Flint blades and daggers from collective burials dated to the Final Neolithic and Chalcolithic in Southern France

Abstract

In Southern France, Late Neolithic collective burials have yielded a large number of retouched or unretouched flint blades which even occur in the form of dagger blades. Their intrinsic (petrographic, technological and typological) data have recently been clarified. In many cases, it is now possible to specify the origin of most of these pieces and to identify their primary (related to the process of manufacturing workshops) and secondary (use wear) characteristics. Out of the eight main raw material categories identified in Southern France only two are regional: Ludian flint from Collorgues in the Gard department and Stampian flint from Mur-de-Barrez in the Aveyron department. The other flint materials stem from the neighbouring regions, i.e. from the western part of Upper Provençe (Bedoulian flint from Vaucluse and banded Oligocene flint from Forcalquier), the north-eastern part of the Iberian peninsula (lacustrine flint from Monegros and evaporitic flint from the Ebro basin), the Touraine region (Turonian of Le Grand-Pressigny) as well as from various Cretaceous flint sources in the Aquitaine region (Bergeracois, Angoumois, Saintonge). In general, the blades found in collective burials are used objects that were part of the personal equipment and that are identical to those found in neighbouring settlements. In most of the territories, it is possible to establish valid correlations between the series of collective burials which in many cases were used over a long period of time and the excavated settlements which were occupied during a shorter period of time and which are generally dated more reliably and can be assigned to well-defined cultural groups. It is then possible to improve the perception of the extrinsic data of these pieces, in particular those related to their cultural and chronological context, and to advance new lines of comparative studies, such as the one discussed here related to the comparison of the data stemming from collective burials in caves with those originating from megalithic monuments or hypogea. As regards the geographical distribution of these types of graves, it should be noted in the first place that it varies greatly according to the natural areas and that these disparities must be taken into account in the quantitative variations recorded. The distribution of each category of flint blades by type of tomb in the various chrono-cultural areas under study does not reveal a clear difference which could be explained by a distinct socio-economic status of the users of these types of tombs. The variations recorded seem to be mainly related to two phenomena. The first is related to the more or less wide scope of the various blade production centres and to the strength of their distribution network, which results in variations in the density of occurrences dependent on the distance from the sources. The second phenomenon that seems to have the greatest impact is related to the chronology and therefore to the periods of use of the various collective burials. By adopting a subdivision of the Late Neolithic into four phases, it is possible to highlight differences. During the Late Neolithic 1 (3500-3200 BCE), flint blades of Provence origin made from Bedoulian flint and banded Forcalquier flint were predominant. During the Late Neolithic 2 (3200-2900 BCE) blades made from Forcalquier flint had the largest diffusion, while new regional networks ensuring the distribution of thick and curved blades developed in two areas: the Mediterranean area as regards the Collorgues site and the Causses region as regards the Mur-de-Barrez site. The Late Neolithic 2b (2900-2700 BCE) and especially the Late Neolithic 3 (2700-2400 BCE) which corresponds to the emergence and development of Chalcolithic metallurgy in the Languedoc and Causses region are marked by a preferential diffusion in the form of flint daggers. Competition between the diffusion networks of the daggers made from Forcalquier flint in the Provence region and those made from Le Grand-Pressigny flint in the Touraine region finds expression in the spread of very sophisticated pieces characterised by ripple-flaking retouch the areas of distribution of which are largely overlapping. These pieces were found in both caves and megalithic monuments, as is the case for the copper daggers.