Bifacial Tools Research Articles

Variabilité de l’Acheuléen de plein air entre Rhône et Loire (France)

The lithic assemblages of five open-air sites offer the opportunity to observe and compare Final Acheulean series located in the Loire department (South-East France). The sites were probably multi-activity places including large tools and flakes, according to the strategies used by humans. Three main categories of large bifacial tools mainly made of flint can be described, with a triangular or oval shape and with a transversal cutting edge. The ratio and intensity of flaking oppose the series. The Levallois flaking is always present and associated to various other types of methods. The sites, located on plateaus on the two banks of a small valley, suggest human circulating between the Saône-Rhône corridor and the interior basins of the Massif Central Mountains. The Rhodanian corridor yielded little evidence of Acheulean open-air settlements while in the Centre of France, they are numerous. These sites prove that systematic prospecting in this area will permit in future to complete the map of the Acheulean occupations in south-east France and discuss about the variability.

Late Middle Palaeolithic bifacial technologies across northwest Europe: Typo-technological variability and trends

Despite a rich archaeological record, northwest Europe (Belgium, the Netherlands, western, northern and eastern France) is often not included in detailed debates on Middle Palaeolithic lithic variability. This is, in part, related to a lack of contextual information for some assemblages, but also to a scarcity of widely accessible publications, especially in relation to early 20th century excavations. However, it is clear that across Europe, including in this northwest region, the late Middle Palaeolithic (here MIS 5d–3, ∼115–35 ka) is characterised by an increase in the use of bifacial technologies, and this paper provides a wider, integrative perspective on late Middle Palaeolithic bifacial tool variability in northwest Europe.Primary data from seven key assemblages (Oosthoven, Grotte du Docteur, Sint-Geertruid, Saint-Just en Chaussée, Saint-Julien de la Liègue, Bois-du-Rocher and Champlost) is integrated with published data from an additional 45 assemblages, allowing for an extensive assessment of the characteristics of these biface-rich assemblages. Results suggest a large amount of typo-technological variability, as expressed through the varying nature of several technological attributes (raw material, blank type, cortex remnant, cross section and edge angles), as well as through the presence of different bifacial tool concepts and bifacial tool types.The limited chronostratigraphic information available suggests the presence of bifacial tools in northwest Europe throughout the warm phases of both MIS 5 and MIS 3. Furthermore, a detailed regional overview identifies common ground within many of these northwest European late Middle Palaeolithic assemblages. Rather than a series of region-specific entities, this research proposes that a larger-scale distinction can be made between assemblages dominated by classic handaxes, and assemblages characterised by the generalised application of bifacial retouch. The latter contain a wider variety of bifacial tools and it is, therefore, suggested to group these assemblages under the overarching label of ‘Mousterian with Bifacial Tools’ (MBT). Detailed studies of new, well-contextualised assemblages are needed to fully unravel the causal factors and behavioural intricacies underlying this bifacial tool variability and the MBT entity.

A bifacial tool of the Neanderthals from Ameland, the Netherlands

AbstractA bifacially worked flint tool has recently been found on the North Sea beach of Ameland, one of the Wadden Islands in the northern Netherlands. It probably dates from the Middle Palaeolithic because its surface modifications include windgloss which in this area originated especially during the Weichselian Late Pleniglacial. The tool was probably first worked by a skilled knapper and subsequently, after a break occurred, by an apprentice. It is suggested that the tool was transported to Ameland from the North Sea bottom in the course of sand replenishment activities. Other artefacts from the Wadden Islands allegedly left by Neanderthals are also briefly discussed.

Regional behaviour among late Neanderthal groups in Western Europe: A comparative assessment of late Middle Palaeolithic bifacial tool variability

Population dynamics between and within Pleistocene groups are vital to understanding wider behavioural processes like social transmission and cultural variation. The late Middle Palaeolithic (MIS 5d-3, ca. 115,000–35,000 BP [years before present]) permits a novel, data-driven assessment of these concepts through a unique record: bifacial tools made by classic Neanderthals. Previously, studies of late Middle Palaeolithic bifacial tools were hampered by a convoluted plethora of competing terms, types and regional entities. This paper presents a large-scale intercomparison of this tool type, and bridges typo-technological and spatio-temporal data from across Western Europe (Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Germany).Results indicate a high level of variation among individual bifacial tools and assemblages. Each bifacial tool concept is correlated with various methods of production, resulting in large degrees of morphological variation. Despite such variation, a distinct three-fold, macro-regional pattern was identified: the Mousterian of Acheulean Tradition (MTA) in the southwest dominated by handaxes, the Keilmessergruppen (KMG) in the northeast typified by backed and leaf-shaped bifacial tools, and, finally a new unit, the Mousterian with Bifacial Tools (MBT), geographically situated between these two major entities, and characterised by a wider variety of bifacial tools.Differing local conditions, such as raw material or function, are not sufficient to explain this observed macro-regional tripartite. Instead, the MTA and KMG can be viewed as two distinct cultural traditions, where the production of a specific bifacial tool concept was passed on over generations. Conversely, the MBT is interpreted as a border zone where highly mobile groups of Neanderthals from both the east (KMG) and west (MTA) interacted.Principally, this study presents an archaeological contribution to behavioural concepts such as regionality, culture, social transmission and population dynamics. It illustrates the interpretive potential of large-scale lithic studies, and more specifically the presence of regionalised cultural behaviour amongst late Neanderthal groups in Western Europe.

Building experimental use-wear analogues for Clovis biface functions

This paper reports an experimental program designed to record microscopic use-wear traces obtained on replica Clovis points and bifaces used in impact, butchering, chopping, and scraping tasks. These experiments established the use-wear type, frequency, and distribution of use-wear traces acquired in bifacial tool tasks. Replica points and bifaces were photo-documented prior to use to monitor the use-wear accrued through multiple episodes and consider if a single tool used in multiple tasks could produce distinct wear patterns that were microscopically distinguishable. Ultimately, the experimental analogues served as the foundation to interpret use-wear traces detected on Clovis bifaces from the Gault site, Texas.

Khamseen rock shelter and the Late Palaeolithic‐Neolithic transition in Dhofar

This paper presents the archaeological site of Khamseen rock shelter, its stratigraphic succession, numeric ages and Early–Middle Holocene lithic assemblages. The site was discovered and excavated during the 2010 fieldwork campaign of the Dhofar Archaeological Project (DAP) in southern Oman. It is situated at the southern edge of the Nejd Plateau, strategically positioned adjacent to a major orographic barrier at the interface of the plateau and escarpment. Excavations revealed a succession of five archaeological horizons, each bearing technologically distinct lithic assemblages. The lowest level (GH.5) is attributed to the Khashabian industry, representing the final phase of the South Arabian Late Palaeolithic. Above that, in GH.4, a Neolithic assemblage was found with bifacial tool forms typical of the Middle Holocene. In light of the evidence found at Khamseen rock shelter and other coeval archaeological sites across southern Arabia, the Late Palaeolithic‐Neolithic transition is considered.

Geochemical discrimination of basaltic sources as a tool for provenance analyses of bifacial tools in the southern Levant: first results from the Jezreel Valley, Israel

The determination of groundstone tool sources bears the potential to examine aspects like raw material selection and preference, mobility, trade and exchange patterns, control over resources and long term use of raw material sources. The discovery of the Neolithic/Chalcolithic basanite bifacial quarry of Giv'at Kipod in the Jezreel Valley, Israel, provides the opportunity of raw material centred provenance studies of bifacials in the southern Levant. The basis for reliable provenance analyses is a clear geochemical characterization of the extraction site and its discrimination from other potential sources. To achieve this, the Miocene magmatic rocks of the Jezreel Valley were sampled and analysed by XRF and La-ICP-MS. The geochemical evaluation, combined with cluster analyses, resulted in a clear discrimination of the Giv'at Kipod lava from other basaltic sources in the area. Based on the geochemical field data, a Giv'at Kipod provenance for six bifacial tools found in three archaeological sites dated to the Neolithic and the Chalcolithic periods was established. The results suggest that the quarry was in use for several millennia. This pilot study demonstrates that for provenance analyses lava outcrops in the southern Levant can be geochemically discriminated from each other on a very small spatial scale, on the basis of a detailed field sampling and the application of multivariate methods.

Biface Distributions And The Movius Line: A Southeast Asian Perspective

The 'Movius Line' is the putative technological demarcation line mapping the easternmost geographical distribution of Acheulean bifacial tools. It is traditionally argued by proponents of the Movius Line that 'true' Acheulean bifaces, especially handaxes, are only found in abundance in Africa and western Eurasia, whereas in eastern Asia, in front of the 'line', these implements are rare or absent altogether. Here we argue, however, that the Movius Line relies on classifying undated surface bifaces as Acheulean on typological grounds alone, a long-standing and widely accepted practice in Africa and western Eurasia, but one that is not seen as legitimate in eastern Asian contexts. A review of the literature shows that bifaces are relatively common as surface finds in Southeast Asia and on this basis we argue that the Movius Line is in need of reassessment.

An Early Holocene task camp (~8.5 ka cal BP) on the coast of the semi-arid north of Chile

According to current thinking, the peopling of South America involved a coastal as well as an inland exploitation. Here the authors describe a camp that may denote a transition between the two. As indicated by bifacial tools, the investigation shows that people began to move inland and hunt mammals around 8500 cal BP, perhaps in association with a change in the climate.

Middle Holocene settlements on coastal dunes, southwest Buenos Aires Province, Argentina

The aim of this paper is to discuss hunter-gatherer settlements on coastal sand dunes in the Southwest of Buenos Aires Province (Argentina). Technological, archaeofaunal and radiocarbon information from Barrio Las Dunas site is presented, and compared with the context of other Pampean coastal sites. Barrio Las Dunas site is located on a sand dune and shows a hunter-gatherers settlement from 6900 14C BP. The archaeofaunal context demonstrates the exploitation of marine taxa: mammals (Otariidae) and fish (Pogonias cromis). Lithic tools such as end scrapers, side scrapers, denticulates, notches and many retouched flake tools were identified. Also, some carefully worked unifacial and bifacial tools were recovered. Artifacts were mainly manufactured from basalt, followed by quartzite and subarkose.The data presented supports some palaeoenvironmental considerations: first that the southwest Atlantic coast sand dunes of Buenos Aires province date from the Early-Middle Holocene and second, that Barrio Las Dunas site was next to a coastal lagoon or estuarine palaeoenvironment with a crab community. This context was appropriate for black drum feeding. Early-Middle Holocene sites from the area illustrate the variability of coastal environments when different landforms, which included lagoons, marsh, sand dunes and beaches, were present in the landscape. The sand dunes were used by hunter-gatherers in their periodic activities; e.g., lithic artifacts were manufactured and sea lions and black drums were butchered and eaten. This data in addition to the areal information show a complex use of the coast during this period.

Le gisement acheuléen de plein air de La Garde (Loire). Remarques sur une série lithique acheuléenne entre Rhône et Loire

The lithic assemblage of La Garde offers the opportunity to observe a Final Acheulean series located in the Loire department (south-east France). The site was probably a multi-activity place asking large tools and flakes, according to the strategies used by humans. Three main categories of large bifacial tools mainly made of flint can be described, with a triangular or oval shape and with a transversal cutting edge. These tools are more bifacial-tools than bifaces through the kind of shaping and the retouches on the cutting edges. The Levallois flaking is associated to various other types of knapping. The site, located along a small valley, suggests a human circulating between the Saône-Rhône corridor and the interior basins of the Massif Central Mountains. The Rhodanian corridor yielded little evidence of Acheulean settlements while in the Centre of France, they are numerous. La Garde proves that systematic prospecting in this area will permit in future to complete the map of the Acheulean occupations in south-east France.

The Early Middle Pleistocene Site of Gombore II (Melka Kunture, Upper Awash, Ethiopia) and the Issue of Acheulean Bifacial Shaping Strategies

The Gombore II site dates to circa the Brunhes Matuyama Reversal and is one of the Acheulean localities of the Melka Kunture (Upper Awash, Ethiopia) archaeological complex, known since the 1970s. In 2001, this locality was selected as the site for an Open Air Museum and thus excavated. The excavation area has yielded an abundant Acheulean lithic assemblage manufactured on volcanic raw materials in close association with numerous paleontological remains. A technological analysis was carried out on a fraction of the bifacial tools (bifaces and cleavers) which could be temporarily removed from the displayed surface in the museum. This set of artefacts reveals new data about the bifacial shaping strategies adopted at the beginning of the Middle Pleistocene in Ethiopia. The use of obsidian and the systematic manufacturing of twisted bifaces are original features of the assemblage. These data are discussed in the framework of penecontemporaneous East African sites.

Some Comments on Blade Technology and Eastern Clovis Lithic Reduction Strategies

Blade/bladelet technology has been described as a highly efficient manner by which to produce stone tools, both tool blanks and finished forms. It was practiced during the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic (or Epipaleolithic) over vast portions of Europe, Asia, and Africa and it has also been ascribed to the Paleoindian Period for both Pre-Clovis and Clovis assemblages. However, the authors believe that in North America blade technology was relatively rare when compared to Old World settings and almost absent in some areas such as northeastern North America. Eastern Clovis lithic reduction systems supported a high degree of mobility, extremely low population densities, and an adaptation to a highly variable and changing Allerød and Younger Dryas environment. At roughly the same time, Old World Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic peoples used relatively structured and standardized blade/bladelet manufacturing systems that best suited higher population densities with lower levels of mobility. This paper examines the characteristics of these different lithic reduction strategies and outlies the benefits of the bifacial core and tool technologies employed by early Paleoindians.

Geo-archaeological investigations of Palaeolithic sites along the Ural Mountains – On the northern presence of humans during the last Ice Age

We review geo-archaeological results from six Palaeolithic sites along the western flank of the northern Ural Mountains. The oldest traces of human activities, dated to around 36–35 14C ka BP (43–40 cal ka), were found in alluvial strata at Mamontovaya Kurya at the Polar Circle - their connection to cultures further south remains uncertain. Slightly younger artefacts were found at the site Zaozer’e, nearly a thousand km further to the south, where a rich archaeological assemblage, dated to 34–33 14C ka BP (39–37 cal ka), was uncovered from underneath several meters of loess. The assemblage contains some small “Middle Palaeolithic like” bifaces alongside distinct Upper Palaeolithic traits, such as well-defined blades. This site also contains some perforated “pendants” made of freshwater molluscs. At the Byzovaya site, located at 65°N and radiocarbon dated to about 30–29 14C ka BP (34–32 cal ka), more than 300 artefacts and several thousand animal remains, mostly of mammoth, were incorporated in coarse-grained debris-flow deposits, sealed by aeolian sand. Pending the results from a new technological analysis of the whole artefact assemblage we can yet not decide whether Byzovaya should be categorized as a Middle- or Upper Palaeolithic site. The finds from Garchi, located in a loess sequence near Zaozer’e, have a similar or slightly younger age than the material from Byzovaya. Also at this site bifacial tools are present; alongside some characteristic triangle projectile points as well as some other elements which have nearly identical counterparts in the Upper Palaeolithic Kostenki/Streletskaya and Sungirian complexes, unambiguously associated with Modern humans. We conclude that the initial human colonisations along the Ural Mountains took place during a relatively favourable period of Marine Isotope Stage 3, when only small mountain glaciers existed in this region. The finds from the Medvezhia Peshera rock shelter have a completely different age (19–16 14C ka BP, 23–19 cal ka) and character, indicating that humans also were present along the Urals close to the Last Glacial Maximum (26–19 ka BP), the coldest and driest period of the last ice age. The few artefacts that were uncovered at Pymva Shor, the northernmost site investigated by us, are probably a little younger than those at Medveshia Peshera, but the timing of human presence is not precisely constrained at this site. In view of the obtained results it appears that humans were at least temporarily present in these northern landscapes from more than 40,000 years ago and onwards.

Measuring skill in the production of bifacial pressure flaked points: a multivariate approach using the flip-test

Skill is an aspect of prehistoric technology that can inform us on many areas of investigation. This article discusses the notion of skill in prehistoric contexts and how skill is to be formally defined in relation to lithic bifacial tools. The nature of bifacial manufacture entails simultaneous attention to the facial, profile- and cross- section morphology of the core, since each flake removal affects all features. It is argued that bifacial skill can be measured using a multivariate approach, which takes all these features into account. An index measure, the “Bifacial Skill Score”, is proposed and evaluated using both experimental and archaeological data. This measure is argued to constitute a good proxy for skill in bifacial technology and a useful tool for comparative research.

Studying post depositional damage on Acheulian bifaces using 3-D scanning

In this study, we explore post-depositional damage observed on Acheulian bifacial tools by comparing two assemblages: a collection of archaeological handaxes which shows pronounced damage marks associated with high energy water accumulation system, and an experimental assemblage that was rolled and battered in a controlled simulation experiment. Scanning the two assemblages with a precise 3-D optical scanner and subjecting the measured surfaces to the same mathematical analysis enabled the development of quantitative measures assessing and comparing the degree of damage observed on archaeological and experimental tools. The method presented here enables the definition of morphological patterns typically resulting from battering and different from intentional controlled knapping. The most important kinds of damage included the formation of deep, random ‘notch-like’ scars on the lateral edges and substantial degrees of damage to the tip of the tools, but minimal damage to the artifact's butt. Quantifying the degree of damage and its location and morphological characters allows us to present a method by which post depositional damage on archaeological tools can be measured.

Cultural conservatism and variability in the Acheulian sequence of Gesher Benot Ya‘aqov

The Acheulian Technocomplex exhibits two phenomena: variability and conservatism. Variability is expressed in the composition and frequencies of tool types, particularly in the varying frequencies of bifaces (handaxes and cleavers). Conservatism is expressed in the continuous presence of bifaces along an immense time trajectory. The site of Gesher Benot Ya‘aqov (GBY) offers a unique opportunity to study aspects of variability and conservatism as a result of its long cultural-stratigraphic sequence containing superimposed lithic assemblages. This study explores aspects of variability and conservatism within the Acheulian lithic assemblages of GBY, with emphasis placed on the bifacial tools. While variability has been studied through a comparison of typological frequencies in a series of assemblages from the site, evidence for conservatism was examined in the production modes expressed by the reduction sequence of the bifaces. We demonstrate that while pronounced typological variability is observed among the GBY assemblages, they were all manufactured by the same technology. The technology, size, and morphology of the bifaces throughout the entire stratigraphic sequence of GBY reflect the strong conservatism of their makers. We conclude that the biface frequency cannot be considered as a chrono/cultural marker that might otherwise allow us to distinguish between different phases within the Acheulian. The variability observed within the assemblages is explained as a result of different activities, tasks, and functions, which were carried out at specific localities along the shores of the paleo-Hula Lake in the early Middle Pleistocene.

National Register Testing at 41BQ285, Bosque County, Texas: FM 56 Bridge Replacement at the North Bosque River

Prewitt and Associates, Inc., conducted archeological test excavations at 41BQ285 in June 2006 for the Texas Department of Transportation under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 4102. Site 41BQ285, in southeastern Bosque County, was located during an archeological survey for the proposed replacement of the FM 56 bridge over the North Bosque River. It is a prehistoric campsite buried in a cumulic soil in the upper deposits of a late Holocene alluvial terrace. Mechanical excavations consisted of re-opening four backhoe trenches from the survey phase followed by hand excavation of six 1x1-m test units. This work identified three burned rock features and yielded a moderate amount of materials, including projectile points and bifaces, pottery sherds, unmodified debitage, vertebrate faunal remains, and freshwater mussel shells. Diagnostic artifacts and five radiocarbon ages indicate that the site has a lower but rather ephemeral Late Archaic component and an upper and more substantial Late Prehistoric component. The Late Prehistoric component yielded Perdiz arrow points and ceramics, and it is radiocarbon dated to between a.d. 1280 and 1650. The evidence suggests a series of relatively short occupations and a focus on the use of local resources. Site activities included late-stage biface reduction and bifacial tool production, tool resharpening, and the exploitation and intensive processing of deer. Foodstuffs were processed and prepared using bifacial tools, ground and battered stone tools, rock-lined cooking basins, and small ceramic jars and bowls. The Late Prehistoric component is Toyah-like in many ways, but the small sample size and nature of the materials preclude assigning it a specific sociocultural group or archeological phase. Of particular interest are the five pottery sherds—two plain, two fingernail punctate, and one engraved sherd from a carinated bowl with a Caddo-like design. Geochemical analysis indicates that none of the pottery, including the engraved bowl sherd, matches any Caddo-made pottery from East Texas. The fact that a Caddo vessel form and decorative style appears on pottery that was probably made in or near Bosque County is interesting and adds a new dynamic to our understanding of the Toyah phenomenon in central Texas. The portion of site 41BQ285 within FM 56 is considered eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) or for designation as a State Archeological Landmark (SAL). However, current investigations already recovered most of the Late Prehistoric component within the spatially limited project area, and additional investigations inside the highway right of way cannot reasonably be expected to contribute any more significant archeological information. Therefore, no further fieldwork is recommended, and construction should be allowed to proceed.

Large flake Acheulian

Acheulian biface industries based on the production of large flakes as the primary blank used for handaxe and cleaver manufacturing have long been acknowledged in the study of the African Acheulian. Nevertheless, this group of assemblages has not received its due attention in the study of the Acheulian techno-complex. The aim of this paper is to define the “Large Flake” stage of the Acheulian, based on the study of thousands of bifacial tools from almost all regions in which Acheulian assemblages have been reported. Once a definition is presented, the large flake Acheulian geographical distribution, chronological boundaries and, in particular, significance to the understanding of the Acheulian as the widest spread and longest existing techno-complex in human cultural evolution are discussed.

PALEOLITHIC SITE BIRYUCHYA BALKA-2: GEOLOGY, CHRONOLOGY, AND PALEOECOLOGY

The current article provides a discussion of the geological, chronological, and environmental aspects of Biryuchya Balka-2, a stratified Paleolithic site situated in the Seversky Donets valley of Rostov Oblast. Excavations have revealed seven Mousterian and four Upper Paleolithic horizons. Upper Paleolithic industries include endscrapers, sidescrapers, and bifacial tools. Mousterian horizons are characterized by volumetric reduction (prismatic cores and blades) as well as by traditional primary reduction techniques. The results of palynological analysis suggest that loams containing flint tools were formed during both warm and cold periods. The Late Paleolithic horizons date to 26 and 31 ka BP whilst one of the upper Mousterian horizons dates to 40 ka. Although this date would appear too late, the break in habitation can be explained by a late cold period (34–32.5 ka BP). The emergence of new stone reduction techniques, specifically the blade technique appears to have resulted purely from technological modification. The role of environmental factors, however, cannot be entirely ruled out.