Experimental protocols for the study of battered stone anvils from Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania)

Percussive activities are highly relevant in the economy of modern hunter-gatherer societies and other primates, and are likely to have been equally important during the Palaeolithic. Despite the potential relevance of percussive activities in the Early Stone Age, attempts to study battered artefacts are still rare. In order to establish protocols of analysis of battered tools, this paper pursues an interdisciplinary approach combining techno-typological, refit, use-wear and GIS studies of experimental anvils from Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania). The main aim is to classify types of damage on battered artefacts according to the percussive task performed, and hence identify patterns that can be used to interpret the Oldowan and Acheulean evidence. Our results indicate that abrasion marks on anvil surfaces are typical of nut cracking, while bone breaking leaves characteristic scars and abrasion marks on the edges of anvils. Pounding of soft materials such as meat and plants also causes battering of anvils, producing morphological and spatial patterns that can be discerned from the heavy breakage of anvils during bipolar flaking. By integrating macroscopic, microscopic and spatial analyses of experimental stone tools, this paper contributes to create a referential framework in which Early Stone Age battered artefacts can be interpreted.     

MULTIANALYTICAL STUDY OF PALAEOLITHIC REINDEER ANTLER. DISCOVERY OF ANTLER TRACES IN LASCAUX PIGMENTS BY TEM*

Palaeolithic and modern reindeer antler were analysed using complementary techniques to evaluate the conservation state of bone material. X‐ray diffraction, FT‐IR spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM–EDX) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM–EDX) as well as proton induced X‐ray and γ‐ray emission (PIXE–PIGE) at the particle accelerator AGLAE, C2RMF were applied. This study enabled us to define the chemical and structural features of ancient antler at the micro‐ and nanometre scale and compare them to those of other bone materials such as bone and ivory. Antler is richer in its organic fraction compared to bone and ivory. Its mineral fraction, carbonated hydroxylapatite, shows very specific crystal shapes at the nanometre scale. This specific property allowed us to recognize antler traces in pigment samples originating from rock art paintings in the Lascaux cave, Dordogne, southwestern France, Magdalenian period. Therefore, TEM–EDX is the technique of choice for characterizing antler traces in complex mixtures. In the paint material of Lascaux, antler seems most likely to be a pollutant introduced either by stirring the pigments in water with a piece of antler or by carving antler artefacts next to the preparation of paint material. However, it could eventually be used as a marker of paintings that were created contemporaneously.     

Pitted stone cobbles in the Mesolithic site of Font del Ros (Southeastern Pre-Pyrenees,Spain): some experimental remarks around a controversial tool type

The presence of cobbles with activity-related marks in the Mesolithic site of Font del Ros (Berga, Spain), and in particular one group of artefacts – pitted stones – raises problematic issues associated with the characterization of percussion activities. Although these artefacts have generated an extensive bibliography on ethological, ethnographic, ethnoarchaeological and archaeological levels, various questions persist in relation to their possible contextual function. In this paper we present the results of an experimental programme in which three types of activities that could create pitted stones are reproduced: bipolar knapping of vein quartz, hazelnut cracking, and hazelnut grinding. The aim of this experimental programme is to describe marks and use-wear traces related to such activities.     

Were Olduvai Hominins making butchering tools or battering tools? Analysis of a recently excavated lithic assemblage from BK (Bed II,Olduvai Gorge,Tanzania)

A new interpretation of early stone-tool use by hominins at Olduvai depicts them as involved in battering activities (using pounding tools) rather than making cutting butchering tools as is commonly inferred in most other Plio-Pleistocene sites where lithics appear associated to faunal remains. The bulk of this interpretation is based on the recognition of the stigma of percussion activities in anvils and detached by-products. Renewed excavations at BK after more than half a century of the beginning of the digging at the site by M. Leakey have produced a new and unbiased lithic assemblage. The taphonomic study of the faunal assemblage has shown that BK is an anthropogenic site where carcass butchery practices were repeatedly performed over a vast amount of time. The present analysis of the lithic artefacts supports this interpretation by showing that the obtainment of flakes was the principal aim in stone knapping. We argue that a number of technical traits observed in the lithic collection of BK can be best interpreted as the result of bipolar loading rather than the by-products of battering activities. Since BK has provided the second largest collection of hominid-modified bones from Olduvai, it is concluded that detached pieces produced in the course of bipolar reduction might have played an active role in bone modification and that active rather than passive percussion behaviors might have been responsible for the formation of the lithic assemblage. The functionality of the Oldowan stone tools are discussed under the light of the new study.     

METALWORKING TECHNIQUES ON THE EURASIAN STEPPES IN THE LATE BRONZE AGE: TECHNICAL ANALYSES OF THE BORODINO TREASURE SPEARHEADS

The Late Bronze Age is a period characterized by chariots and riders, spearheads, bows and battle axes. Such are the assemblages of grave goods attributed to the Seima‐Turbino, Timber‐grave, Abashevo, Sintashta, Pokrovsk and other cultures of the Eurasian forest‐steppe and steppe belt. Although hoard deposits are comparatively rare in this context, this category of finds has also provided some extraordinary examples of metalwork. This paper reports on the analysis of three such artefacts, namely the gold‐ornamented silver‐alloy spearheads from the ‘treasure’ recovered near Borodino in Ukraine at the beginning of the twentieth century. The high‐ resolution technological study of these items presented here includes experimental research to produce similar decorative patterns and a comparison of the resulting traces and imprints with the original archaeological artefacts. The results help to identify use‐wear traces and reveal new information about casting and crafting techniques, tool sets and individual technical styles. Although the spearheads share some basic decorative features such as a gold plate attached to the silver, variations in the tools used and the technical repertoire – chasing, punching, and cutting – suggest that the spearheads were decorated by different hands. The study inevitably leaves many questions about the ‘life history’ for these objects unanswered, but takes the first steps towards a more complete understanding of this remarkable assemblage.     

Particle size distribution of lithic assemblages and taphonomy of Palaeolithic sites

Lithic debris derived from knapping and used tools can be assimilated to simple sedimentary particles that may undergo size sorting when exposed to geomorphic processes such as streamflow or overland flow. Sorting can be identified by comparing the size distribution of archaeological assemblages to that of experimental core reduction sequences. A new database including different types of raw material (mainly flint and quartzite) and Palaeolithic debitage (blade, Levallois, discoid, on anvil, and shaping) has been built for this purpose. Palaeoeskimo data have also been added to illustrate microlithic industries. For all the debitages and raw materials, the particle size of knapping products >2 mm in width fits with a power-law distribution and shows only minor fluctuations, the range of which is always <15% between experiments (all steps of the chaîne opératoire included up to the final tool). A lithic assemblage derived from block/core knapping or blank/preform production will display a particle size distribution close to the experimental distributions if not subsequently modified. Modifications may originate either from sedimentary processes or from anthropogenic factors. To help distinguishing amongst these, data on the impact of both water flows on sedimentary particles or experimental assemblages, and anthropogenic processes such as importation-exportation (of core, preforms or finished tools) or uneven spatial distribution of the different steps in core reduction and tool production within a site, are reviewed. By contrast to anthropogenic modifications, sedimentary processes are generally typified by strong impoverishment in or selective accumulation of fine-grained (<10 mm) artefacts together with a low intra-site variability (spatial homogenization) or a downslope size trend. Archaeological case studies taken from French Palaeolithic site are then detailed. Evidence for lithic redistribution implies that care should be taken in archaeological site analysis since sorting may impact significantly the initial techno-typological balance of the assemblage.     

Microwear study of quartzite artefacts: preliminary results from the Middle Pleistocene site of Payre (South-eastern France)

Preliminary functional results obtained from the quartzite assemblage of the Early Middle Palaeolithic site of Payre (South-eastern France) are presented. In an area rich in flint, hominins at Payre also collected quartzite in their local environment, specifically along the Rhône River banks. Although the Payre lithic assemblage is largely composed of flint, quartzite was introduced in the site mainly as large cutting tools knapped outside. This fact pointed out an apparently highly differential treatment of the raw material types available in the region. A major concern is to understand the reason why. Is there any functional reason for the introduction of those artefacts, perhaps to perform specific activities related to the toughness of quartzite? Or is there any functional differentiation among the various raw materials? Use-wear analysis is a useful tool for better understanding human technological choices and strategies of lithic raw material management. Before attempting to extensively apply use-wear analysis on the quartzite assemblage, we analysed a limited sample to evaluate the general surface preservation. A specific experimental programme with the same local quartzite was carried out in order to provide a reliable comparative reference for interpreting use-wear evidence on archaeological implements. Methodological difficulties related to use-wear analysis applied to quartzite artefacts are also discussed. Both Optical light microscopy (OLM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) were employed in this study; however, interpretations were elaborated considering principally SEM micro-graphs.The analysis of the archaeological material showed a good state of preservation of the surfaces with a low incidence of post-depositional alterations. The documented use-wear allowed us to identify the active edges, the kinematics and, more rarely, the worked material. Chopping activities were documented on two large artefacts suggesting a specific utility of those tools.     

基于近红外高光谱技术的敦煌莫高窟壁画起甲病害风险评估方法

针对敦煌莫高窟壁画起甲病害的发生发展过程,本实验采取了近红外高光谱技术进行分析和评估。高光谱技术由于其非接触、光谱信息丰富能够无损地应用于壁画的病害检测上。首先通过高光谱成像系统采集不同起甲病害程度下的壁画高光谱图像,提取出壁画从未发生起甲到碎片脱落的病害周期内各个阶段对应的光谱信息,从而建立起甲病害光谱数据库;然后分别使用偏最小二乘回归(PLSR)、主成分分析与支持向量机、主成分分析与人工神经网络三种评估模型对此光谱数据库进行训练,并且通过平均误差、决定系数的大小决定评估模型的优劣。实验结果显示PLSR取得了较好的评估结果,同时利用PLSR评估模型中的加权回归系数得到光谱中的重要波段;之后运用PLSR评估模型对未标注风险情况的壁画进行逐像素点的病害风险评估,获得壁画的起甲风险评估图。实验结果显示基于近红外高光谱技术能够对敦煌壁画起甲病害进行风险评估。     

Comparative microstructural and elemental analysis of iron artefacts from Kaveri valley archaeological sites

Iron has been one of the most critical technotraditions that had lasting impact on social formation throughout the Iron Age and historical period. Iron was used in warfare and subsistence economy. Our knowledge on ancient iron smelting and working have generally been derived from ethnography and ethnohistory, which is by all means, time, region, and raw material specific. Scientific analyses of ancient iron have contributed in understanding this heritage to a respectable extent, yet a comprehensive knowledge about the evolution of iron making through time and space in India eludes us. In this work, a comparative study of iron artefacts from two Iron Age/Megalithic-Early Historic sites of Tamil Nadu, south India, that is, Mangadu (burial site) and Ambal (habitation-cum-burial site) is carried out to understand the iron thermal-processing capabilities. The retrieved artefacts were examined using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) for elemental composition. The imaging of the artefacts was done using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD), and Optical Microscopy (OM). In addition, phase identification was performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS). Combination of these analyses illustrates that inhabitants of Mangadu and Ambal were aware of the iron alloy manufacturing/processing techniques such as forging and hammering.     

Assessing the macrofracture method for identifying Stone Age hunting weaponry

Macrofracture analysis is an experimentally derived method used as an initial step in investigating the hunting function of stone artefacts. Diagnostic impact fractures, which can only develop as a result of longitudinal impact, underpin this method. Macrofracture analysis recently gained favour in Middle Stone Age studies, supporting hypotheses for effective hunting during the late Pleistocene in southern Africa. However, the factors affecting diagnostic impact fracture formation and the interpretation of these fracture frequencies are not yet fully understood. This paper outlines a set of experiments designed to test macrofracture formation under human and cattle trampling and knapping conditions. The results show that: (a) macrofractures occur frequently when stone artefacts are trampled by cattle and humans and in knapping debris; (b) diagnostic impact fractures occur on some of the trampled flakes and knapping debris (≤3%), but significantly less often than in previous hunting experiments; (c) when they do occur, they are likely produced by longitudinal forces similar to those experienced during hunting; (d) considering artefact morphology is important during macrofracture analysis; and (e) macrofracture analysis is not a standalone method, but is most useful as part of a multi-analytical approach to functional analysis. These experiments help to establish a significant baseline diagnostic impact fracture frequency for the interpretation of archaeological macrofracture frequencies.     

An Examination of Terminal Archaic Bone and Antler Implements from the Firehouse Site,Dearborn County,Indiana

The Firehouse site (12D563) is a Terminal Archaic Riverton culture site located on a bluff overlooking the confluence of the Ohio and Great Miami Rivers in Dearborn County, Indiana. Excavations at the site in 2003 and 2004 yielded a highly diverse assemblage of around 300 bone and antler implements. Such large assemblages of organic tools are rare outside of wet sites, rockshelters, and shell middens and provide a unique opportunity for the study of tool forms not typically recovered in the Midwest. A typological analysis of the Firehouse assemblage indicates some similarities between these tools and Riverton culture bone and antler implements from the type sites in Illinois. Additionally, a microscopic analysis of manufacturing microtraces indicates that most tools were made using a lithic shaving (rather than an abrasion) technique.     

Selinunte (Sicily) and its productive context: the clayey raw materials applied in a long-lived ceramic production (seventh to third century BCE)

The westernmost of the Greek-Sicilian towns, Selinunte, founded in western Sicily during the second half of the seventh century BCE, gives amazing evidences of a historic activity of ceramic production (seventh to third century BCE). The present study aims to identify the raw materials available in the vicinity of the archaeological site of Selinunte, which were possibly used by the ancient potters, and to characterise them by means of petrographic and chemical techniques. A sampling campaign of clays and sands for tempering was undertaken in the archaeological site and the adjacent area. Moreover, locally produced archaeological bricks and tiles were considered helpful for comparison regarding the definition of local ceramic macro- and micro-fabrics and were analysed as well. The comparison between textural, mineralogical and chemical data allowed us to highlight a good similarity between the clayey materials available in the area and the local ancient bricks and tiles. Their compositional resemblance suggests the hypothesis of a systematic use of the studied clays for ceramic productions from the Archaic to the Hellenistic period. The preliminary archaeometric results obtained so far could enhance the distinction between local manufactures and imports and may well lead to the identification of ceramic artefacts produced by the Archaic-Hellenistic workshops of Selinunte at various consumption sites.     

Interpreting pachyderm single carcass sites in the African Lower and Early Middle Pleistocene record: A multidisciplinary approach to the site of Nadung’a 4 (Kenya)

Nadung’a 4 is one of the single carcass pachyderm sites recorded in East Africa during the Lower and Early Middle Pleistocene. The site has yielded an abundant lithic assemblage in close association with the partial carcass of an elephant. Conjoined pedological, geoarchaeological, spatial, technological, and taphonomical analyses have been carried out to address the relationship between hominids and elephant. The resulting data are consistent with a non-fortuitous association between both categories of remains. The lithic artefacts do not match a classical Acheulean tool-kit, as would be expected for the time period ascribed to the site, and the functional patterns inferred from their analysis make this site radically different from other purported butchery sites. The implications of these original features are discussed.     

Slag inclusions in iron objects and the quest for provenance: an experiment and a case study

Slag inclusions are found within most archaeological bloomery iron artefacts and are remainders of slag created during the smelting and smithing processes. Although they are widely believed to provide data with the potential for provenancing iron artefacts, previous slag inclusion studies have mostly proven inconclusive. The main aim of the work reported here is to analyse experimental smelting and smithing assemblages (including ore, furnace lining, fuel and slag), to compare these to slag inclusions in the resulting bloom and worked objects, and then explore the relationships between ore, slag and slag inclusions. This study has revealed that the composition of slag inclusions most closely relates to the smelting slag produced, whereas provenance to a specific ore would be difficult due to the chemical variability derived from furnace lining, fuel and any fluxes used. Some compounds in the slag inclusions are particularly affected during smithing of the artefact, i.e. those present in the sand flux and fuel used. However, trends are observed in the K₂O/MgO, MnO/SiO₂, Al₂O₃/SiO₂, Al₂O₃/MgO, Al₂O₃/K₂O and Al₂O₃/CaO ratios that allow comparison between slag inclusions and smelting slag in these experiments, and may therefore be used during other provenancing attempts. The knowledge gained from the experimental assemblages was subsequently applied to an archaeological case study, examining objects from the 900 Cal BC smithing site of Tel Beth-Shemesh, Israel and the 930 Cal BC smelting site of Tell Hammeh, Jordan. The analyses suggest that none of the artefacts examined derived from the Hammeh smelting system.     

Notes on the Identification of the Roman Masts Found in the Port of Olbia,Sardinia

This paper presents both archaeological evidence and technical features that allows the identification of two of the wooden objects discovered in 2001 at the site of a 1st‐century‐AD shipyard in Olbia, Sardinia, as masts. The structure and dimensions of the objects are presented and compared with similar artefacts which have been interpreted as rudder‐stocks in order to establish their specific and distinct features. Possible retaining and lowering systems for the masts, and evidence of wooden mast‐ladders are discussed through examination of archaeological parallels and Roman iconography.     

Hunting lesions caused by osseous projectile points: experimental results and archaeological implications

The identification of projectile impact traces on archaeological faunal remains is an important issue for understanding prehistoric hunting behavior, especially in the Paleolithic and Mesolithic. From the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic in Europe, and earlier in Africa, projectiles tipped with osseous points were of great importance for subsistence; but thus far, no specific experimental reference has been developed to help identify the traces left by these points. In 2003 and 2004 two series of projectile experiments with antler points of Magdalenian design were organized, involving two ox calves and two female fallow deer as targets for bow and spearthrower shooting. The subsequent study demonstrates that positive identifications of impact traces left by osseous points can be made. The observation of 127 impact traces allowed us to distinguish three main types of traces: notches, punctures and perforations. The relationships between the nature of the impact traces and the (i) target species, (ii) characteristics of the impacted bones, and (iii) type of weapon are presented. Synthesized results are then discussed within the context of the European Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic.     

Archaeology,assistance, and aggression along the Euphrates: reflections from Raqqa

ABSTRACT

This paper traces the cultural missions and salvage archaeology programs along the Euphrates River around Raqqa from the 1950s onwards. We suggest that the varied investments from international expeditions, conservation programs, and technical assistance in Syria have an important, untold history that is relevant to recent developments and conflicts in northern Syria. We explore the intersecting practices of archaeology and assistance, illuminated by archives drawn from international agencies such as UNESCO, as well as companies, consultants, bureaucrats, and archaeologists. Our focus is upon foreign intervention around imperiled heritage, considering not only internal politics but also UNESCO’s 1960s shift from fully funded campaigns to global appeals reliant on foreign governments, corporations, and universities. The outsourcing of salvage allowed specific patrons – national and international – to privilege particular pasts; and it is these histories and legacies that further require us to reassess the place of Raqqa in the current civil war.     

Chemical characterisation and manufacturing technology of late Roman to early Byzantine glass from Beit Ras/Capitolias,Northern Jordan

The finding of considerable collections of glass artefacts, together with considerable lumps of glass chunks, fuel ash slag and kiln fragments related to glass processing strongly suggests a local secondary production (working) of glass at the Beit Ras/Capitolias archaeological site in northern Jordan from the late Roman to the early Byzantine period. The chemical analysis of ancient glasses can provide important information regarding the manufacturing technology of the glass made during a specific period. The aim of this study is to characterise the chemical and technological aspects of late Roman to early Byzantine glasses excavated from this main archaeological site. Furthermore, the present paper aims to provide incontrovertible evidence that this site must be considered as a major centre for the secondary production of glass during a period between the 3rd and the 6th centuries. For this purpose, a considerable group of raw glass chunks and vessel fragments of different colours and typologies were collected. The results of chemical analyses indicated that the glass did not show a clear difference in chemical composition between late Roman and early Byzantine times. All the glasses (artefacts and chunks) are of the soda-lime-silica type and correspond to the previously defined Levantine I glass group. The chemical composition of the glass chunks, identical to that of contemporary glass of the same colour, strongly suggests that these chunks were used for the manufacture of late Roman to early Byzantine glass at Beit Ras. The observation of technological features indicates that glass chunks were produced in massive tank furnaces in other primary production centres elsewhere, and were meant for local reworking. According to the microscopic examination, it can also be observed that mould-blowing was the main technique used for forming glass.     

Microdebitage analysis: Initial considerations

Microdebitage is defined as all stone flaking residue less than 1 mm in maximum dimension. Experimental replication indicates that it is produced in great quantities by stone tool manufacture and can permeate site matrices as a permanent signature of past cultural activity. Initial sampling studies suggest that microdebitage analysis may have considerable utility as a means of lithic site surveying.