Lithic Raw Material Resources and Procurement in Pre- and Protohistoric Times

Lithic Raw Material Resources and Procurement in Pre- and Protohistoric Times
Author: UISPP Commission on Flint Mining in Pre- and Protohistoric Times. International Conference
Publisher: BAR International Series
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2014
Genre: Flint mines and mining, Prehistoric
ISBN: 9781407312989

Proceedings of the 5th International Conference of the UISPP Commission on Flint Mining in Pre- and Protohistoric Times (Paris 10-11 September 2012) The Union Internationale des Sciences Pré- et Protohistoriques (UISPP) commission on "Flint Mining in Pre- and Protohistoric Times" was created at the 12th meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists (Cracow, Poland, 19th-24th September 2006). The aim was to perpetuate the tradition of organizing international symposia on flint, established by the Limburg Branch of the Dutch Geological Society in 1969 at Maastricht. The commission intends to maintain cooperation in archaeological research on siliceous rock mining (flint, chert, hornstone, radiolarite, jasper and obsidian), by presenting and discussing methods and results. Major fields of interest include the different stages of chaînes opératoires of manufacture, specialisation of labour and circulation of raw materials, as well as the study of flint mining sites in relation to pre- and protohistoric settlement patterns. The objective of the commission is to promote these lines of research into flint mining and its methods, thus enabling a better understanding of the various phenomena and processes taking place in pre- and protohistoric times. This volume contains the papers of the Paris conference held on 10th-11th September 2012, together with some additional papers presented at Vienna 2010 and Florianópolis 2011. A first set of contributions concerns the main topic of the conference, which was lithothèques and reference collections. A further group of papers concerns the second conference theme: workshops, from excavation to chaînes opératoires reconstruction.

The Exploitation of Raw Materials in Prehistory

The Exploitation of Raw Materials in Prehistory
Author: Xavier Terradas Batlle
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 656
Release: 2017-11-06
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1527505235

This collection presents state-of-the-art approaches to the use of inorganic raw materials in the period known as prehistory. It focuses on stone-tools, adornments, colorants and pottery from Europe, America and Africa. The chapters intimately merge archaeology, anthropology, geology, geography, physics and chemistry to reconstruct past human behaviour, economy, technology, ecology, cognition, territory and social complexity. The book represents a framework of raw material investigation for those working in science, regardless of the time period, region of the world or materials they are studying.

Prehistoric Flint Mines in Europe

Prehistoric Flint Mines in Europe
Author: Françoise Bostyn
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
Total Pages: 522
Release: 2023-11-09
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1803272228

This volume offers a review of major flint mines dating from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. The 18 articles were contributed by archaeologists from Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Sweden, using the same framework to propose a uniform view of the mining phenomenon.

Between History and Archaeology: Papers in honour of Jacek Lech

Between History and Archaeology: Papers in honour of Jacek Lech
Author: Dagmara H. Werra
Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
Total Pages: 526
Release: 2018-02-28
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1784917737

A collection of forty-six papers papers in honour of Professor Jacek Lech, compiled in recognition of his research and academic career as well as his inquiry into the study of prehistoric flint mining, Neolithic flint tools (and beyond), and the history of archaeology.

Siliceous Rocks and Prehistory

Siliceous Rocks and Prehistory
Author: Christophe Delage
Publisher: British Archaeological Reports Oxford Limited
Total Pages: 238
Release: 2003
Genre: Social Science
ISBN:

The published evidence on lithic raw material procurement in prehistoric times that has been gathered since the nineteenth century is presented in many languages, and is available in both local and international journals. Nowadays, it appears quite overwhelming, almost impossible, to grasp the full extent of research regarding this topic. Publications on methodological grounds or on the synthesis of specific geographical areas have inevitably provided limited scope for reflection and discussion. This volume offers a reference that can provide the 'raw material' for scholars interested in furthering their understanding of prehistoric economic strategies of lithic procurement and exploitation. It is the result of several years collecting bibliographical references. Publications ranging from a simple mention of a few raw materials present at a specific site to detailed studies of lithic sourcing and procurement strategies or the geo-archaeological assessment of chert available in a particular region, have been taken into consideration.

The Movement and Procurement of Lithic Raw Materials in Shawnee Lookout Park

The Movement and Procurement of Lithic Raw Materials in Shawnee Lookout Park
Author: Janine M. Sparks
Publisher:
Total Pages: 151
Release: 2012
Genre:
ISBN:

Using lithic raw material data from 33Ha49 in Shawnee Lookout Park in Hamilton County, Ohio, this research explores the role that waterways play in lithic raw material procurement strategies. Previous archaeologists have investigated the cultural processes associated with the movement of lithic raw materials across the landscape (Tankersley 1989, 1991, 1998). Explanations for the movement of flaked-stone artifacts include both human activity and geological processes. To best examine the cultural processes associated with raw lithic procurement, Optimal Foraging Theory was applied. By utilizing Optimal Foraging Theory, lithic raw material is considered a type of "currency" and becomes subjected to considerations of risk, energy expenditure, and efficiency. The use of waterways in lithic procurement could offer a way for groups to maximize their gain and acquire quality lithic raw materials. Research has also found evidence of people operating on the waterways. Evidence of dugout canoes operating on lakes and rivers has been recovered (Fagan 2004; Gamble 2002; Johnston 1962). Excavated during the summer of 2011, the lithic raw materials, which consisted primarily of chert, numbered over 17,000. Using primarily visual and petrographic identification techniques, all of the lithic raw materials were sourced to their locations in the Greater Ohio Valley. Statistical models considered stream location, distance, direction, glaciation, quality, and locality as factors to understand what elevates certain lithic raw materials over others. These models demonstrated the importance of streams in procuring these lithic raw materials. The evidence for this was most visible with Wyandotte chert. It was concluded that streams can be a viable route to more easily obtain lithic raw materials from source areas. Waterways provide the most energetically efficient way to procure currencies such as lithics.

Prehistoric Quarries and Lithic Production

Prehistoric Quarries and Lithic Production
Author: Jonathon E. Ericson
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 168
Release: 1984-07-26
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780521256223

This book was originally published in 1984. For over a million years rocks provided human beings with the essential raw materials for the production of tools. Nevertheless we still know very little about the behaviour and processes that resulted in the creation of archaeological sites at or near lithic quarries. In the past archaeologists have placed much emphasis on the process of 'exchange' in their analysis of prehistoric economies while largely ignoring the sources of the exchanged objects. However, with the development of interest in the means of production, these sites have begun to take on a new significance. Prehistoric Quarries and Lithic Production is the first systematic study of archaeological sites that served as quarries for stone tools. Its theoretical and methodological importance will extend its appeal beyond those archaeologists concerned with lithic technology and prehistoric exchange systems to archaeologists and anthropologists in general and to geographers and geologists.

Eastern Paleoindian Lithic Resource Use

Eastern Paleoindian Lithic Resource Use
Author: Christopher Ellis
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 342
Release: 2021-11-28
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 042971369X

Originally published in 1989, Eastern Paleoindian Lithic Resource Use is a series of papers that examine Paleoindian lifeways from various viewpoints, all of which have their foundations in stone and examining artifacts. Exploring the link between lithic materials (especially cryptocrystallines and chert), and Paleoindian mobility and looking at the transport of stone, seasonal resource availability, stone caches, use as social markers and land movement patterns and its surrounding data.