Flint Assemblages Research Articles

Ein Qedem 2. A Kebaran site in Nahal Galim, Mount Carmel, Israel

Ein Qedem 2 (EQ2) is an open-air Kebaran site (Early Epipalaeolithic period, ca. 22 000 –17 500 calBP) located on the slope of Mount Carmel, Israel. The site is a part of a complex of prehistoric sites situated around the perennial spring of Ein Qedem and near the outskirts of the city of Haifa. EQ2, located near affluent sources of flint, presents ample evidence for Kebaran flint knapping. The rich flint assemblage provides valuable information concerning the microlithic industry, one of the hallmarks of the Epipalaeolithic period in this region.

Federmesserkulturen i Danmark – Belyst med udgangspunkt i en amatørarkæologs flintsamling

Federmesserkulturen i Danmark – Belyst med udgangspunkt i en amatørarkæologs flintsamling

"I'll have a Flake to go, Please"

This paper presents and discusses the results of a technological analysis of a small chipped flint assemblage recovered from a fortified Late Bronze Age (c.1100-800 cal BC) to Earliest Iron Age (c.800-600 cal BC) ‘ringwork’ at Mucking, Essex, England, excavated in the late 1970s. Technological data for this assemblage indicate a characteristically ‘expedient’ core technology, attesting to highly localised raw material procurement and a general lack of control, or concern over, both core reduction and tool production processes. On-site core reduction can be characterized as simple, unsystematic and generally wasteful. Dominated by miscellaneous retouched flakes and scrapers, the retouched component of the assemblage suggests a similarly informal approach to tool production on the site. Together, these findings are consistent with those of other Late Bronze to Earliest Iron Age chipped flint assemblages from eastern England. Existing explanatory models for assemblages of these periods have emphasized progressive functional substitution and the changing social role of chipped stone artefacts as key influences on the organization of lithic technology. Whilst recognising the major interpretive value of these models, it is argued here that two other critically important influences, namely, sedentism and raw material availability, have to date been overlooked.

Refitting Etton: Space, Time, and Material Culture Within a Causewayed Enclosure in Cambridgeshire

This paper considers the dynamics of deposition around and across the causewayed enclosure at Etton, Cambridgeshire. As a result of detailed re-analysis (particularly refitting) of the pottery and flint assemblages from the site, it proved possible to shed new light both on the temporality of occupation and the character of deposition there. Certain aspects of our work challenge previous interpretations of the site, and of causewayed enclosures in general; but, just as importantly, others confirm materially what has previously been suggested. The quantities of material deposited at Etton reveal that the enclosure was occupied only very intermittently and certainly less regularly than other contemporary sites in the region. The spatial distribution of material suggests that the enclosure ditch lay open for the entirety of the monument's life, but that acts of deposition generally focused on a specific part of the monument at any one time. As well as enhancing our knowledge of one particular causewayed enclosure, it is hoped that this paper – in combination with our earlier analysis of the pit site at Kilverstone – makes clear the potential that detailed material analysis has to offer in relation to our understanding of the temporality of occupation on prehistoric sites in general.

Towards an understanding of Early Neolithic populations: a flint perspective from Bulgaria

The evidence from the Bulgarian Early Neolithic chipped stone industry reveals coherent and diagnostic flint assemblages for the vast Karanovo I and II cultural area, characterized by high quality yellow-honey coloured flint, quite long and regular blades, with (bi)lateral semi-abrupt high retouch and sometimes with rounded or pointed ends, as well as highly (re-)used sickle inserts. These assemblages possess many characteristics of so-called ‘formal tools’ (as distinct from expedient ones), the production of which required a special raw material, advanced preparation, anticipated use, and transportability. The wide geographical distribution and circulation of this formal toolkit implies that lithics could be conceived as a factor in identity and social cohesion, and as an important aspect of the Neolithic mentality for ‘doing things’.

A Final Upper Palaeolithic Site at La Sagesse Convent, Romsey, Hampshire

Excavations at La Sagesse Convent, Romsey, uncovered a Final Upper Palaeolithic flint assemblage representing an open-air, short-term camp. The site is in the Test Valley on a low gravel terrace at the edge of the river system. Two scatters were found. Although not in situ, little lateral movement is indicated for at least one of these scatters from which several core reduction sequences could be determined through a programme of refitting. The other scatter appears to have suffered more post-depositional disturbance. One scatter appears to have functioned as a knapping station, while the other may have been an area of tool production. Chronological, technological, and cultural affinities are discussed and it is concluded that the flint assemblage belongs with the Final Upper Palaeolithic Hengistbury-type industries, probably dating to the second part of the Windermere interstadial (c. 12,500–11,000 cal BC; 12,000–11,000 BP).

Settlement and economy in a changing prehistoric lowland landscape: an East Yorkshire (UK) case study

This article assesses the major changes in landscape and coastline, which took place in an area adjacent to the northern shore of the inner estuary of the river Humber, in East Yorkshire, UK, from the beginning of the Holocene to the Iron Age. It considers the effect of these changes on material culture as represented by artefact distributions, including flint assemblages and polished stone tools located during field survey. The conclusions presented here derive from a continuing programme of research in this study area and they are placed in the context of the wider Humber region and the North Sea Basin. This article advocates a restoration of balance with regard to geographical determinism – a new pragmatism – accepting that environmental factors have a great importance in determining the nature and location of certain activities in the past, though cannot be used to explain them all.

Flint procurement strategies in the Late Lower Palaeolithic recorded by in situ produced cosmogenic 10Be in Tabun and Qesem Caves (Israel)

The in situ produced cosmogenic beryllium isotope, 10Be, in flint artifacts from different layers in prehistoric caves can provide information on flint procurement. The buildup of 10Be in a flint matrix is related to the exposure time of the flint to cosmic rays. Although this exposure history can be complex, the 10Be content of flint assemblages can show whether the raw material was obtained from shallow mining and/or surface collection as opposed to sediments two or more meters below the surface. Flint artifact assemblages from two Palaeolithic caves in Israel, Tabun and Qesem, were analyzed. In Tabun cave the flint artifacts from Lower Layer E (Acheulo-Yabrudian, around 400 000–200 000 yr) contain very small amounts of 10Be, which is consistent with flint procured from sediments two or more meters deep. Artifacts from above and below Tabun Lower Layer E show a more complex distribution, as do artifacts from all layers of Qesem cave (Acheulo-Yabrudian). This is probably due to the fact that they were surface collected and/or mined from shallow (less than 2 m) depths. We show here that artifact assemblages have different concentrations of 10Be, indicating different raw material procurement strategies.

Høje, landskab og bosættelse – Rekognosceringer ved Tobøl-Plougstrup-højgruppen

Høje, landskab og bosættelse – Rekognosceringer ved Tobøl-Plougstrup-højgruppen

An Early Mesolithic Seasonal Hunting Site in the Kennet Valley, Southern England

A small-scale excavation, undertaken in advance of building works at Faraday Road, Newbury, Berkshire, encountered an apparently intact Early Mesolithic layer containing abundant worked flint directly associated with animal bones. The site lay on the floodplain of the River Kennet in an area already well-known for Mesolithic remains and certainly represents an extension of the site found at nearby Greenham Dairy Farm in 1963. The flint assemblage was dominated by obliquely-blunted microlithic forms accompanied by a restricted range of other items. The animal bones were, unusually, dominated by wild pig with clear evidence of both primary butchery and food waste. Spatial analysis of the bone and flint assemblages indicated discrete activity areas, possibly associated with hearths. Both pollen and molluscan data were recovered which, together with the results of soil micromorphological examination, confirmed an Early Holocene date for the formation of the Mesolithic layer. Radiocarbon dates place the site in the late 10th–early 9th millennium BP. The paper re-examines the nature of known Early Mesolithic activity in this part of the Kennet valley, with particular reference to the specific environmental conditions that seem to have prevailed. It is concluded that the Faraday Road site represents one part of a continuum of Early Mesolithic occupation that stretches along a considerable length of the floodplain, with each focus of activity witnessing repeated, but intermittent, occupation spanning a period of more than a millennium.

A Canaanean Blade Workshop at Haruvim, Israel

Har Haruvim is an Early Bronze Age settlement located near Kibbutz Hazorea in central Israel (Fig. 1). The site was surveyed in the 1950's and 60's (Meyerhof 1960), and is well known for its many Canaanean cores. Ceramic sherds date the site to the early Bronze Age II-III. This article presents the flint assemblage collected in 1997 during a survey conducted by the authors on behalf of the Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University. The survey covered only a small part of the early Bronze Age site, and concentrated on (and around) a heap of rocks located at the highest part of the site (Fig. 2). It is suggested that the heap reprsents the remains of a Canaanean blade workshop.

Resharpening and Recycling of Flint Bifacial Tools from the Southern Levant Neolithic and Chalcolithic

This paper attempts at reconstructing the life cycle of flint bifacial tools in two major technological trajectories, each aimed at a different end. It is focused on discarded polished flint bifacial tools (axe, adze, chisel) and bifacial polished debitage items found in Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites (9th–6th millennium BP) from the Southern Levant.Recent studies of Holocene flint assemblages revealed special types of debitage items such as blades, flakes, cores and core trimming elements, all bearing traces of polish. The discovery of these polished debitage items in Levantine sites enabled a study of bifacial tool resharpening and recycling techniques, emphasising the exceptional attention paid to this tool category. Since polished bifacial tools appear in many old world Holocene archaeological contexts, the data and interpretation presented in this study have implications far beyond the Southern Levant and could relate to universal technological properties of flint axes and other bifacial tools.

Excavations at the Lower Palaeolithic site at East Farm, Barnham, Suffolk 1989–92

Preliminary results are presented from three seasons' work at the Lower Palaeolithic site at Barnham. The complex stratigraphy is described and a provisional interpretation given, which suggests that the archaeological deposits date to a warm phase after the Anglian (Middle Pleistocene) cold stage. A fauna1 assemblage from the deposits is described, providing an environmental and biostratigraphic context for the site. Further geochronological control is provided by amino acid ratios on shells from the sequence. Two flint assemblages have been excavated, the first consisting of flakes and cores, and the second including bifaces. These assemblages and their position in the British sequence are considered in terms of their stratigraphic context and their relationship to other Lower Palaeolithic assemblages in the British Isles.

The lichens of chalk grassland

Abstract: Following a nationwide survey, the lichen vegetation associated with chalk grassland in England is described. The flora can be divided into species associated with flints (78 spp.), those found on chalk pebbles (65) and those occurring on the ground (72). Factors governing the distribution of the species were investigated. An important determinant of the flint assemblage is the degree of surface leaching, which is linked to stability; large flints embedded in turf are particularly rich. Chalk-pebble lichens reach their maximum development at sites where faulting or other influences have hardened the substratum. Terricolous species have rather specialized requirements, being favoured by stresses associated with nutrient depletion, past disturbance, soil compaction, drought, rabbits, trampling by shoes (rather than hooves), and the presence of a small loess fraction in the soil. On both a national and a local scale, climate has been demonstrated to affect the distribution of certain species. Guidelines on the assessment of localities for conservation are provided and used to identify elite sites. A recent decline in the extent and species diversity of terricolous communities is giving cause for concern. Management requirements for conservation are discussed. They include recognizing the importance of intermittent disturbance; most of the richest sites are less than a hundred years old. The lichen flora has affinities with that present in urban areas. The survey provides an example of the importance of historical factors in determining the ecology of lichen communities in the cultural landscape.

Early Upper Paleolithic Sites in the Qadesh Barnea Area, NE Sinai

Abstract This paper describes four Upper Paleolithic sites from NE Sinai, near Quseime. Three of them are in a primary context, two of which yielded radiocarbon dates of ca. 33,000–32,000 years b.p. They are embedded in a silt-sand terrace that is attributed to a relatively wet phase of the Early Upper Paleolithic period. The sites are small camps, remnants of living surfaces, with numerous flint artifacts, limestone anvils and hammers, ochre flecks, and ostrich eggshells. The flint assemblages are dominated by numerous fine blades, some of which were either retouched or backed. The Qadesh Barnea assemblages, along with similar assemblages from the Negev and Sinai, represent the earliest and best-documented Upper Paleolithic culture in the Levant, the Lagaman, which is broadly contemporary (ca. 40,000–30,000 b.p.) with the Early Aurignacian of Europe and the French Castel-perronian.

Upper Palaeolithic Sites in the Ramat Matred Area

In the course of the survey on the Ramat Matred plateau, four new Upper Palaeolithic sites—RM I, RM IV, HL IV, and HL V — have been found and collected. The first is a large site with numerous artefacts, while the other three are small and poor. On the basis of techno-typological analyses, the flint assemblages are dated to the second half of the Upper Palaeolithic period (c. 25,000–17000 B.P.). RM I and possibly RM IV are assemblages dominated by flakes and endscrapers/burins and belong to the Divshon/ Aqev culture, which is a segment of the Levantine Aurignacian tradition. The assemblages of HL IV and HL V show a laminar tendency and can be regarded as a segment of the Ahmarian tradition, later derivatives of the Lagaman culture.The three small sites are ephemeral occupations of foragers whose main base was the Zin canyon and its permanent water sources.

Burnt Stone at West Heath, Hampstead

British mesolithic sites, often on acid sands, tend to yield little organic material other than charcoal. Flint assemblages form the greatest part of the archaeological evidence. Quantities of burnt stone are usually present. They may be a source of information on past avctivities and so provide important supporting data for the knapped flint. Experiments were carried out to ascertain if the red and white stones, recovered at West Heath, had been burnt.

Burnt Stone at West Heath, Hampstead

British mesolithic sites, often on acid sands, tend to yield little organic material other than charcoal. Flint assemblages form the greatest part of the archaeological evidence. Quantities of burnt stone are usually present. They may be a source of information on past avctivities and so provide important supporting data for the knapped flint. Experiments were carried out to ascertain if the red and white stones, recovered at West Heath, had been burnt.

Functional Analysis of Chipped Stone Artefacts from the Late Neolithic Site of Gabal Na'ja, Eastern Jordan.

Sites of "Burin Neolithic" type in the Bādiyat al-Šām have high proportions of burins in the flint assemblages. Microwear studies have been done to find out how the burins may have been used. The results of these studies suggest that most of the burins were used, not as tools, but as cores for the production of spalls.

The Flint Industry of Naḥal Zehora I, a Wadi Raba Site in the Menashe Hills

This article analyzes the flint assemblage from Naḥal Zehora I, a single-component site containing pottery identified as Wadi Raba. Technological and typological characteristics are quantitatively described and attention is drawn to the presence of the old-new chamfered pieces. By comparison with other assemblages, a mid-fifth millennium B. C. date is suggested for this assemblage.