Lithic Technology
Measures of Production, Use and Curation

This volume brings together essays that measure the life history of stone tools relative to retouch values, raw material constraints and evolutionary processes.

William Andrefsky, Jr (Edited by)

9781107646636, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 6 August 2012

360 pages
22.6 x 15 x 2.3 cm, 0.48 kg

Review of the hardback: 'Lithic Technology succeeds in its goal of combining unique temporal and cultural examples to demonstrate a link between technological organization theory and the reconstruction of lithic retouched tool life histories … It should be required reading for any upper division undergraduate or graduate lithics class where its chapters can be discussed, debated and used as reference points for future research. Lithic Technology is also highly recommended for anyone interested in reading about diverse analytical measures for retouched lithic tools and theoretical arguments regarding lithic production trajectories currently debated by lithicists around the globe.' PaleoAnthropology

The life history of stone tools is intimately linked to tool production, use and maintenance. These are important processes in the organization of lithic technology, or the manner in which lithic technology is embedded within human organizational strategies of land use and subsistence practices. This volume brings together essays that measure the life history of stone tools relative to retouch values, raw material constraints and evolutionary processes. Collectively, they explore the association of technological organization with facets of tool form such as reduction sequences, tool production effort, artifact curation processes and retouch measurement. Data sets cover a broad geographic and temporal span, including examples from France during the Paleolithic, the Near East during the Neolithic, and other regions such as Mongolia, Australia, and Italy. North American examples are derived from Paleoindian times to historic period aboriginal populations throughout the United States and Canada.

Part I. Introduction, Background and Review: 1. An introduction to stone tool life history and technological organization William Andrefsky, Jr
2. Lithic reduction, its measurement, and implications: comments on the volume Michael J. Shott and Margaret C. Nelson
Part II. Production, Reduction and Retouch: 3. Comparing and synthesizing unifacial stone tool reduction indices Metin I. Eren and Mary E. Prendergast
4. Exploring retouch on bifaces: unpacking production, resharpening, and hammer type Jennifer Wilson and William Andrefsky, Jr
5. The construction of morphological diversity: a study of Mousterian implement retouching at Combe Grenal Peter Hiscock and Chris Clarkson
6. Reduction and retouch as independent measures of intensity Brooke Blades
7. Perforation with stone tools and retouch intensity: a Neolithic case study Colin Patrick Quinn, William Andrefsky, Jr, Ian Kuijt and Bill Finlayson
8. Exploring the dart and arrow dilemma: retouch indices as functional determinants Cheryl Harper and William Andrefsky, Jr
Part III. New Perspectives on Lithic Raw Material and Technology: 9. Projectile point provisioning strategies and human land use William Andrefsky, Jr
10. The role of lithic raw material availability and quality in determining tool kit size, tool function, and degree of retouch: a case study from Skink Rockshelter (46NI445), West Virginia Douglas H. MacDonald
11. Raw material and retouched flakes Andrew P. Bradbury, Philip J. Carr and D. Randall Cooper
Part IV. Evolutionary Approaches to Lithic Technologies: 12. Lithic technological organization in an evolutionary framework: examples from North America's Pacific Northwest region Anna Marie Prentiss and David S. Clarke
13. Changing reduction intensity, settlement, and subsistence in Wardaman Country, Northern Australia Chris Clarkson
14. Lithic core reduction techniques: modeling expected diversity Nathan B. Goodale, Ian Kuijt, Shane J. Macfarlan, Curtis Osterhoudt and Bill Finlayson.

Subject Areas: Historical geology [RBGF], Archaeological science, methodology & techniques [HDW], Prehistoric archaeology [HDDA]