Palaeolithic Artefacts Research Articles

A geophysical insight of the lithostratigraphic subsurface of Rodafnidia area (Lesbos Isl., Greece)

<abstract> <p>The study area of Rodafnidia on the island of Lesbos (Greece) is considered of archaeological interest, as Paleolithic stone tools have been recovered through excavation and collected from the ground surface in recent years. Geologically, the area is mostly covered by Quaternary post-alpine deposits and volcanic rocks. This paper presents the application of a local geophysical survey to determine the volume of the upper Quaternary deposits in which the Paleolithic artefacts can be found and the identification of their ignimbrite substrates. For this reason, the geoelectrical method was selected as the most appropriate for determining the lithostratigraphic subsurface layers. More specifically, a grid of twenty-one (21) Vertical Electrical Soundings (VES) along with an Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) was carried out. The interpretation of the results of these surveys, in conjunction with the results of older excavation trenches, revealed that the Quaternary deposits have been investigated at depths ranging from 0.5 up to 28.5 meters. Furthermore, the lithological boundary of these post-alpine deposits and their underlying pyroclastic ignimbrite flow (with resistivity 24.0–58.0 Ohm.m) seem to dip to the north. The volume of the Quaternary layer is proposed as the maximum depth for archaeological investigation with high chances to recover more Paleolithic material.</p> </abstract>

RESEARCH CONDUCTED IN THE PALTOV VALLEY IN COOPERATION WITH THE JOINT UZBEK-RUSSIAN EXPEDITION

In this article, the results of Uzbek-Russian cooperated archeological expedition Obirakhmad cave in Paltov valley that remains of human bones which were found in 16 cultural layers, Qo’tirbuloq settlement, Kulos, Piskem, and Okhangaron Paleolithic artifacts and the results of expedition settlement of Todakhotin are explained.

Paleolithic artifacts from the Nangang locality, Xixia County, Henan, China

Paleolithic artifacts from the Nangang locality, Xixia County, Henan, China

Reconstruction of the environmental conditions during the earliest Palaeolithic occupations in the Podillia Upland (W Ukraine) and the formation of archaeological layers

This paper discusses the problems associated with determining the chronology of Palaeolithic settlements in the Podillian region and presents possible solutions to this issue, based on studies of the natural environment in two Palaeolithic centres: Buhliv and Ternopil (BPC and TPC, respectively). Problems arise from the local stratigraphic diversity of the loess-palaeosol sequences containing layers with artefacts, and their multiple redepositions result from periglacial processes. Very often, traces of ancient settlements are disturbed by continuous and/or discontinuous palaeocryogenic deformations. Consequently, it is rare to obtain Palaeolithic data in situ. In contrast, artefacts found without redeposition often lie within or on the surfaces of fossil soils. The main research materials were obtained at the early Palaeolithic site in Buhliv, whose geological profiles are incomplete. The complementary data necessary for the reconstruction of the palaeogeographical time of Palaeolithic settlements associated with cultural layers were obtained in our previous studies using multiple tools, together with luminescence dating of sediments located in close and distant proximity to the BPC, as well as in loess sites located in the TPC, especially Velykyi Glybochok.Our findings indicate that the early Middle Palaeolithic artefacts at the Buhliv site formed two stratigraphically inverted horizons, with the younger artefacts lying beneath the older ones following redeposition. The inventory of the older layers represents the oldest Podillian settlement phase. Similar materials were found in the TPC in older soil of MIS 7. The inventory of the younger layer occurred during the younger soil-forming stage of MIS 7. The disturbance and burial of both early Middle Palaeolithic settlement traces were caused by intensive slope processes that occurred in the early MIS 6.

Possible linkage between Paleolithic site occurrence and past climate change in the central Korean Peninsula

AbstractKorea's Paleolithic sites are primarily located in riverine environments and the margins of alluvial fans. More than 100 Paleolithic excavations have been conducted in the Korean Peninsula, but the relationship between the locations of these sites and past climate change has received little attention. In this study, we investigated this relationship at a Paleolithic site in Wonju city, Korea, that contained two cultural layers and yielded a total of 336 stone artifacts. The lithological units present at the site indicate that the sedimentary environment changed from a riverine sandy channel to an alluvial plain owing to channel migration at the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 4. The alluvial plain sediments deposited during MIS 4–2 are characterized by low sand content (<5%) and two soil wedges. Most Paleolithic artifacts were excavated from the upper soil wedge, deposited during MIS 3 under relatively warm and wet conditions associated with global climatic changes (as indicated by sea level or continental ice volume) and the East Asian summer monsoon. The number of Paleolithic cultural layers increases in late MIS 3 in other regions, suggesting that climate conditions are an essential factor in the development of Paleolithic cultural layers.

An Early Presence of Modern Human or Convergent Evolution? A 247 ka Middle Palaeolithic Assemblage from Andhra Pradesh, India

The region of South Asia, located between the prepared core-based technologies in the west and simple core technologies in the east, is crucial in the modern human dispersal routes. The nature and chronology of initial modern human presence in the region and associated lithic technologies – microlithic vs the Middle Palaeolithic prepared core technology – are debated between the coastal and continental routes of dispersals. Recent research, however, has pushed back the antiquity of Middle Palaeolithic technology in the region to 385 ± 64 ka, suggesting the possibility of local innovation. However, the age mentioned above is isolated spatially and requires further studies to support the local innovation model. Our research in the Paleru river basin, Andhra Pradesh (SE India), have identified several Palaeolithic sites in a stratigraphic context. We present the results of a systematic examination at the Hanumanthunipadu (Andhra Pradesh) site, where the deepest of three geomorphologically distinct phases of the sedimentary sequence contained Palaeolithic artefacts. The fine-grained sediments in the sequence, p-IR-IRSL dated to > 247 ± 32 ka, yielded Middle Palaeolithic artefacts that imply South Asian Middle Palaeolithic assemblages may be a part of local innovations that emerged from the preceding Late Acheulian technologies.

Marine mammals fossil remains and synthesis of the sedimentary and paleontological record of the Furninha Cave Pleistocene (Peniche, Portugal)

The Gruta da Furninha is a cave-site in Lower Jurassic limestones, of mainly marine genesis located at ~850 m SE of the Carvoeiro Cape, on the southern coast of the Peniche peninsula (central western mainland Portugal). The entrance gallery, situated in the middle of the cliff, is at ~15 m of altitude. This cave contained a rich and diverse fossiliferous set of Late Pleistocene vertebrates, distributed in several stratigraphic levels, currently housed at the Geological Museum of LNEG (Lisbon). The cave had a record of primitive human occupations documented by 106 Middle to Late Paleolithic artefacts, found in the lower lithostratigraphic unit (Pleistocene). It had also another human occupation in an upper unit (Neolithic, Holocene), where were found human skeleton elements and artefacts. This study focuses on two teeth previously identified as crocodile, housed in collections of the Geological Museum in the assemblages of the Furninha Cave and on a set of five bones, housed at Centro Português de Geo-História e Pré-História (CPGP) collected in a marine terrace in the Furninha cliff. The occurrence of crocodile remains in the Upper Pleistocene of Portugal is not consistent with the fossil record of this period or with the environmental conditions associated with the fully marine paleoenvironments around Furninha Cave. A more detailed analysis of these teeth and their stratigraphic location, now supports that they are cetacean teeth with ~80 ka, which is consistent with the fossil association, depositional environments and climate conditions of the Late Pleistocene in mainland Portugal. To add to these two teeth, in 2017 in sedimentary field work in the marine terraces on the cliffs of the Gruta da Furninha, at the level of 4 to 7 m, found five bones remains, which could be carpal bones of marine mammals.

On the earliest Acheulean in Britain: first dates and in-situ artefacts from the MIS 15 site of Fordwich (Kent, UK).

Northern Europe experienced cycles of hominin habitation and absence during the Middle Pleistocene. Fluvial gravel terrace sites in the east of Britain and north of France provide a majority of the data contributing to this understanding, mostly through the presence or absence of stone-tool artefacts. To date, however, relatively few sites have been radiometrically dated, and many have not been excavated in modern times, leading to an over-reliance on selectively sampled and poorly dated lithic assemblages. This includes Fordwich (Kent, UK), where over 330 bifaces were discovered through industrial quarrying in the 1920s. Here, we present the first excavation and dating of artefacts discovered in situ at Fordwich, alongside their technological analysis and relationship to those previously recovered. The site is demonstrated to retain deposits of Lower Palaeolithic artefacts, with 251 flakes, scrapers and cores identified to date. Infrared-radiofluorescence (IR-RF) dating of feldspar reveals 112 artefacts to have come from levels dating to at least 570 ± 36 to 513 ± 30 thousand years ago (ka) and are most plausibly assigned to an MIS 14 deposition, with artefacts produced during MIS 15 (approx. 560–620 ka). Indeed, these IR-RF samples provide minimum ages for artefacts. Combined with evidence from exposures linked to the original quarrying activities, a similar MIS 15 age is suggested for the more than 330 handaxe artefacts discovered in the 1920s. The remaining excavated artefacts come from levels dated to between 347 ± 22 and 385 ± 21 ka (MIS 10 or 11), with this later age interpreted to reflect post-MIS 14 deposition by substrate gullying and solifluction. These data demonstrate Fordwich to be one of the earliest Palaeolithic sites in northwestern Europe, and to retain the only large Acheulean handaxe assemblage directly dated to pre-MIS 13. Thus, Fordwich is determined to be a crucial piece of the pre-Anglian Palaeolithic puzzle in northern Europe.

The Paleolithic archaeology of Shirak Province and the open-air site of Aghvorik

Shirak Province in the Republic of Armenia is very rich in Paleolithic sites. Since the first discovery of Paleolithic artifacts in the 1930s, chance finds and field investigations by numerous scholars and archaeological expeditions have brought to light several new localities and findspots, among which the open-air site complex at Aghvorik is currently the most prominent. The Paleolithic sites of Shirak are geomorphologically associated with the Ashotsk Plateau in the north, the Shirak Depression and northwestern slopes of Mt. Aragats in the south, and the Akhuryan River gorge in the west. These areas contain several sources of high-quality lithic raw materials, including dacite, obsidian, and flint. The geomorphic and topographic locations of Paleolithic sites relate to phases of Plio-Pleistocene volcanism, glaciations in high elevation uplands, and the lacustrine and alluvial dynamics that formed the paleorelief and paleoenvironment. Lithic artifact assemblages generally present techno-typological characteristics consistent with early and late phases of the Acheulian, as observed at Lower Paleolithic sites in the Armenian Highlands and Southern Caucasus. While currently fewer in number than Lower Paleolithic finds, Middle Paleolithic artifacts obtained from sites in Shirak tend to be better preserved and made mainly of obsidian, while some dacite artifacts have also been documented. Shirak is also rich in paleontological, or zooarchaeological sites that have yielded a range of Pleistocene macro- and micro-faunal remains. While the Paleolithic archaeological, biostratigraphic, and geological records of Shirak have not yet been subject to systematic documentation and synthesis, the area holds great potential for future research to enlarge and complement the database of Pleistocene human occupation and environment in the broader region.

Applying a Bayesian approach for refining the chronostratigraphy of the Yumidong site in the Three Gorges region, central China

Yumidong (Corn Cave) is a newly discovered Paleolithic site in the Three Gorges region of central China. Numerous Paleolithic artifacts have been excavated from the sedimentary deposits of the cave in association with faunal remains attributed to the Middle-Late Pleistocene Ailuropoda - Stegodon fauna of southern China. To establish the chronology of the sedimentary sequence (>5 m thick), 14 C dating was applied to bone and charcoal samples (n = 6); the U-series method was used to date in situ precipitated speleothems (n = 12), transported speleothem samples (n = 6) and 18 subsamples of a fossil tooth; and the coupled ESR/U-series method was used to date fossil teeth (n = 6). The derived dates were combined using a hierarchical Bayesian approach to generate a unified chronostratigraphy for the Yumidong sequence. In our Bayesian analyses, the 14 C and coupled ESR/U-series dates were considered to provide direct age estimates for the target layers, while the U-series dates of the in situ precipitated speleothems and fossil tooth were used as minimum age constraints and those of the transported speleothem fragments as maximum age constraints. The Bayesian analyses provided robust time intervals for the archeological layers: L2-Upper (14–23 ka), L2-Lower (27–63 ka), L3 (106–171 ka), L4 (140–192 ka), L10 (157–229 ka), L11 (181–256 ka), and L12 (214–274 ka) with a probability of 95%, allowing the establishment of a ∼300 ka long geological and archeological history for the Yumidong site and placing it as a reference site for Paleolithic cultural evolution in the Three Gorges region from the late Middle Pleistocene to Late Pleistocene.

Every contact leaves a trace: Documenting contamination in lithic residue studies at the Middle Palaeolithic sites of Lusakert Cave 1 (Armenia) and Crvena Stijena (Montenegro).

Investigations of organic lithic micro-residues have, over the last decade, shifted from entirely morphological observations using visible-light microscopy to compositional ones using scanning electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared microspectroscopy, providing a seemingly objective chemical basis for residue identifications. Contamination, though, remains a problem that can affect these results. Modern contaminants, accumulated during the post-excavation lives of artifacts, are pervasive, subtle, and even “invisible” (unlisted ingredients in common lab products). Ancient contamination is a second issue. The aim of residue analysis is to recognize residues related to use, but other types of residues can also accumulate on artifacts. Caves are subject to various taphonomic forces and organic inputs, and use-related residues can degrade into secondary compounds. This organic “background noise” must be taken into consideration. Here we show that residue contamination is more pervasive than is often appreciated, as revealed by our studies of Middle Palaeolithic artifacts from two sites: Lusakert Cave 1 in Armenia and Crvena Stijena in Montenegro. First, we explain how artifacts from Lusakert Cave 1, despite being handled following specialized protocols, were tainted by a modern-day contaminant from an unanticipated source: a release agent used inside the zip-top bags that are ubiquitous in the field and lab. Second, we document that, when non-artifact “controls” are studied alongside artifacts from Crvena Stijena, comparisons reveal that organic residues are adhered to both, indicating that they are prevalent throughout the sediments and not necessarily related to use. We provide suggestions for reducing contamination and increasing the reliability of residue studies. Ultimately, we propose that archaeologists working in the field of residue studies must start with the null hypothesis that miniscule organic residues reflect contamination, either ancient or modern, and systematically proceed to rule out all possible contaminants before interpreting them as evidence of an artifact’s use in the distant past.

New palaeontological evidence suggests an early Middle Pleistocene age for the lower levels of Sun Hole Cave, Cheddar, Somerset, UK

Sun Hole, a small fissure cave on the north side of Cheddar Gorge, Somerset, is best known as the site where late Upper Palaeolithic artefacts are associated with human and other mammal remains that immediately pre-date the Lateglacial interstadial. These remains from the upper levels (Unit I) overlie sediments (Unit II) that are thought to have accumulated during a full glacial period, below which are sediments (Unit III) attributed to an interglacial stage. The extinct land snail Retinella (Lyrodiscus) sp., which in Britain was only known from the Hoxnian Stage, had previously been recovered from Unit III. The interglacial at the base of the sequence was therefore assigned to the Hoxnian Stage (Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11, 424–374 kyr). Here we provide additional analyses of samples from Unit III, which as well as containing further Retinella (Lyrodiscus), also yielded a specimen of Monachoides incarnatus, its first record from the British Pleistocene. An associated assemblage of small mammals included a few that are rare in the British Pleistocene, such as birch mouse (Sicista cf. betulina) and garden dormouse (Eliomys quercinus). The vole Lasiopodomys gregaloides and the shrew Sorex (Drepanosorex) savini do not occur as late as the Hoxnian and therefore suggest an older age in the early Middle Pleistocene. The record from Sun Hole therefore has parallels with the well-known sequence from the upper Calcareous Member in the nearby cavern system at Westbury-sub-Mendip.

A tale of bifaces from southern peninsular India (British Museum and Musée de l'Homme collections): a geometric morphometric and classical approach

Bifacial tools (especially handaxes and cleavers) have played an important role in the Lower Palaeolithic studies trying to decode Acheulean lifeways through them. The methodological approach based on classical metrical analysis, could be insufficient and often subjective, especially in instances of asymmetrical tools, and incorrect orientation for capturing the morphological data. Recent years have seen the application of geometric morphometric methods on lithic tools (2D contours and 3D volumetric forms) as an accurate, efficient and objective method of data collection. This alternative approach has the additional advantage of being both interactive and reversible analytic process, reducing the time and effort in collection of data. Traditionally the museum collections of Palaeolithic artefacts of old surveys and fieldworks, are seldom subject to study due to their incomplete and often doubtful or mixed context. In the current study, both geometric morphometric on 2D contour analysis as well as classical techno-typological analytical methods has been applied to bifaces from Southern Peninsular Indian Palaeolithic kept in the British Museum (London, UK) and Musée de l’Homme (Paris, France). The aim of this study is to highlight the complementary nature of both analytical methods in deciphering and throwing light on the patterns of bifaces (handaxes and cleavers), their technological variability and stability and to identify if there are regional technological trends. The results obtained from both classical analysis and geometric morphometric analysis allow to show that handaxes were highly variable in both the regions while the cleavers show high standardization. While the former approach throws light on the knapping techniques and preferences, the latter complement the results with the shape preferences and variations across regions.

Likeness-making and the evolution of cognition

Paleontological evidence suggests that human artefacts with intentional markings might have originated already in the Lower Paleolithic, up to 500.000 years ago and well before the advent of ‘behavioural modernity’. These markings apparently did not serve instrumental, tool-like functions, nor do they appear to be forms of figurative art. Instead, they display abstract geometric patterns that potentially testify to an emerging ability of symbol use. In a variation on Ian Hacking’s speculative account of the possible role of “likeness-making” in the evolution of human cognition and language, this essay explores the central role that the embodied processes of making and the collective practices of using such artefacts might have played in early human cognitive evolution. Two paradigmatic findings of Lower Paleolithic artefacts are discussed as tentative evidence of likenesses acting as material scaffolds in the emergence of symbolic reference-making. They might provide the link between basic abilities of mimesis and imitation and the development of modern language and thought.

Le Paléolithique supérieur de la région centre de l’île de Honshû

Tokai area is situated in the middle of Japan and has various configurations of ground. The eastern area has thick natural layers with volcanic ash which has been supplied from Mt. Fuji. About five chronological stages of Paleolithic culture from trapeze and edge-ground axe culture to microlith culture through backed blade culture have been found in the layers. These stages of Paleolithic culture are indicators of chronological studies in Tokai area. On the other hand, it is difficult to advance chronological studies in the middle east, middle, and west areas, because they have little thickness of layers with volcanic ash. However, different Paleolithic artifacts are found in top and bottom layers which put the AT layer between at Tsubakibora Site in Gifu Prefecture, and they have helped very much chronological studies of Paleolithic culture in the west area. Here is the first result of Paleolithic studies in Tokai area with artifacts which have been found on the forth layer of scoriae at Idemaruyama Site are dated about 35,000 years, one of the oldest Paleolithic culture in Japan. In addition, some lines of pits which were dated 30,000 years were found at Hatsunegahara Site, and they provided valuable data to study Paleolithic hunting. Finally, a holed pendant which had 10 notches on one side was unearthed from Fujiishi Site, and it was dated 19,000 years ago. At Terada and Hino Site, a flat big stone which had carvings was found, though the shape and use were seemed to be different from the pendant at Fujiishi Site.

New chronology and extended palaeoenvironmental data to the 1975 loess profile of Madaras brickyard, South Hungary

ABSTRACTThe 10 m thick Madaras loess–palaeosol profile is one of the Hungarian outcrops that yielded Upper Palaeolithic artefacts in 1966. To clarify the nature of the deposits and establish a reliable litho‐ and chronostratigraphy, a profile was opened and sampled at 25 cm intervals on the northern side of the brickyard in 1975. Analyses focused on grain size, carbonate content and the mollusc fauna. The chronology was based on the mollusc composition and a single date from the archaeological layer at the depth of ca 7 m below the surface. The 1975 profile was destroyed by mining but the reposited samples allowed an extended analysis of this important Marine Isotope Stage 2 record to which archaeological features were directly assigned. A new absolute chronology was built based on 11 14C dates. Environmental magnetic, geochemical and palaeoecological investigations allowed a refined view of site evolution with reliable chronology for the Last Glacial Maximum. Our results corroborated those of previous investigations done on other coeval loess–palaeosol sequences of the Southern Carpathian Basin. This also allowed for a temporal correlation to another local record with the published high‐resolution chronology of the same brickyard and enabled modelling of local‐scale heterogeneity of the environment in the long run.

Neanderthal settlement of the Central Balkans during MIS 5: Evidence from Pešturina Cave, Serbia

Recent research in the southern Central Balkans has resulted in the discovery of the first Middle Paleolithic sites in this region. Systematic excavations of Velika and Mala Balanica, and Pešturina (southern Serbia) revealed assemblages of Middle Paleolithic artifacts associated with hominin fossils and animal bones. This paper focuses on Pešturina Layer 4, radiometrically and biostratigraphically dated to Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5, which yielded traces of temporary hunting camps. The remains of large ungulate prey are associated with predominantly Quina-type artifacts made of quartz. Artifacts from Pešturina Cave have no parallels at Mousterian sites in the Balkans but are rather similar to the Central European Charentian, which demonstrates that this cultural unit was widespread during MIS 5, not only in the southern Pannonian Basin but also in the Central Balkans. The position of the site – on the outskirts of the known spread of the Quina model of techno-economic behavior during MIS 5 – raises several questions related to population movements, residential mobility, and technological variability in the early Middle Paleolithic of Central and Southeast Europe.

A revised terrace stratigraphy and chronology for the early Middle Pleistocene Bytham River in the Breckland of East Anglia, UK

The Bytham River was one of the major pre-Anglian (MIS 12) rivers of eastern England. Flowing from the Midlands to the East Anglian coast, it has been recognised at numerous sites by its distinctive lithological suite, containing significant quantities of quartzite, quartz and Carboniferous chert that originate from central England. In the Breckland of Suffolk and Norfolk, deposits of the Bytham River can be identified at 26 sites by this distinctive clast lithological composition. These sediments, referred to as the Ingham Formation, consist of a series of sand and gravel aggradations, which due to their differences in elevation can be interpreted as at least four early Middle Pleistocene terrace remnants of the former river, and a final phase of deposition along the river valley prior to its destruction. This paper reports on recent fieldwork at six of these sites, which through stratigraphic and lithological analyses, together with new Electron Spin Resonance age estimates, contribute to a revised geological framework for the Bytham River as represented in the Breckland. These sites can be attributed to the four lowest fluvial aggradations, with the lowest and youngest of these aggradations shown to be early Anglian in age. The river was subsequently overrun by Anglian ice during Marine Isotope Stage 12. This revised geological and chronological interpretation provides an important framework for understanding the Lower Palaeolithic artefacts that have been found within these gravel aggradations, and contributes to the understanding of the human occupation of north-west Europe during the early Middle Pleistocene.

The value of English geoconservation sites in understanding historical collections of lower and middle palaeolithic artefacts

Lower and Middle Paleolithic archaeological sites in England risk falling through the cracks between different types of heritage conservation, since they lack recognisable structures; these sites have often benefitted from protection under geoconservation, particularly through selection as Geological Conservation Review sites, and subsequent designation as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). The geoconservation of key sites, particularly in the formative years of British geoconservation, has allowed combined geological and archaeological reinvestigation. This is of particular benefit to understanding Lower and Middle Paleolithic artefact assemblages, which were often collected in the later 19th–earlier 20th century and consequently lacked both detailed spatial or stratigraphic provenance and contextual geological information. As such, the ‘fine grained’ data which could be gleaned from such artefact collections was limited. Here we review the benefit of geoconservation in allowing the contextualisation of historical archaeological collections, focussing on six key English sites where geological and archaeological reinvestigation has led to important archaeological findings. In particular, the emerging evidence of chronological patterning in Lower and Middle Paleolithic artefacts makes the preservation of such deposits valuable to Quaternary science in general.

Geochemical changes in obsidian outcrops with elevation at Hatis volcano (Armenia) and corresponding Lower Palaeolithic artifacts from Nor Geghi 1

Most descriptions of obsidian-bearing rhyolitic lava flows and domes are largely based on relatively simple cases of tectonic plate subduction in North America, but Armenian geologists proposed since the 1960s that these models are less suitable for describing rhyolitic volcanism in their research area. Obsidian-producing volcanoes that lie in the Armenian Highlands, they argued, are more complex in form and stratification. Hatis volcano in central Armenia is one such example. As we document, Hatis is highly unusual, perhaps unique, in that its obsidian changes in composition with elevation. Prior studies of Hatis obsidian recognized the existence of two different chemical types. Here, though, we report a series of four obsidian chemical types and their spatial distributions across the slopes. Our findings were enabled by the use of portable XRF during our field surveys of Hatis. Additionally, we recognized each of these four chemical types of Hatis obsidian at the Lower Palaeolithic site of Nor Geghi 1, where thousands of obsidian artifacts reflect Pleistocene hominin behaviors from Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11 (~424–374 ka) to 9 (~337–300 ka). Thus, all four types of Hatis obsidian are archaeologically significant despite the fact that their outcrops span more than 500 m (from <1600 to greater than 2100 m asl) in elevation on the volcanic slopes, thereby enabling future studies on links between altitude and hominin toolstone acquisition behaviors over hundreds of millennia.