Production and use of percussive stone tools in the Early Stone Age: Experimental approach to the lithic record of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania

Abstract

The present work explores the production and functional relationships that may exist between bipolar cores and spheroids in Olduvai Gorge. Percussion experiments have been conducted to determine: if the bipolar technique is an adequate solution to split large and heavy quartz blocks into cuboid-shaped fragments, and in which percussion activities those bipolar fragments are modified from cuboid to spherical shape. In light of the results achieved, it can be concluded that: the bipolar technique is the most efficient technique to produce portable and manageable cuboid-shaped slab fragments, and bipolar cuboid-shaped fragments can be modified to sub-spherical shape through intensive percussive processes. The associations established between use patterns and functional parameters have allowed us to suggest that food pounding is the most plausible functional context for such shape modification.