Flake Technology Research Articles

Preliminary report on a new prehistoric site in northern Oman (Qumayrah/Ayn 2)

This paper reports briefly on the results of a short reconnaissance at the site of Qumayrah–Ayn 2 (QA 2), a new prehistoric site located in a poorly studied part of the Qumayrah Valley in northern Oman. A survey and limited probing by the Omani–Polish Qumayrah Archaeological Project confirmed the presence of a sediment, approximately 15–20 cm thick, which yielded not just lithics, but also stone installations discovered in situ. One of these installations was evidently a hearth, the other a kind of platform. The lithic assemblage is characterized by a prevalence of flake technology with rare blade products. Predominant in the tools group are side-scrapers, notches and perforators produced by direct-scaled retouch. The most characteristic tools are tanged projectile points made on flakes. The main problem is contextualizing these materials. On the grounds of certain premises they may be associated with the Fasad technocomplex, but not necessarily the pre-Neolithic one as is the case of the classic types. However, a much later chronology is also quite possible.

A functional approach to the use of the earliest blade technology in Upper Paleolithic Hokkaido, northern Japan

To understand the behavioral significance of the emergence and proliferation of blade technology in the northeastern Asian Upper Paleolithic, this paper explores the function of the earliest blade technology in Hokkaido, northern Japan, through an integrated analysis of edge morphology and use-wears on blade tools from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) assemblage of Kawanishi C. Although varied edge morphologies (i.e., straight, convex, concave, denticulate) have been distinguished, the results of use-wear analysis suggest that morphological differences of edges are not related to specific functions. Straight and convex edges experienced different use-lives and use-trajectories: both straight and convex edges were principally served for cutting/sawing and whittling, while some edges changed their functions to scraping as edge resharpening blunted the edges. The results of use-wear analysis also suggest that LGM blades were intensively used for performing a narrow range of activities (e.g., skin and meat stripping). Because this blade technology differs from the dominant flake technology in LGM Hokkaido, LGM foragers were able to employ it to perform intensive processing activity to exploit critical faunal resources that may have been sporadically clumped in the landscape.

Using multivariate techniques to assess the effects of raw material, flaking behavior and tool manufacture on assemblage variability: An example from the late Middle Paleolithic of the European Plain

The late Middle Paleolithic in central and eastern Europe is defined by the presence or absence of certain bifacial tools and blank production methods. Hence, the assemblages between MIS 5a and MIS 3 are classified as Mousterian, Taubachian, Micoquian, Micoquo-Prondnikien, Prądnik cycle and Keilmessergruppen, among others. We like to address here the questions of what do these assemblages look like when the type fossils (“fossil directeur”) are set aside and what are the main drivers of variability within and between these assemblages. Therefore, we analyzed nine assemblages of four late Middle Paleolithic open-air sites of the European Plain: Pouch and Königsaue for central Germany, Wrocław-Hallera Av. for southwestern Poland and Khotylevo I-6-2 for western Russia. Our study is based on an attribute analysis of flakes, as they are the most numerous artifact type in the lithic assemblages, bearing traces of the flaking technology in their morphology. Linear and nonlinear multivariate statistical analyses of the flake attributes show similar patterns for the assemblages and show no distinctions between Mousterian and Micoquian assemblages aside from the type fossils. Additionally, assemblage variability is, except for one case, not site specific or regional. The analysis of the factors that drive within and between assemblage variability revealed that the assemblages are influenced by site preservation, raw material size and economy, as well as similar blank production and tool manufacture methods that are present in varying degrees in each assemblage. In other words, taking into account site preservation, the overall character of these late Middle Paleolithic assemblages primarily reflects the flexible application of late Neanderthal flaking and tool production methods to the local raw material constraints. Once the type fossils are removed, these assemblages represent a range of variability that cannot be grouped readily into named archaeological entities that could represent distinct human groups.

Anchoring the landscape: human utilization of the Cerro Gavilán 2 rockshelter, Middle Orinoco, from the Early Holocene to the present

Abstract Initial archaeological investigations at Cerro Gavilán 2, a rockshelter located in the Bolívar State of Venezuela, reveal evidence for human activity that spans the Early Holocene to the present. This report summarizes the information obtained through surface collection, limited excavation, and documentation of the surface features and rock art in the cave. Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C analysis established dates from excavated strata that range between 9250 ± 60 BP to 3440 ± 40 BP, and are associated with a unifacial flake technology and charred faunal and floral remains, whereas surface remains span the known ceramic sequence for the area. Rock art corresponds to distinctive superimposed styles that indicate continual repainting of the cave through time, serving to anchor the site to the landscape for multiple societies inhabiting the region. It is suggested that the shelter may have fulfilled different functions over time and a sequence of seasonal residential, ritual, and funerary activities is proposed. The rich cultural context found in Cerro Gavilán 2 contributes to advances in Amazonian archaeology that are redefining our knowledge of early developments and the complexity of human/environmental interactions in tropical America.

Flake morphology as a record of manual pressure during stone tool production

Relative to the hominin fossil record there is an abundance of lithic artefacts within Pleistocene sequences. Therefore, stone tools offer an important source of information regarding hominin behaviour and evolution. Here we report on the potential of Oldowan and Acheulean flake artefacts to provide a record of the biomechanical demands placed on the hominin hand during Lower Palaeolithic stone tool production sequences. Specifically, we examine whether the morphometric attributes of stone flakes, removed via hard hammer percussion, preserve correlates of the pressures experienced across the dominant hand of knappers. Results show that although significant and positive relationships exist between flake metrics and manual pressure, these relationships vary significantly between subjects. Indeed, we identify two biomechanically distinct strategies employed by knappers; those that alter their hammerstone grip pressure in relation to flake size and mass and those who consistently exert relatively high manual pressures. All individuals experience relatively high gripping pressure when detaching particularly large flakes. Amongst other results, our data indicate that the distinctive large flake technology associated with the Acheulean techno-complex may be demonstrative of an ability to withstand, and by extension, to exert higher manual pressures. However inferences from smaller flake artefacts, especially, must be treated with caution due to the variable biomechanical strategies employed.

New insights on the late Pleistocene–Holocene lithic industry in East Kalimantan (Borneo): The contribution of three rock shelter sites in the karstic area of the Mangkalihat peninsula

This paper aims to present some aspects of the Late Pleistocene–Holocene lithic industry in the inland East Kalimantan region by studying the assemblages found in three rock shelter sites in the karstic area of the Mangkalihat peninsula. This study analyzes these assemblages in their regional techno-complex taking into consideration the environmental components. It focuses on certain aspects of stone flaking technology and the trends in the reduction sequences of the assemblages. Our results shows that the reduction sequences, flaking technology and the typology of the blanks and tools, persisted across the Pleistocene/Holocene boundary, as revealed in Liang Abu where the lithic artifacts were found throughout the stratigraphic sequence (over at least 20,000 years). Other excavations in Liang Jon and Liang Pemalawan have confirmed this continuity until the historical eras. In addition, this research emphasizes the potential influence of the environmental and climatic stability (persistence of the rain forest) during at least the last 40,000 years in this region, as well as the inland geographical location, on the continuity of the local stone flaking technology.

Holocene climatic fluctuation and lithic technological change in northeastern Hokkaido (Japan)

In Japan, a body of archaeological assemblages with radiocarbon dates has been providing better understanding of relationship between lithic technology, pottery culture, settlement system, social change, and environment.This paper presented newly conducted radiocarbon dating on charred residue on potteries from Initial Jomon sites in northeastern Hokkaido. This work evidenced current pottery typological chronology and allows us to confirm diachronic lithic technological change associated with these potteries. Regarding the lithic technology, it became clear that lithic technological change into sophisticated blade technology suddenly occurred around 8400cal BP, then lasted for very short time period until 8000cal BP in northeastern Hokkaido, and that there was a clear technological gap between this sophisticated blade technology and the previous or subsequent simple flake technology. Since lithic raw material procurement strategy changed during this period, it is supposed that settlement system and foraging strategy might also be reorganized.According to the correspondence between duration of the sophisticated blade technology and global climatic fluctuation, it is likely that 8.2ka climatic event (maximum duration is roughly 8300–8050cal BP) was responsible for this sudden change of blade technology. At present, regional environmental change driven by this global climatic fluctuation is not evidenced yet, but there is enough possibility that sudden appearance of sophisticated blade technology might have been caused not only by simple population dynamics or diffusion, but by rapid change in environmental condition.

From flint to quartz: Organization of lithic technology in relation to raw material availability during the pioneer process of Scandinavia

Formal technologies and intensified reduction are often seen as responses to increased mobility and low abundance of lithic raw material of good flakeability and controllability. In this paper, we discuss an alternative explanation to this hypothesis using the change in tool raw material experienced by flint-using pioneers, as they had to go from a formal blade technology to a simple flake technology as they settled in Scandinavia. The region is dominated by quartz, and we use use-wear data as a means to evaluate the role of this type of raw material compared to the use profile of flint assemblages in the home territories of the pioneers. Although the technology changed through simplification and loss of formal production rules, due to the low workability of quartz, we conclude that changes in the foraging range into areas of different quality tool raw materials does not need formalization of the technology. The quartz in our sample was produced with a simple platform/bipolar technology and used for a wide variety of activities in every aspect comparable to the range of uses identified in the contemporaneous blade assemblages based on flint. Instead of formalization of the lithic technology to cope with different quality raw materials, it was diversified and simplified. The organisational dimensions and design criteria of the bone technology, whereby simple flakes were used as insets in slotted tools, did not have to change in this process.

Rethinking the origin of microblade technology: A chronological and ecological perspective

There are four hypotheses on the origin of microblade technology in North China: i) that it originated from Siberia before the Last Glacial Maximum; ii) that it emerged in Siberia after the Last Glacial Maximum; iii) that it developed from the long-narrow flakes produced by the long-established knapping tradition in North China; and iv) that it had multi-regional origins, among which, a microblade industry may have emerged from the bipolar technology in northern China. Based on archaeological data from Siberia, Mongolia, the Japanese archipelago, Korean Peninsula, and North China, it is reasonable to say that the technological groundwork of Siberia was more substantial, and the initial microblade technology appeared in Siberia earlier than in the other areas. Microblade technology was involved in core preparation, systematic knapping, soft hammer and indirect/pressure flaking techniques, which were all present in the blade technology in Siberia but hardly ever evidenced in the traditional flaking technology systems in North China. It is well accepted that the microblade technology was closely related the high mobility of foragers to live in harsh environments. The climatic fluctuations of the last glacial in Siberia were more severe than in low latitudes, and placed greater subsistence pressure on hunter–gatherers in Siberia. The advantages of the initial microblade technology in dealing with these hostile circumstances encouraged foragers to employ and develop it, and finally generated its widespread use during the Upper Paleolithic through human migration and cultural transmission in Northeast Asia and North America.

The Bear Creek Site (45KI839), a Late Pleistocene–Holocene Transition Occupation in the Puget Sound Lowland, King County, Washington

The Bear Creek site in Redmond, Washington, yields important information about settlement, subsistence, and technology in the Puget Lowland during the late Pleistocene–Holocene transition. The lithic assemblage is dominated by expedient flake technology, but also contains bifaces and retouched tools. Ongoing analyses focus on site formation, procurement strategies of lithic raw materials, production of flake tools, and technological comparisons of Bear Creek stemmed and concave-base points with other Paleoarchaic technologies of western North America.

Middle Pleistocene hominin occupation in the Danjiangkou Reservoir Region, Central China: studies of formation processes and stone technology of Maling 2A site

Danjiangkou Reservoir Region (DRR) is one of the areas where Acheulean-like stone technology (Mode 2) was reported in central and south China. It is located at the end of the upper reaches of the Hanshui River (the largest tributary of the Yangtze River). Systematic field investigations documented more than ninety Paleolithic sites along the fluvial terraces of the Hanshui and Danjiang Rivers (the latter a tributary of the upper reach of the Hanshui River). Subsequent excavations at more than 30 sites led to the discovery of a large number of Paleolithic stone artifacts in the past decade, showing that early hominins lived in the region at least by the early part of the Middle Pleistocene. However, little is known from the archaeological record about the context of the sites and their formation processes, the technological characteristics of the stone artifact assemblages, and whether they truly belong to Mode 2 technology or just to core and flake technology, and the overall hominin behavioral patterns and adaptation during the Middle to Late Pleistocene.Maling locality 2A (ML2A) is buried in the front edge of the third alluvial terrace of the Danjiang River. Archaeological excavations, undertaken at the site in 2011, recovered 1026 stone artifacts from a red clay deposit. Preliminary OSL dating and geomorphological comparisons between the terraces in the Hanshui River system suggest that the site is dated to the late Middle Pleistocene. Patterns of artifact concentration suggest that the site was buried in secondary context where the stone artifacts were transported by water from a relatively higher location nearby. The artifacts, primarily made on quartzite and quartz cobbles, include cores, whole flakes, various fragments, retouched pieces, two bifaces and a hammerstone. All flaking is by direct hard hammer without core preparation. The majority of flakes in the early stages of core reduction indicate that the cores are not extensively reduced. Choppers are the predominant core category, together with discoids, polyhedrons, and core scrapers. It should be noted that two bifacially flaked cobbles can classed as mode 2 implements. Eleven retouched pieces are recognized, and they were casually modified by direct hammer percussion. Although only two bifaces were excavated from this site, many more are recorded in the larger study area. The ML2A artifact assemblage may be considered as a Chinese variant of an Acheulean-like (Mode 2) industry. It can be deduced that Homo erectus was likely the responsible for manufacturing the stone artifacts.

Lithic tool management in the Early Middle Paleolithic: an integrated techno-functional approach applied to Le Pucheuil-type production (Le Pucheuil, northwestern France)

The significant development of predetermined flake technologies marks the beginning of the Middle Paleolithic in Europe. This phenomenon is not only expressed by the increase in the Levallois methods, but it also includes a diversity of other flaking methods, e.g. micro-Levallois, Kombewa, truncated-faceted and Le Pucheuil, often related to secondary reduction sequences. The tool management and use patterns they fulfill are still largely unknown due to the scarcity of use-wear analyses, whereas their technological characteristics are well defined.In this paper we present a combined technological and functional study of Le Pucheuil-type flakes (Delagnes, 1993), from the eponymous Early Middle Paleolithic site of Le Pucheuil (northwestern France). The technical investment during the reduction sequence is relatively low but flaking is nevertheless guided by specific and constant technical rules which result in the production of predetermined flakes. These flakes share common morphotechnical attributes: an acute, straight or slightly curved, distal edge opposed to a robust and wide proximal area. The use-wear analysis shows that this morphology was clearly sought after insofar as the distal acute edges were used as working edges while the proximal edges served as prehensile areas. Despite their similarity, Le Pucheuil-type flakes were used for a variety of tasks, including butchery but also hide scraping, wood and non-woody plant working. Tool management suggests that their production responded to deferred and/or collective uses. Our combined approach points to: 1. the high degree of elaborateness and flexibility of the tool management strategies developed in the Early Middle Paleolithic in Europe, 2. the presence of long-lasting and multi-activity occupations in an open-air context during the harsh environmental conditions at the beginning of the penultimate glaciation (OIS 6). The results finally show the great potential of combined technological/functional approaches to lithic assemblages as a way to refine our understanding of the technical, social and economical organization of Neanderthal hunter-gatherers, most specifically in contexts where lithics are the only preserved materials.

“Modern behaviors” of ancient populations at Shuidonggou Locality 2 and their implications

Both the behavioral and skeletal evolution of Homo sapiens sapiens have been hotly debated for more than 20 years. This paper analyzes archaeological materials from Shuidonggou Locality 2 with respect to ecology, technology, economy and social organization, and symbolic behaviors. Locality 2 shows a range of cultural innovations in different archaeological layers. The continuous evolution of flake technology in North China from 40ka to 20ka supports the hypothesis of “Continuity with Hybridization” of Chinese ancient populations from a cultural perspective. On the premise of this model, seeking cultural innovations of Chinese ancient populations should focus on evolutionary processes leading to individual behaviors rather than identifying modern behaviors using a list summarized from materials derived from findings in Europe and Africa. The variation of behavior after the appearance of H. sapiens in China and elsewhere demands research into behavioral variability and its causes, instead of treating modern behavior as a single, homogeneous list of features.

Pleistocene magnetochronology of the fauna and Paleolithic sites in the Nihewan Basin: Significance for environmental and hominin evolution in North China

The fluvio-lacustrine sequences in the Nihewan Basin of North China (known as the Nihewan Formation) are rich sources of Early Pleistocene Paleolithic sites and mammalian fossils (known as the Nihewan Fauna sensu lato), which offer an excellent opportunity to investigate the evolution of early humans and land mammals in East Asia. Also abundant mammalian fossils provide clues about the general environmental and climatic setting of early humans. Among the Nihewan Fauna (sensu lato), the Daodi Fauna is one of the most complete and oldest in the eastern Nihewan Basin: seven mammalian fossil-bearing layers in the Nihewan Formation have been described. Except for a biostratigraphy, however, precise age control on the Daodi Fauna has remained unavailable. Here we report a new magnetostratigraphic record that stringently constrains its age. The seven fossil-rich layers span an age range of ca 2.5–1.8 Ma between the Gauss–Matuyama boundary and the termination of the Olduvai polarity subchron. Combining our new and recently published paleomagnetic data, we further establish a Pleistocene magnetochronology of the fauna and Paleolithic sites in the Nihewan Basin. Age ranges of about 2.5–0.5 Ma for the faunas and 1.7–0.3 Ma for the Paleolithic sites are deduced, which span most of the Pleistocene. The chronological framework and calculated proportions of mammals that were adapted to different environments indicate that mixed settings of dominant grasslands and subordinate forests continued at least from 2.5 to 0.5 Ma for early human occupation in the basin, similar to the mixed open savannah and woodland habitats of early humans in Africa. The Nihewan hominins consistently adopted a simple Oldowan-like technology (i.e., Mode 1 core and flake technologies) from at least ca 1.7 to 0.3 Ma. A more advanced Acheulean technology (Mode 2) has not been found in the Nihewan Basin, although it started to emerge in the Bose Basin of South China at ca 0.8 Ma. This implies that multiple groups of hominins distinguished by differential stone-tool-making capabilities may have coexisted in China after 0.8 Ma.

The development of Upper Palaeolithic China: new results from the Shuidonggou site

The Shuidonggou site cluster in northern China contains 12 different early prehistoric sequences with great potential to cast light on the transition to Upper Palaeolithic behaviour in East Asia. Here researchers present the latest results from Locality 2, reporting seven occupation levels with hearths, animal bone and diverse industries. Although previously compared with European Upper Palaeolithic sequences, the new work proposes a different trajectory of development. Distinctive macroblade technology arrived in the area, possibly from Mongolia or Siberia, about 41000–34000 years ago. This industry subsequently disappeared, to be replaced by flake technologies.

Applied Force as a Determining Factor in Lithic Use-Wear Accrual: An Experimental Investigation of its Validity as a Method with which to Infer Hominin Upper Limb Biomechanics

The advent of flake technology represented a fundamental shift in the capability of hominins to effectively access and process animal food sources. As such, the efficiency with which these tools were utilized is often widely implicated in palaeoanthropological debate, most pertinently, with regards to the evolution of upper limb biomechanics. Hence, it would then be of significance if the force, and by association efficiency, with which these tools were used is able to be determined. Presented here is the first attempt to correlate the force with which flaked tools are used to the associated microwear polish accrued on the lithics worked edge. This would potentially allow biomechanical inferences to be taken from stone artifacts and subsequently be applied to the populations that were using them. Twenty five participants of varying strength carried out a simple cutting task using small, unhafted flakes made from English chalk flint. Both maximum and mean applied force was recorded during these tasks by a sensor placed under the worked material while all other variables, including stroke count and flake size, were controlled for. Lithic polish was quantified through seven textural analyses of SEM micrographs. Results indicated that there were no statistically significant relationships between lithic polish and both maximum and mean applied force at low levels of variation. It is, however, suggested that given more archaeologically inferable experimental conditions then polish accrual may have displayed higher developmental distinctions, thus allowing lithic wear to differentiate between applied forces.

Middle to Late Pleistocene hominin occupation in the Three Gorges region, South China

The contributions of the Chinese Paleolithic record to broader ranging paleoanthropological debates – have long been difficult to decipher. The primary problem that hinders many contributions that include or focus on the Chinese record is that relatively few regions outside of the main flagship sites/basins (e.g., Zhoukoudian, Nihewan Basin, Bose Basin) have been intensively researched. Fortunately, systematic archaeological survey and excavations in the Three Gorges region, South China over the past two decades has led to the discovery of a number of important hominin fossils and Paleolithic stone artifact assemblages that have contributed to rethinking of ideas about hominin adaptations in Pleistocene China. This paper provides a detailed review of the results of recent paleoanthropological, particularly Paleolithic archaeological, research from this region.The Three Gorges region is located in the transitional zone between the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River (Changjiang River). Vertebrate paleontological studies indicate that the faunas from this region belong primarily to the Ailuropoda–Stegodon faunal complex, a group of taxa representative of a subtropical forest environment. Systematic field surveys identified sixteen Paleolithic sites in caves and along the fluvial terraces of the Yangtze River. Based on geomorphology, biostratigraphy, and geochronology studies, these sites were formed during the Middle to Late Pleistocene. Follow up excavations at these sites led to the discovery of a large number of Paleolithic stone artifacts, Pleistocene mammal fossils, as well as some hominin fossils. Analysis of these materials has provided the opportunity to reconstruct hominin technological and mobility patterning in a restricted spatial point. The Paleolithic technology from the Three Gorges region is essentially an Oldowan-like industry (i.e., Mode 1 core and flake technologies) comprised of casual cores, whole flakes, fragments, and chunks as well as a low percentage of retouched pieces. The utilized stone raw material is primarily high sphericity cobbles and limestone, which were locally available along the ancient river bed and surrounding terraces. Most of the artifacts are fairly large in size. All flaking is by direct hard hammer in a single direction without core preparation. Unifacial choppers are the predominant core category, with fewer bifacial choppers, sporadic discoids, polyhedrons, and bifaces. The flake types demonstrate that the first stage of core reduction is represented by a low percentage of Type III and VI flakes. Some flakes are retouched unifacially by direct hard hammer percussion on the dorsal surface of the blanks. Archaic Homo sapiens and modern H. sapiens identified from some of the cave deposits are likely the hominins responsible for the production of the stone artifacts. Implications for Oldowan-like technological patterning in South China are discussed.

Early Bronze Age Flint Technology and Flake Scatters in the North Syrian Steppe Along the Middle Euphrates

The domestic flint industry in the Early Bronze Age (EBA) is often considered to have employed expedient strategies in flake production. The technological traits of the flakes and tools thus produced are not thought to be period specific. This paper examines a flake assemblage from the EBA found in Tell Ghanem al-Ali, near Raqqa, Syria, and shows that the flake technology is well differentiated from the earlier ones employed in the Middle Euphrates Valley. The technology can be defined as a cortex-platform technology that was applied to produce thick, naturally backed flake blanks. Identification of assemblages with this particular technology contributes to the broadening of the research field for economic strategies of EBA society. It facilitates the dating of numerous aceramic flake scatters from the EBA in the steppe hinterland of the Middle Euphrates, which gives us a new dimension for reconstructing the land use patterns of this period.

Evidence for the earliest Pleistocene hominid activity in the Nihewan Basin of northern China

The Nihewan Basin in North China contains the densest concentration of early Pleistocene Paleolithic sites outside Africa. This paper introduces a new archaeological site complex at Madigou (MDG) that was systematically excavated from 2011 to 2014 in the northeastern part of the Nihewan Basin. The site contains fossils and well-preserved stone artefacts in fluvio-lacustrine sediments. Our magnetostratigraphic results situate the MDG sedimentary sequence in the early Brunhes normal chron and the late Matuyama reverse chron, including the Jaramillo normal subchron. The MDG artifact layers are positioned within the pre-Jaramillo Matuyama chron, with an estimated age of ca. 1.2 Ma, close to the onset of Mid-Pleistocene climate transition. The MDG core and flake technology includes bipolar flaking of siliceous dolomite cobbles, and freehand flaking of chert and brecciated chert block fragments. Mammalian fauna and pollen compositions indicate that the MDG hominins lived in an open habitat varying from lightly-wooded grassland to an ecosystem dominated by sparse steppe near the shore of the Nihewan paleolake. Our combined results in the fields of archaeology, paleontology, palynology and magnetochronology suggest that innovations in technological behavior may correlate with adaptations to high environmental variability during the start of Mid-Pleistocene climate transition.

Continuities in stone flaking technology at Liang Bua, Flores, Indonesia

This study examines trends in stone tool reduction technology at Liang Bua, Flores, Indonesia, where excavations have revealed a stratified artifact sequence spanning 95 k.yr. The reduction sequence practiced throughout the Pleistocene was straightforward and unchanging. Large flakes were produced off-site and carried into the cave where they were reduced centripetally and bifacially by four techniques: freehand, burination, truncation, and bipolar. The locus of technological complexity at Liang Bua was not in knapping products, but in the way techniques were integrated. This reduction sequence persisted across the Pleistocene/Holocene boundary with a minor shift favoring unifacial flaking after 11 ka. Other stone-related changes occurred at the same time, including the first appearance of edge-glossed flakes, a change in raw material selection, and more frequent fire-induced damage to stone artifacts. Later in the Holocene, technological complexity was generated by “adding-on” rectangular-sectioned stone adzes to the reduction sequence. The Pleistocene pattern is directly associated with Homo floresiensis skeletal remains and the Holocene changes correlate with the appearance of Homo sapiens. The one reduction sequence continues across this hominin replacement.