Projectile? Knife? Perforator? Using actualistic experiments to build models for identifying microscopic usewear traces on Dalton points from the Brand site, Arkansas, North America

Why invent the handle? Electromyography (EMG) and efficiency of use data investigating the prehistoric origin and selection of hafted stone knives

“…Hafted knives were more efficient than flake tools during the clay cutting task. Although this difference was not significant, it does follow previous research highlighting the limited ability of relatively small flake tools to cut large or resistant portions of material (Jones 1980;Toth 1985;Key and Lycett 2017b), and the high effectiveness of stone knives in similar contexts (Morin 2004;Shea et al 2002;Smallwood 2015;Gingerich and Stanford 2018;Smallwood et al 2020). Hafted knives would, then, have conveyed benefits over 'basic' flake tools when large portions of material (or those displaying greater material resistance) were required to be cut in prehistory.…”

“…Knife blades may perhaps be more apt to be used as multifunctional implements when hafted (e.g. Smallwood 2015; Smallwood et al 2020). Knife handles may also decrease the chance of injury during use, either in cutting or self-defence activities.…”

“…Investigating the question of why knives were invented and selected thus contributes to our broader understanding of at least 300,000 years of human technological development in the realm of composite tools (e.g. Barham 2013;Eren 2012;Graesch 2007;Mazza et al 2006;Perrone et al 2020;Rousseau 2004;Shott 1995;Smallwood et al 2020;Wilkins et al 2012;Wilson et al 2020).…”

“…Rots et al (2020:1) link handles to increases in grip comfort and 'mechanical or other advantages'. Morin (2004) demonstrated hafted bifacial stone knives to be effective for butchery, even outcompeting steel alternatives in fish butchery, but unfortunately no hand-held stone flake condition was used as a comparative standard (see also Goldstein and Shaffer 2017;Lombard et al 2004;Rimkus and Slah 2016;Smallwood et al 2020). Similarly, in an elephant butchery experiment, Gingerich and Stanford (2018) suggest that hafting increases the amount of force and number of performed cutting strokes, but again, there is no hand-held flake comparative standard.…”

Using 3D Models to Understand the Changing Role of Fluting in Paleoindian Point Technology from Clovis to Dalton

“…Points possessing “classic” Dalton morphological traits (Figure 1) are lanceolates with concave bases that often have longitudinal flake scars originating at the base, serrations along the lateral blade margins, and steeply alternately beveled blade edge angles (Bradley 1997; Morse 1971:13). Dalton points were multifunctional throughout their use life, serving as both projectiles and knives, and many were even modified into drills/punches, scrapers, and burins (Goodyear 1974; Shott and Ballenger 2007; Smallwood et al 2020; Yerkes and Gaertner 1997). Records indicate that Dalton hunter-gatherers were settling in, relying more heavily on local resources—in some cases, lower-quality stone sources, which include smaller, more variable package sizes such as cobbles (Jennings 2010) that present unique knapping challenges (Morgan et al 2015), and materials such as quartzites that require more force to flake (Key et al 2020).…”