Pine traces at Star Carr: Evidence from residues on stone tools

Croft, Shannon; Colonese, André Carlo; Lucquin, Alexandre; Craig, Oliver E.; Conneller, Chantal; Milner, Nicola

doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.06.021

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…This could be taken as evidence of syn-or post-depositional contamination thus excluding the hypothesis of hafting. However this is not the case for our pieces because (1) there is no evidence of resin in the surrounding sediment; (2) if the artifacts with Pinaceae residue were in or near a fire containing embers of Pinaceae wood, dripping resin could have transferred to the tool surface [111–112]. However, with the possible exception of flake F4, none of the other artifacts in this study have been heat treated: there are no changes in color, nor fractures or thermal scars due to heat.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hafting of Middle Paleolithic tools in Latium (central Italy): New data from Fossellone and Sant’Agostino caves

et al. 2019

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Hafting of stone tools was an important advance in the technology of the Paleolithic. Evidence of hafting in the Middle Paleolithic is growing and is not limited to points hafted on spears for thrusting or throwing. This article describes the identification of adhesive used for hafting on a variety of stone tools from two Middle Paleolithic caves in Latium, Fossellone Cave and Sant’Agostino Cave. Analysis of the organic residue by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry shows that a conifer resin adhesive was used, in one case mixed with beeswax. Contrary to previous suggestions that the small Middle Paleolithic tools of Latium could be used by hand and that hafting was not needed since it did not improve their functionality, our evidence shows that hafting was used by Neandertals in central Italy. Ethnographic evidence indicates that resin, which dries when exposed to air, is generally warmed by exposure to a small fire thus softened to be molded and pushed in position in the haft. The use of resin at both sites suggests regular fire use, as confirmed by moderate frequencies of burnt lithics in both assemblages. Lithic analysis shows that hafting was applied to a variety of artifacts, irrespective of type, size and technology. Prior to our study evidence of hafting in the Middle Paleolithic of Italy was limited to one case only.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hafting of Middle Paleolithic tools in Latium (central Italy): New data from Fossellone and Sant’Agostino caves

et al. 2019

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“…This change, traditionally regarded as a marker of the Boreal-Atlantic Transition, probably represents direct replacement of Pinus by Alnus, perhaps on wetland and valley bottom organic soils under a wetter climate regime. Pinus had almost certainly been present in the area, as most pine pollen is deposited within a few hundred metres of the tree, pine resin is present at Star Carr [101] and frequencies of greater than 5% signify local presence [102], although probably in restricted habitats, being consistently recorded in all the early Holocene pollen assemblages in this study and previously [20], and most pine pollen will have been the result of local growth rather than longer distance transport.…”

Section: Vegetation History Conspectusmentioning

confidence: 80%

Lateglacial to Mid-Holocene Vegetation History in the Eastern Vale of Pickering, Northeast Yorkshire, UK: Pollen Diagrams from Palaeolake Flixton

et al. 2022

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Palaeolake Flixton, in the eastern Vale of Pickering in northeast Yorkshire, UK, existed as open water during the Lateglacial and early to mid-Holocene, until hydroseral succession and gradual terrestrialisation changed it to an area of fen and basin peatland by the later mid-Holocene. The environs of the lake were occupied by Late Palaeolithic and Mesolithic people over thousands of years and many Early Mesolithic sites, in particular, have been found located along the ancient lake edge, including the paradigm site for the British Early Mesolithic at Star Carr, where occupation occurred over several centuries. We have analysed eleven sediment cores, distributed in most parts of the palaeolake area, for pollen and stratigraphic data with which to reconstruct lake development and vegetation history. These new diagrams augment earlier pollen studies from the western part of the lake, particularly in the Star Carr area and near other major Mesolithic sites around Seamer Carr. Especially informative are a long core from the deepest part of the lake; cores that document the Lateglacial as well as early Holocene times, and evidence for the later Mesolithic that helps to balance the high density of Late Mesolithic sites known from research in the adjacent uplands of the North York Moors. There are many records of charcoal in the deposits but, especially for the earliest examples, it is not always possible to tie them firmly to either human activity or natural causes. Overall, the new and previously existing diagrams provide evidence for the spatial reconstruction of vegetation history across this important wetland system, including (a) for the progression of natural community successions within the wetland and on the surrounding dryland (b) the influence of climate change in bringing about changes in woodland composition and (c) for discussion of the possibility of human manipulation of the vegetation in the Late Upper Palaeolithic, Early and Late Mesolithic. Results show that climate was the main driver of longer-term vegetation change. Centennial-scale, abrupt climate events caused significant vegetation reversals in the Lateglacial Interstadial. The Lateglacial vegetation was very similar throughout the lake hinterland, although some areas supported some scrubby shrub rather than being completely open. Immigration and spread of Holocene woodland taxa comprised the familiar tree succession common in northern England but the timings of the establishment and the abundance of some individual tree types varied considerably around the lake margins because of edaphic factors and the effects of fire, probably of human origin. Woodland successions away from proximity to the lake were similar to those recorded in the wider landscape of northern England and produced a dense, homogenous forest cover occasionally affected by fire.

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“…resin, sometimes loaded with ochre and possibly quartz and burnt bone, was used to haft stone tools in South Africa (Charrié-Duhaut et al 2009;. Neanderthals (Degano et al 2019) and European Mesolithic hunter-gatherers (Croft et al 2018) used resins to haft stone tools. North American Paleoindians used resins mixed with ochre and fossil resins to haft tools and repair canoes (Helwig et al 2014;Kurtz, n.d.;Tankersley 1994).…”

Section: Plant Resinmentioning

confidence: 99%

Archaeological Adhesives

Langejans¹,

Aleo²,

Fajardo³

et al. 2022

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Anthropology

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An adhesive is any substance that bonds different materials together. This broad definition includes materials used in everything from hafted stone tools to monumental architecture. In addition, the combination of bonding, plasticity, and insolubility meant that some adhesives were exploited for waterproofing and sealing of materials, as self-adhering inlays and putties, and as paints, varnishes, and inks. Adhesives have a history of at least 200,000 years. Throughout (pre)history and around the world, people used materials, including bitumen/asphalt, carbohydrate polymers such as starches and gums, natural rubbers, mortars, proteins (from casein, soy, blood, and animal connective tissue), insect and plant resins, and tars made from various barks and woods. Adhesives thus are very diverse and have widely varying properties: they can be tacky, pliable, elastic, brittle, water-resistant, fluid, viscous, clear, dark, and much more. They are a plastic avant la lettre. These properties can and were tweaked by mixing ingredients or by further processing. In the study of archaeological adhesives, their characterization is essential and this is best done with chemical and spectroscopic methods. When larger coherent samples as opposed to single finds are analyzed, adhesive studies can provide data on past technologies, socioeconomic organizations, and environments and raw material availability. Through sourcing and mapping of ingredients and adhesive end products, travel and transfer of materials and knowledge can be illuminated. Additionally, experimental reproductions provide data on technological aspects that otherwise are lost in the archaeological record. An archaeology of adhesives can reveal the transport networks, subsistence, mobility strategies, division of labor, and technological know-how that held societies together.

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Pine traces at Star Carr: Evidence from residues on stone tools

Cited by 6 publications

References 58 publications

Hafting of Middle Paleolithic tools in Latium (central Italy): New data from Fossellone and Sant’Agostino caves

Hafting of Middle Paleolithic tools in Latium (central Italy): New data from Fossellone and Sant’Agostino caves

Lateglacial to Mid-Holocene Vegetation History in the Eastern Vale of Pickering, Northeast Yorkshire, UK: Pollen Diagrams from Palaeolake Flixton

Archaeological Adhesives

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