Microblade Production Research Articles

Adaptions of hunter-gatherers before Younger Dryas in Gobi Desert, northwest China: Flexible technological strategies in Pigeon Mountain Locality 10

The role of Oasis-based economies was pivotal for Hunter-gatherers in the Gobi Desert following the Last Glacial Maximum. Despite this significance, there has been a lack of systematic technological studies on lithic assemblages to investigate the technological strategies employed by hunter-gatherers for desert adaptation. In this study, we conducted a lithic analysis based on new excavations at Pigeon Mountain Locality 10 (QG10), focusing on archaeological remains from CL3 and CL2 dating back to 13.7–11.7 ka cal BP. Our findings reveal that the lithic technology employed reflects a flexible strategy, characterized by expedient flake production, the versatility of flake cores, and a diverse array of microblade cores and tools. Notably, we observed an expedient organizational strategy in microblade production, involving minimal investment in pre-shaping microblade cores and reduced depletion in core rejuvenation. Additionally, there was a heightened use of local quartzite raw materials, indicating enhanced flexibility, possibly influenced by the relatively dry and cold environmental changes during that period.

Early Beringian Traditions: Functioning and Economy of the Stone Toolkit from Swan Point CZ4b, Alaska

AbstractThe pressure knapping technique develops circa 25,000 cal BP in Northeast Asia and excels at producing highly standardized microblades. Microblade pressure knapping spreads throughout most of Northeast Asia up to the Russian Arctic, and Alaska, in areas where the human presence was unknown. Swan Point CZ4b is the earliest uncontested evidence of human occupation of Alaska, at around 14,000 cal BP. It yields a pressure microblade component produced with the Yubetsu method, which is widespread in Northeast Asia during the Late Glacial period. Through the techno-functional analysis of 634 lithic pieces from this site, this study seeks to identify the techno-economical purposes for which the Yubetsu method was implemented. Data show that the microblade production system is related to an economy based on the planning of future needs, which is visible through blanks standardization, their overproduction, their functional versatility, and the segmentation of part of the chaîne opératoire. This expresses the efficiency and economic value of the microblade production system. The flexible use of pressure microblades identified at Swan Point CZ4b is also found in Japan, Korea, Kamchatka, and the North Baikal region, suggesting that their modes of use accompany the spread of early microblade pressure knapping over an immense territory across Beringia.

Last Glacial Maximum Microblade Production at Shizitan 29 and its Implications for North China Pressure Technology

ABSTRACT A techno-functional approach applied to the lithics of the Late Upper Palaeolithic Shizitan 29 site allows the identification of previously unrecognized technical features of microblade pressure production and new behavioral understanding of its evolution beginning ca. 26,000 cal b.p. These technical features may relate to the evolution of so-called boat-shaped cores, including the development of two blade scar sequences and the 8-like contour of the striking platform (likely related to fixing cores in a holding device). Counter to traditional typological lithic analyses centered on final core morphologies, we seek to identify technical objectives related to the required pressure production. In doing so, we argue that earlier semi-conical cores may have maximized the exploitation of the core volume, while subsequent boat-shaped cores developed to maximize the efficiency of the production of straight profile, regular blades. This allowed microblades to become a critical adaptation for final Pleistocene hunter-gatherers in northern East Asia.

New Discoveries and Theoretical Implications for the Last Foraging and First Farming in East Asia

A brief summation of the issue’s articles is presented. This leads to a discussion of thematic issues of concepts, methods, and theory that crosscut the articles. These include use of the EnvCalc2.1 program, some issues of terminology, the theoretical approaches of niche construction as opposed to human behavioral ecology (HBE), and the linkage between technology and subsistence change, notably the difference between biface and microblade production.

Microblade Technology in Northern Sweden: Chronological and Cultural Irnplications

This article deals with Mesolithic microblade technology in northern Sweden. The artifacts in question are keeled scrapers, microblade cores, i.e. handle cores (also called wedge-shaped cores) and conical/cylindrical microblade cores, and microblades from Norrland and the provinces of Dalarna and Värmland. It is proposed that microblade production from handle cores was introduced perhaps as early as 7700/7500 BP in northern Sweden, but at least some time during the period 8000—7000 BP. It is possible that this type of core survives right up to ca. 5500 BP. The north Swedish handle core tradition is compared with its neighboring cultures. It is argued that microblade production from oblong handle cores was an innovation that spread from southern Scandinavia or southeastem Norway/western Sweden to northern Sweden during the Early Atlantic period. The Scandinavian handle core tradition as a whole is further compared with its counterparts in northeastern Asia and North America

Towards improved identification of obsidian microblade and microblade-like debitage knapping techniques: A case study from the Last Glacial Maximum assemblage of Kawanishi-C in Hokkaido, Northern Japan

Until recently, several hypotheses on the origin(s) and dispersion of microblade technology in Northeast Asia have been presented and discussed. Although various definitions of microblade and bladelet have been proposed in diverse geographic and chronological contexts, several researchers may agree that the pressure knapping technique for microblade production plays a paramount role in the process of significant changes in lithic technology and human behaviours between marine isotope stages (MIS) 3 and 2. One of the main topics in the study of microblade technology in Northeast Asia is establishing a systematic and reliable method for identifying microblade knapping techniques that are quantitatively verified. This paper attempts to present a more improved method for identifying microblade knapping techniques by dealing with the analysis of fracture wings which are the reliable indicators of the crack velocity. The focus of this paper is on identifying obsidian microblade-like debitage knapping techniques in the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) assemblage of Kawanishi-C in Hokkaido, Northern Japan. The results of fracture wing analysis show that the microblade-like longitudinal debitage production at the Kashiwadai-C site was employed by not pressure but percussion techniques. This gives new insights into the diversity of microblade and microblae-like debitage reduction sequences in the LGM Hokkaido and complex process of significant changes in lithic technology, especially in relation to the emergence of microblade technology. In addition, this study shows that the analysis of fracture wings can allow appropriate technological evaluation of the microblades and microblade-like longitudinal debitage production in the period before and around the LGM in Northeast Asia.

Возникновение микролитического производства в Монголии: исследовательская терминология и хроностратиграфическая позиция индустрий в верхнем палеолите восточной и южной части Азии

Territory of Mongolia is situated in the center of Asia, a crossroad of the potential migration routes, that connect different Eurasian macroregions. Here an example of earliest appearance and longterm existence of small blade and microblade production has been found. Beyond that, the industries, that appeared within limited area of the Middle Selenga Basin in the late MIS3 — early MIS2, contained the earliest for Northern and Central Asia geometric and non-geometric microliths. They have been found in the sediments of Kharganyn Gol 5 and Tolbor-4, — 16 and –21. They end up in LGM — post- LGM which cause depopulation in the region and following changes in the human groups, occupying this territory. An understanding of the character, causes and specifics of such early appearance of the microblade and bladelet production, and especially geometric microliths, impose the arrangement and definition of the terminology, associated with microlithic assemblages in Asia. This is due to the fact that in the archaeological definitions of both processes and the desired forms of artifacts associated with the production and use of microliths, there are significant discrepancies that complicate the understanding of the described phenomena. The article provides an overview of the research terminology of microlithization processes, and also determines the position of the microlithic complexes of Mongolia in the Upper Paleolithic system of the eastern part of Asia. Keywords: Mongolia, East Asia, Upper Paleolithic, lithic industries, microlithic technology

Исследование комплексов среднего и верхнего палеолита Денисовой пещеры в 2021 году

The authors present results of the studies of the lithic industries associated with the upper part of the Pleistocene deposits in the South Chamber of Denisova Cave; the lithics were recovered in the course of excavations in 2021. The collection of artifacts from layers 12, 11, and 9 includes over 4,000 items. According to the absolute dates of the Pleistocene layers in the entryway zone of the South Chamber, layer 12 formed in the second half of MIS 4, and layer 11 accumulated in the first half of MIS 3. The sediments of layer 9 are presumably associated with MIS 2. Primary reduction strategy of the Middle Paleolithic complex from layer 12 is characterized by the use of the Levallois technique of detaching flakes, blades and points. Other cores were fashioned through parallel and radial reduction, which is fully consistent with the flake industry. Side-scrapers of various types are most numerous in the toolkit. The Early Upper Paleolithic industry associated with layer 11is based on the well developed blade technique, incl. small and micro-blade production. Most of the items in the list of typologically significant tools are the tools of the apparent Upper Paleolithic morphology — end-scrapers, burins, retouched blades, backed bladelets and micro-blades, perforators and chisel-like tools. The small archaeological collection from layer 9, as well as the industry from layer 11, is characterized by the well-developed lamellar reduction and the Upper Paleolithic types in the toolkit. This complex illustrates continuous development of the Upper Paleolithic traditions at the medial stage of this period.

Lithic Industry of the Itomiura Site in the Lower Angara Region (Neolithic and Bronze Ages): Spatial Organization and Key Characteristics

The article presents the results of the analysis of the collection of the Itomiura site located in the Lower Angara region. As for today, no markers or concepts of stone industry dynamics in the Neolithic and Bronze Age have been described for the territory of the Lower Angara region. The materials of the Itomiura site allow us to define some of these concepts. Based on the spatial distribution of findings in the cultural layer of the site, we identified 12 areas of concentration of stone pieces (clusters). The areas differ in their composition and types of economic and production activities held. Knapping areas with large amounts of debitage, unfinished items and used microcores predominate. There are also areas that are likely to be more associated with the use of stone tools and their rejuvenating. The combined occurrence of stone pieces with pottery fragments made it possible to distinguish several cultural and chronological complexes. The most clearly identifiable complexes are one with net-impressed pottery, previously dated to the late – final Neolithic period (4th – first half of the 3rd millennium BC), and another with “pearl-ribbed” pottery of the Bronze Age (2nd millennium BC). The Neolithic complex is characterized by the use of various siliceous raw materials. The Bronze Age complex is marked by a wide use of purple-burgundy sedimentary rocks, the specificity of the industry in this period is also created by a series of bifacial items and thinned preforms. Stone industries of both assemblages include a variety of expedient flake tools and microblade production products, represented by different prismatic and edge-faceted cores. The data obtained, with their further correlation with the materials of other sites, can be used for the further study of stone industries of the Lower Angara region and the development of the concept of regional paleocultural dynamics

Technological transitions and human-environment interactions in Mesolithic southeastern Norway, 11 500–6000 cal. BP

In Northern Europe, the Holocene is characterized by climatic and environmental variations. A central question is how hunter-gatherer in different regions coped with these changes. In this article, we explore the temporal co-variance between environmental change and transitions in lithic technology during the Mesolithic of southeastern Norway. The empirical starting point comprises technological analysis of lithic assemblages from sites dated between 11 500 and 6000 cal. BP. We focus on two transitions identified in the lithic assemblages: 1) the introduction of the conical core pressure blade technology and ground macro tool technology, c. 10 300–10 100 cal. BP, and 2) the introduction of microblade production on handle cores and changes in the macro tool assemblage, c. 7700-7500 cal. BP. The main objective is to investigate the factors influencing transitions in material culture, and contribute to the discussion of the complexity and diversity of human-environment interactions during the Mesolithic of Northern Europe. The results from this study contribute to an increasing knowledge on the diversity and complexity of hunter-gatherers relation with environmental and climatic variation, and add more insight to the vital question of how we can understand culture change among past populations.

THE UPPER PALEOLITHIC SITE KORMAN’ 9

Near the village of Korman’ (Sokyryany district, Chernivtsi region, Ukraine) several Palaeolithic sites are known. In the 1960s and 70s, O. P. Chernysh conducted archaeological studies of the site Korman’ IV. In 2012 the new Palaeolithic site named as Korman’ 9 was discovered by the Dniester Palaeolithic expedition of the IA NASU. A preliminary fieldwork season was conducted in 2013. The main research focused on the chronostratigraphic and palaeoenvironmental study of the site. In the approximately 4 metres thick Quaternary deposits (dating to the late Pleniglacial), three Upper Paleolithic levels were observed.
 The main raw materials used by late Pelistocene humans were local Turonian and Cenomanian flint. The faunal remains in all levels are dominated by reindeer.
 In level I two fireplaces were recorded. One about 1 m in diameter has a layer of burnt loess at its bottom with a thickness of about 10 cm. The collection of 932 lithic artifacts comprises cores, tools, blanks, chips, and chunks. The primary knapping is characterized by parallel uni- and bi-directional blade, bladelet and microblade production. The tools (n = 92) are dominated by backed bladelets / microblades (n = 69). There is a single endscraper, and the few burins are represented by dihedral burins (n = 2), one bruin on a a break and one on a truncation. Other tools represented are bilaterally retouched points, borer, combination tool and retouched pieces. Additionally, in level I, the following personal ornaments were found: one pendant of amber, one pendant of fox tooth, one pendant of a perforated shell and three shell beads.
 Level II. A collection of 20 flint artifacts is presented exclusively by the products of primary flaking.
 In level III, a small number of flint artifacts (n = 67) were recovered, including two cores, one endscraper, and three retouched pieces.
 The lithic industry of level I, according to the technical-typological characteristic and chronostratigraphic position, can be attributed to the Epi-Gravettian technocomplex.
 It is possible, that the collection of level II also belongs to the same technocomplex, but due to the small number of finds, the authors refrain from concrete conclusions. Collection of level III on the base of morphological features can be attributed to the Gravettian technocomplex and is currently undated.

Re-thinking the evolution of microblade technology in East Asia: Techno-functional understanding of the lithic assemblage from Shizitan 29 (Shanxi, China).

The lithic assemblage from Shizitan 29, a late Upper Paleolithic open-air site in Shanxi, China, provides evidence for the earliest, well-dated microblade production in East Asia, ca. 26/24 Ka cal BP. To pursue a behavioral rather than traditional typological understanding of this key adaptive technology, we apply a techno-functional approach that enables us to reconstruct the entire operational sequence in behavioral terms through the derivation of technical objectives. This methodology can serve as a model to be applied to other assemblages for greater understanding of the origins and spread of the broadly distributed eastern Asian Late Pleistocene microblade industries. Within the eight cultural layers at Shizitan 29, microblade production abruptly appears at the top of Layer 7 following earlier core-and-flake production, supporting hypotheses of microblade technology arising within adaptive strategies to worsening Late Glacial Maximum environments. Significantly, reconstruction of the operational sequence supports microblade technology being introduced into the North China Loess Plateau from regions further north. It also allows us to re-think microblades’ relationship in behavioral terms with earlier limited examples of East Asian blade production and the evolution and spread of microblade technology, providing new insights into the adaptive relationships between subsequent microblade productions.

К вопросу об истоках производства микропластин в толбагинской культуре раннего верхнего палеолита Забайкалья

Nowadays the territory of Western Transbaikalia is the place where the stages of Early and Final stages of Paleolithic are presented. This is due to the presence of excavated and investigated stratified archaeological objects dated to that time. The sites of Final Paleolithic in Transbaikalia are characterized by production and using in the work of a large number of microblades and small blades. The leading type of cores is a wedge-shaped core in different modifications. The question of a place, time or reasons concerning the origin of microblade production remains relevant for Northern Eurasia. Different elements of the stone industry, which reflect knapping small blades and microblades in early stage of Upper Paleolithic in Western Transbaikal, are shown on the example of archeological materials from the 3d cultural layer of Eastern Complex at the Podzvonkaya site, one of the largest archeological objects referred to the early stage of Upper Paleolithic in Western Transbaikal. The method of forming accommodation zones on the large blades belongs to such elements. For this purpose, part of the edge of the plate was reduced by deliberately chopping of small plates and microplates from it. Archeological materials demonstrate variants of getting microblades in the result of chisel-like tools’ edge damage during the exploitation process and in the result of removing longitudinal ridges by burin flakes. These variants of raw material knapping formed the methods of getting microblades and small blades, but these flake types were used very rarely because Tolbaginskaya culture stone industry was oriented on the production of large blades and tools. The requirement of small blades and microblades mass production arises later and, possibly, forms in the core of another culture tradition-industry of the 7g and 8 layers of multilayered archaeological site of Barun-Alan-1.

Yokomichi : Une collection du Paléolithique supérieur du Japon abordée selon un œil technologique français

Depuis les années 1970, l’étude des collections lithiques préhistoriques a vécu en France une profonde modernisation. André Leroi-Gourhan, d’abord intéressé par les techniques traditionnelles, prit pour objectif d’appréhender les activités techniques menées dans un site par un groupe préhistorique, dans une perspective ainsi dénommée « palethnologique ». Il a aussi promu la notion de chaîne opératoire introduite auparavant par Marcel Mauss. Mais ce sont les expérimentateurs de la taille des roches dures, F. Bordes et J. Tixier, qui vont permettre d’enrichir cette notion de ses applications concrètes. J. Tixier, surtout, stabilise la terminologie de la pierre taillée, et systématise la « lecture technologique » qui permet de reconstituer mentalement le déroulement du façonnage d’un outil ou du débitage d’un nucléus. Il introduit aussi une distinction fondamentale entre « méthode » (la démarche -l’agencement des enlèvements successifs- suivie pour atteindre le but de la chaîne opératoire : un type ou une classe de produits) et « technique(s) » (qui réfère aux modalités pratiques d’exécution des enlèvements).
 Sur cette base, dès 1980, Tixier et collègues introduisent les notions d’économie des matières premières, du débitage et de l’outillage, corollaires de la notion de règles de gestion. La notion d’intention -entre débitage, supports et (certains) outils- apparaît également, fondant le postulat selon lequel les modalités de la taille sont cohérentes avec la morphologie des produits recherchés. C’est ce postulat que suit la démarche française en technologie lithique : percevoir -comprendre- les intentions de la production lithique, avant de classer et de mesurer.
 Cette démarche est ensuite appliquée à la collection lithique de Yokomichi (Dept de Yamagata, NE de Honshu), à débitage laminaire mais antérieure à la production de lamelles, ainsi datable d’environ 18 000 BP. On perçoit d’abord qu’y coexistent deux débitages laminaires : l’un de lames légères et rectilignes à petit talon, tirées de nucléus étroits, et l’autre de fortes lames à talons épais débitées de nucléus plus larges. Parmi les outils retouchés, ce sont les quelques « couteaux de Sugikubo » (des pointes à dos élancées de profil rectiligne) dont les supports correspondent à l’intention première du débitage étroit, quelques autres outils étant réalisés sur des supports de second choix. Un tel couteau de Sugikubo, dans une collection similaire, présente une fracture à longue languette inverse qui suggère fortement qu’il s’agit en fait, au moins pour partie, de pointes de projectile. Le débitage large, lui, avait pour intention première l’obtention de grandes lames pointues, très difficiles à réaliser, tandis que ses nombreux produits de second choix et d’aménagement restent bruts (utilisables comme couteaux) ou se retrouvent dans les « burins de Kamiyama » (en fait, de très probables couteaux ravivés comme les couteaux de Kostienki).
 Une expérimentation montre que les deux débitages sont réalisés par percussion directe à la pierre tendre, mais selon des modalités distinctes : par percussion tangentielle pour les lames légères à petit talon, par percussion en retrait pour les lames plus fortes à gros talon.

Некоторые проблемы изучения микропластинчатого расщепления в раннем верхнем палеолите Северной Монголии

The subject of this research is the technology of micropercussion in the complexes of the Early Upper Paleolithic of Northern Mongolia. In this context the micropercussion is regarded as the total set of stone artifacts connected with the production of small blanks (microblades). This set includes microblade cores specially designed for the microblade production. They are not exhausted cores but a special group of microcores. Moreover, microblades and their fragments also belong to the micropercussion. There are no tools on microblades which could be studied in these complexes. It should be mentioned that until the present time micropercussion as the special direction in lithic technology of the Early Upper Paleolithic in Mongolia was not examined. So, this is one more effort to trace the existence of micropercussion on the early stages of the Upper Paleolithic (37-26,000 BP) on the base of materials from Northern Mongolia. It is concluded that on the territory of modern Mongolia the preference was given to the narrow front and wedge-shape micropercussion, in contrast with western regions of Central Asia where carene type of micropercussion was dominating.

Micro-blade production on hyaline quartz during the Late Neolithic of northern Greece (5400–4600 cal. B.C.): Examples from Dikili Tash and Promachonas-Topolniča

The socio-economic processes during the Late Neolithic in northern Greece have been given little attention compared to earlier phases of this period. However, several studies suggest interesting phenomena such as shifts in settlement patterns and ceramic production, possibly entailing processes of intense group interactions and increasing territorialization. However, these processes have only been addressed through the lens of pottery production, thus only looking at a limited aspect of the economic evolution of these groups. Acknowledging the potential of technological analysis to shed light on such socio-economic processes, this paper focuses on a lesser known type of material, rock-crystal. The study presents recent archaeological and experimental results on knapped rock-crystal taking place during the Late Neolithic in northern Greece. This study emphasizes the need for a new methodological framework to address this type of raw material, while providing a new approach to lithic production and consumption on Neolithic sites. This analysis is a preliminary step towards a reconsideration of the issues associated with the identification of pressure knapping techniques both on rock crystal, and other types of raw material. The presence of technical pieces, flakes, debris and cores within these assemblages questioned the possibility of a “local” pressure debitage in a regional and chronological context where the products of a pressure blade manufacture are generally considered imported and almost exclusively present, on consumer sites, in the form of finished products (unretouched and/or retouched blades).

Late Paleolithic site at Locality S9 of Shizitan Complex in Jixian County, Shanxi

AbstractLocality S9 within the Shizitan site complex in Jixian County, Shanxi Province is one of the late Paleolithic sites at Shizitan. This locality yielded rich cultural remains. Chipped stone technology, similar to that common in North China, is represented by small sized flake stone tools including scrapers, points and choppers, which was produced by hard-hammer percussion, followed by pressure flaking technique for micro-blade production. Stone querns, stone grinding rollers, pigment pieces and pigment pulverizing tools, and ornaments made of clam shells and ostrich eggshells are also unearthed. Shizitan Locality S9 cultural remains provided abundant information for researches on the transition from late Paleolithic to early Neolithic periods in the region as well as on origins of agriculture in North China in general.

Little Pond: A Microblade and Burin Site in Northeastern Alberta

Until recently sites with microblades were rarely found in Alberta, Canada; however, evidence of microblade production has now been observed in a number of archaeological sites excavated in the boreal forest in the northern portion of the province. This study examines the sequence of microblade production at Little Pond (HiOv-89), a prehistoric lithic workshop in northeastern Alberta, through technological analysis and artifact refitting. This paper argues that the microcores from Little Pond and other sites in northeastern Alberta may be considered a far southeastern extension of the Denali complex of the far northwest.

Flexibility and Creativity in Microblade Core Manufacture in Southern Primorye, Far East Russia

The purely typological approach to microblade technology often obscures the range of variability seen in the creative and flexible ways microblade cores were prepared and the reasons behind this variability. There is a real need to understand the situational context of microblade production and move the focus of investigation on to the microblades themselves, as these are the key components of an effective riskreduction strategy. Combining a typological and technological approach to study standardization in core preparation and the resulting microblades made from volcanic glass within a known geological context has shown that key characteristics of both are vital to the successful implementation of this technological approach.

Weapon Systems and Assemblage Variability during the Northern Archaic Period in Northern Alaska

The Rosaliya (49-KIR-196) site is a small, single component microblade production and weapon repair location in the central Brooks Range of northern Alaska dated to 5200 years B.P. Although surrounded both geographically and chronologically by sites ascribed to the Northern Archaic tradition (NAT), the Rosaliya assemblage differs from them. It lacks the side-notched projectile points that are considered a hallmark of the tradition, and is instead dominated by the products of microblade technology, which is not, however, widely accepted as a NAT trait. We propose that regional scale NAT assemblage variability results in part from the use of multiple weapon systems with lanceolate-shaped bifaces functioning as spear heads, side-notched bifaces as dart tips, and microblades as components of arrowheads. The Rosaliya site assemblage, because it represents a short occupation involving specialized activities, reflects only a narrow range of this broader Northern Archaic period technology.