includes the results of a geoarchaeological survey of the middle Morava valley, related to macro-lithic artefacts from Motel Slatina and Turska česma, Slatina. The petrographic analysis allows identifying the location and the distance from which raw materials derived the exploitation method and the existence of territorial borders between supply areas.
Functional analysis has revealed for the first time, an appearance of a large variety of macro-lithic tools during the Neolithic of the Central Balkans. These results allow us to observe technological changes among the Early and Late Neolithic macro-lithic societies and economic differences between settlements and regions during the Late Neolithic. Our research concludes with a reconstruction of the economic organisation of Vinča society.

https://www.tdx.cat/handle/10803/669666#page=1

The publication describes the initial stage of investigations of Lugansk Paleolithic microregion at the
East of Ukraine. The archaeological remains of this microregion are represented by the series of the
Lower and Middle Paleolithic sites, specialized on utilization of quartzite. 
     
Keywords: Lugansk Paleolithic microregion, Lower Palaeolithic, Middle Palaeolithic, quartzite.

Paper considers the Paleolithic localities recently discovered by us in the east of Ukraine i
the Middle Current of Severski Donets, and which raw materials are mainly quartzites and sandstones. Brief technologica
and typological overview of studied sites is provided. The preliminary analysis allows to assume the Early Paleolithic Ag
for the majority of revealed localities.

ABSTRACT We present the results of a study on the experimental reproduction of a specific type of macro-lithic tool, traditionally called “teste di mazza”, distinctive to the Nuragic phase in Sardinia (17th-9th century BC). We analyzed a sample collected in the area of northern Sinis – in the western-central part of the island – in order to reconstruct the sequence of the technological actions required to produce these tools. At this point, two experimental copies were manufactured, documenting the process and especially the macro-traces left on the surface of the instruments which were used to make comparisons with the archaeological data.

Data on the implementation of macro-lithic tools in pottery production during the Late Neolithic of the central Balkans are very rare. This paper presents experiments in smoothing, polishing pottery surface    in order to examine several
topics. Fourteen vessels were made of various tempered clay and different moisture levels. Their surfaces were processed by smoothers made of shells and the experimentally made stone axe. Polishing has been performed by pebbles and a boar task. The experimental tests resulted in a comparative collection of micro-wear traces considering the objects originating from an archaeological context. This can reveal pottery workshops and possible technological varieties in pottery production within the settlement or between settlements.  At the same time, it has been documented that types of use-wear traces on stone polishers appeared and developed in various time, depending on pottery temper. Observations also show a correlation between the productivity and morphology of stone polishers, the shape of the vessels and decoration. It has been also concluded that to the working efficiency of the implemented artefacts made of various materials such as stone and the boar tusk depends on technology implemented in pottery production. These experiments can assist in completing an economic picture of the Neolithic settlements on the Central Balkans. It encourages further examinations of wear resistance, mechanical property, efficiency of the pottery smoothers and polishers made of various materials such as stone, bone and shells.

ПРЕЛИМИНАРНИ РЕЗУЛТАТИ  МАКРОПЕТРЛОШКЕ
АНАЛИЗЕ  КАМЕНОГ  МАТЕРИЈАЛА СА  ЛОКАЛИТЕТА РУДНА ГЛАВА
Весна Вучковић,  Завичајни музеј ,,Параћин”, Параћин
Игор Јовановић, Музеј рударства и металургије, Бор
Душица Петрашиновић, Геолошка и хидрометереолошка школа, Београд.


Апстракт
Архео – петролошким рекогносцирањем локалитета Рудна Глава  и његове околине 2013. године  сакупљена је стенске грађе  у циљу макро-петролошке детерминације архео-петролошких налаза, пронађених током истраживања винчанског рудника бакра шездесетих и седамдесетих година прошлог века. У раду су дати прелиминарни резултати макропетролошке анализе, са посебаним освртом на примену недеструктивних метода у макропетролошкој детерминацији каменог археолошког  материјала и значај формирања референтних архео-петролошких збирки.
Кључне речи: општина Бор, неолитски рудник бакра Рудна Глава, рекогносцирање, архео – петролошки материјал,  детерминација недеструктивном методом,  референтна архео-петролошка збирка.


PRELIMINARY RESULTS  OF MACRO PETRLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF
STONE RAW MATERIAL FROM NEOLITHIC SITE RUDNA GLAVA
       
Vesna Vučković,  Hometown museum ,,Paraćin”, Paraćin.
Igor Jovanović, Museum of Mining and Metallurgy, Bor.
Dušica Petrašinović, Geological and Hydrometeorological high-school, Beograd.

Abstract
The purpose of archaeo – petrological  surface survey of the site Rudna Glava and its surroundings in 2013. was rock material collecting  and its  macro-petrological determination. Those archaeo-petrologic objects were found during the research of  Vinča’s copper mines during  the sixties and seventies. This paper presents the preliminary results of macro-petrological analysis, with special emphasis on the application of non-destructive methods in macro-petrological  determination of archaeological stone material and the importance of establishing referent archaeo-petrological collections.
Key words: Bor municipality, Neolithic Copper Mine Rudna Glava, surface survey, archaeo - petrological material, non-destructive method of determination, referent archaeo-petrological collection.