A new Palaeolithic discovery: tar-hafted stone tools in a European Mid-Pleistocene bone-bearing bed

Mazza, Paul; Martini, Fabio; Sala, Benedetto; Magi, Maurizio; Colombini, Maria Perla; Giachi, G.; Landucci, Francesco; Lemorini, Cristina; Modugno, Francesca; Ribechini, Erika

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2006.01.006

Cited by 314 publications

(161 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…It is also from the second half of the Middle Pleistocene onward that we can observe some spectacular cases of pyrotechnological knowledge in the production of hafting materials (42,43), which some consider a proxy for complex, modern cognition (44) ( site of Tor Faraj (51). We conclude that Middle Paleolithic Neandertals did not have to wait for lightning strikes, meteorite falls, volcanoes, or spontaneous combustion: they had the ability to make, conserve, and transport fires during successive occupations or at different sites, like ethnographically documented recent hunter-gatherers, a pattern comparable to that documented in the Upper Paleolithic.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the earliest evidence for habitual use of fire in Europe

Roebroeks

Villa

2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

567

317

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The timing of the human control of fire is a hotly debated issue, with claims for regular fire use by early hominins in Africa at ∼1.6 million y ago. These claims are not uncontested, but most archaeologists would agree that the colonization of areas outside Africa, especially of regions such as Europe where temperatures at time dropped below freezing, was indeed tied to the use of fire. Our review of the European evidence suggests that early hominins moved into northern latitudes without the habitual use of fire. It was only much later, from ∼300,000 to 400,000 y ago onward, that fire became a significant part of the hominin technological repertoire. It is also from the second half of the Middle Pleistocene onward that we can observe spectacular cases of Neandertal pyrotechnological knowledge in the production of hafting materials. The increase in the number of sites with good evidence of fire throughout the Late Pleistocene shows that European Neandertals had fire management not unlike that documented for Upper Paleolithic groups.human evolution | Paleolithic archeology | fireplaces | hafting adhesives T he emergence of stone tool manufacture and the control of fire are undoubtedly the two most significant events in the technological evolution of early humans. Although stone tool use and manufacture were regular activities from at least 2.6 million y ago (1), the timing of the human control of fire is a controversial issue (2), with some claims for regular fire use by early hominins in Africa at ∼1.6 million y ago (3-5). Longer chronologies for the use of fire include Wrangham's recent hypothesis that fire was a central evolutionary force toward larger human brains (6-9): eating cooked foods made early hominin digestion easier, and the energy formerly spent on digestion was freed up, enabling their energy-expensive brains to grow. Using fire to prepare food made early humans move away from the former feed-as-you-go-and-eat-raw-food strategy and toward the sharing of cooked foods around fires, which became attractive locations for increased social interaction between individuals. Wrangham situates these developments around the time of the emergence of Homo erectus, approximately two million y ago. Most archeologists would agree that the colonization of areas outside of Africa, especially of regions such as Europe where temperatures at time dropped below freezing (10), was tied to the use of fire to bridge gaps in the energy budget and in resource availability during winter (11). For much later periods, a greater control and more extensive use of fire is seen by some (12, 13) as one of the behavioral innovations that emerged in Africa among modern humans, favoring their spread throughout the world and their eventual evolutionary success.How strong are these hypotheses? To what extent are they backed up by archeological data on hominin use of fire? Our focus in this review is on Europe, an area of the Old World for which we have a rich record with a large number of sampling points distributed in time and space, w...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the earliest evidence for habitual use of fire in Europe

Roebroeks

Villa

2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

567

317

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“…Birch bark pitch was used as adhesive to haft tools and weapons. The earliest finds come from Germany and Italy and are estimated to be more than 80000 years old [16][17][18].…”

Section: Early History Of Using Birch Bark Pitchmentioning

confidence: 99%

History and Use of Wood Pyrolysis Liquids as Biocide and Plant Protection Product

Tiilikkala¹,

Fagernäs²,

Tiilikkala³

2010

TOASJ

151

107

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Archeological studies have found that pyrolysis liquids were already used in the time of the Neanderthal. Wood vinegar and other slow pyrolysis liquids are produced as a by-product of charcoal production. However, future business ideas may be the other way round as pyrolysis liquids may replace synthetic chemicals in the form of pesticides and biocides.Directives and regulations related to the sustainable use of pesticides govern and direct plant protection strategies towards a lower use of synthetic chemicals. It is hoped that many mega trends of global policies will boost the use of plant based products given that a reduced reliance on fossil fuel is a general target in the global food and feed production economy. Pyrolysis technology has been actively studied and developed around the world and is linked to the development of the knowledge based bio-economy. The importance and social impact of pyrolysis technologies will also be enhanced because it is a practicable technique in the sustainable use of wastes and biomasses. However, very little scientific evidence is available to support efficacy claims of wood vinegar and toxicology assessments of the products used. Wood tar has been investigated a bit more thoroughly. The aim of this review was to clarify the potential of slow pyrolysis liquids in agricultural use, in particular, in pesticide applications. In addition, some of the main challenges in developing novel bio control technologies are discussed and the barriers in the commercialization of biological control agents are revealed.

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“…Adhesives have been discovered in Italy in the Neolithic age (Mazza et al, 2006). At that time, it was the simple birch-bark-tar adhesive used for hafted arrowheads.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental effects and economic analysis of adhesives: a review of life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis (TEA)

Yang¹,

Rosentrater²

2015

2015 ASABE International Meeting

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In this paper, adhesives made either from fossil fuels or biological sources were examined. The purpose of this review was to investigate the development, processing, and production of bio-adhesives, especially key information about environmental and economic impacts of these types of adhesives. Specifically, the literature was reviewed in terms of life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis (TEA) in order to evaluate the environmental effects, economic performance and potential market acceptance. Several key parameters for life cycle analysis will be compared, such as resource consumption, ecosystem quality and human health; As for TEA, capital costs, operational costs, and unit costs will be explored, as well as the breakeven points. Underlying issues in LCA and TEA will be discussed, and we will examine areas needed for improvement for emerging biobased adhesives.

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A new Palaeolithic discovery: tar-hafted stone tools in a European Mid-Pleistocene bone-bearing bed

Cited by 314 publications

References 12 publications

On the earliest evidence for habitual use of fire in Europe

On the earliest evidence for habitual use of fire in Europe

History and Use of Wood Pyrolysis Liquids as Biocide and Plant Protection Product

Environmental effects and economic analysis of adhesives: a review of life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis (TEA)

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