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Backing techniques represent one of the most relevant technical aspects involved in the manufacturing processes of backed tools. In this paper, we present results of an experimental programme focused on the manufacture of backed points, a kind of tool that has played a key role in Upper Palaeolithic technical systems. In order to identify which retouch techniques are effective to produce backed points, different combinations of retouchers (lithic vs. organic) and force application modes (percussion vs. pressure vs. abrasion) were tested. Through a morphoscopic analysis, it was possible to identify and describe numerous mesoscopic and macroscopic criteria useful for the identification of retouch techniques. The results of this experimental activity were then validated through a series of blind tests. Furthermore, these criteria were applied to an archaeological assemblage of backed points from the Late Epigravettian series of Riparo Tagliente (Verona, North-Eastern Italy). It was thus possible to determine the use of two retouch techniques: soft stone percussion on anvil and pressure by a soft stone retoucher. If percussion on anvil had already been attested in several Late Glacial sites, pressure by soft stone is here identified for the first time in an archaeological context.

In Paleolithic archaeology, there are two dichotomous perspectives on so-called splintered pieces, or pieces esquillees, in which, depending upon archaeological context and the availability and quality of lithic of raw material, such pieces are considered bipolar cores or tools for processing organic materials. Here, we discuss for the first time functionality, reduction models, and modes of using Upper Paleolithic pieces esquillees from two Central Asian regions: the Tian Shan Mountains of eastern Uzbekistan and the Yenisey Valley of Siberian Russia. By applying attributive, experimental, scar-pattern, and use-wear analyses, we determined that these artifacts derived from two widely separated regions are tools for processing hard organic materials, which were rotated often during use. Reconstructed reduction sequences indicate that the morphological appearance of the implements was affected by the working processes associated with contact between the hammer and the organic material being processed. Our results demonstrate that the formation of the chisel or wedge is not significantly affected by the raw material of the blank, the type of hammer utilized, or the nature of the material being processed. To the contrary, chisel tools from the two regions demonstrated the same reduction processes affecting their lengths and widths due to having been employed in similar physical operations. On the other hand, pieces esquillees from the two study regions demonstrated the same reduction processes in length and width due to the application of similar work operations, which seems applicable to all splintered pieces used as tools.

The Calabria region of Southern Italy is rich in mineralisation. Unfortunately, no consistent data are available about mineral exploitation in the later prehistoric periods. The Grotta della Monaca mine in Calabria is a prehistoric site that is characterised by the mineralisation of iron ores (such as goethite) and copper carbonates (malachite and azurite). For this reason, the site provides an exceptional opportunity to study a prehistoric mine in which several minerals were exploited during the late Neolithic and early Chalcolithic. In this study, we present the results of an experimental protocol and use-wear analysis conducted using macro-lithic tool replicas to extract mineral resources. The experimental test aimed at reconstructing the function of grooved stone tools found at Grotta della Monaca. Use-wear observation, through a combined low- and high-power approach on experimental and archaeological objects, allowed us to define different extraction techniques and methods of mineral treatments. These data enhance our understanding and reconstruction of the chaîne opératoires, economic choices, and cultural aspects that characterised prehistoric miners in Southern Italy.

Lower Paleolithic stone tool features and shape have been studied in detail; traceology and experimental archaeology have provided us with a lot of information about possible tool use and functionality. The way modern humans use these tools has been used as a proxy for the study of early stone tool-makers’ behavior, taking into account that our ancestors could have had similar manipulative capabilities to us. Less importance has been given to stone tool ergonomics, even if comfortable and ergonomic grasping prevent hand damage and improve tool use. Here, we measured the phalanx flexion of 82 subjects during comfortable stone tool handling for both Oldowan pebble tools and Acheulean handaxes. We expected differences in the pattern of phalanx flexion in the two tool types and in relation with tool dimensions. In fact, Oldowan pebble tools and handaxes show differences in finger flexion and in the single finger contribution to comfortable grasping.

International audience; Gilded copper hollow spherical pendants known as gombiky (s. gombik) were examined to identify the technology of gilding and the material chosen as the substrate. The examined ornaments dating from the ninth and tenth centuries AD were recovered from elite graves of two major political, ecclesiastical and economic centres of the Early Medieval period located in the territory of the present-day Czech Republic: Mikulčice and Prague Castle, major sites of Moravia and Bohemia, respectively. Taking into account the state of degradation and possible bias due to earlier restorations, surface and bulk characterisation of the gilded material has been performed combining optical observation, X-ray radiography, metallography, scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive spectrometry (SEM/EDS analysis) and focused ion beam (FIB) milling mounted on FEG-SEM. The manufacturing procedure was reproduced by experimental archaeology. A detailed investigation of the gilded artefacts revealed several types of gombik construction involving different mounted elements, including the main body parts and the suspension system elements joined by hard soldering. The different constitutive parts are made with almost pure copper or low-purity copper. The systematic use of fire gilding (mercury amalgam gilding) was documented. Differences in the materials that were used and technical quality show the coexistence of finely produced objects by highly skilled and knowledgeable jewellers alongside more coarsely manufactured imitations. These variations are discussed in terms of different workshops in a possible relationship with their origin of manufacture.

Open-air archaeology plays a limited role in southern African Late Pleistocene research, with most studies focused on rock shelter assemblages. Recently, archaeologists have noted discrepancies in the composition of Late Pleistocene lithic assemblages between some of the region’s open-air and rock shelter sites. For example, although relatively abundant in rock shelters, Late Pleistocene Later Stone Age (LSA, c. 44–12 kcal. BP) bipolar cores are rare in open-air contexts. In this paper, we assess this discrepancy by testing for differential preservation of specific artefact classes and sizes in semi-arid open-air conditions. We placed a replicated assemblage of miniaturised cores and flakes on an archaeologically sterile sediment surface in the Doring River Valley (South Africa) and recorded their movements over 22 months. Our results indicate that bipolar and freehand cores moved comparable distances within the study interval and that surface slope is the strongest predictor of miniaturised tool movement. We also show that (1) relatively flat lithics move disproportionately more and (2) random artefact orientations do not preclude local (i.e. metre) scale artefact transport. In terms of the archaeology of our study area, the observed clustering of surface artefacts on sediment bodies likely results from their recent exposure. Our data suggest that the paucity of open-air bipolar artefacts in Late Pleistocene LSA assemblages may have more to do with human behavioural variability at landscape scales than differential preservation. Southern Africa’s rich rock shelter record is, therefore, unlikely to represent the full suite of prehistoric hunter-gatherer behaviours.

Archaeologists recognize countless styles of flaked stone projectile points in the archaeological record, but few are as well recognized as the Clovis fluted projectile point. This specimen has a number of interesting morphological and technological features, but one prominent question of its functional morphology involves the lateral edges of the proximal (basal) portion of the point, where it was attached (hafted) to a handle or shaft. These edges are usually ground (or abraded) dull, presumably to prevent cutting of the lashings binding the point in place. However, while logical, this presumption has never been experimentally tested. Do ground proximal-lateral edges prevent damage to haft lashing at a level significantly greater than that of sharp edges? We tested this question via experimental ballistics using standardized specimens possessing ground or sharp proximal-lateral edges. Our results showed that there was virtually no damage to lashings or presence of point wiggle within the haft, regardless of whether points possessed ground or sharp edges. Moreover, when negligible damage (fraying) did occur, it was restricted to the lashings on the point face, not the lashings on the proximal-lateral edges. While it is plausible, and remains to be tested, that the motions involved in cutting, sawing, and butchery cause more interaction between a point’s lateral edges and lashings, our results suggest that with respect to the actions experienced during projectile impact, ground proximal-lateral edges do not function to protect the haft lashings.

Determining hand laterality during human evolution is important in order to identify brain hemispheric lateralization for motor tasks and, indirectly, to gain information on the complex cognitive functions of the human brain. In this paper, we present a new method for inferring handedness from lithic evidence. The study is based on an analysis of the scatter patterns of lithic remains from stone-knapping episodes. An experimental programme was carried out by 14 knappers (eight right-handed and six left-handed), ranging from individuals that had never even struck two pebbles together to individuals who were quite familiar with prehistoric tools and had some degree of practice. The results of the experiment show that the material scatter patterns of right- and left-handed knappers at group level are different, but they do overlap at certain intervals. At the individual level, the probability of falsely ascribing left- and right-handedness has also been estimated. In addition, we have adapted this method to be applied to the archaeological record. In this case, only well-preserved knapping events with no post-depositional alterations can be used to assign left- or right-handed knappers, with the former being more reliably detected than the latter.

Following on from our previous research into the prehistoric aceramic distillation and production of birch bark tar, this series of exploratory experiments investigated the use of raised structures within a fire. These field-based experiments were conducted using sand, gravel, wood fuel, and bark from Betula pubescens (downy birch). The structures that were created were simple raised sand mounds, which reflected known Neanderthal combustion surfaces from the Middle Palaeolithic. The bulk of the experiments were recorded throughout using a thermocouple to provide temperature readings from the base of the bark pyrolysis chamber. The experiments proved successful at producing birch bark tar and several containers were used to catch the tar for later analysis. Based on the results, the authors contend that not only could Neanderthals control fire but that regular birch bark tar production by Neanderthals was most likely a result of specific chaines operatoires in order to provide the necessary control and outcomes.