Stone Tools, Toolkits, and Human Behavior in Prehistory [and Comments and Reply]

Cahen, Daniel; Keeley, Lawrence H.; Noten, Francis L. van; Behm, Jeffery A.; Busby, Colin; Dunnell, Robert C.; Hayden, Brian; Johnson, L. Lewis; Katz, Paul R.; Mohapatra, G. C.; Movius, Hallam L.; Narr, Karl J.; Newcomer, Mark H; Newell, Raymond R.; Odell, George H.; Ohel, Milla Y.; Paddayya, K.; Pittioni, Richard; Roe, Derek; Tomenchuk, John; Wynn, Thomas

doi:10.1086/202371

Cited by 169 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…They are also regarded as a significant trait of behavioral modernity for Southeast Asia and the western Pacific region ( Barton et al 2009). However, hafting traces are easily overlooked or neglected in microwear analysis (Cahen et al 1979;keeley 1982). This analysis of relatively simple flakes from the Philippine Upper Palaeolithic showed that some were actually hafted armatures and parts of more complex composite tools.…”

Section: Detecting Modern Traits With Microwear Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioural Complexity and Modern Traits in the Philippine Upper Palaeolithic

Pawlik¹

2012

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Behavioral modernity has been a widely neglected topic for Southeast Asia’s prehistory. Evidence of modern packages or even traits is basically absent in the Palaeolithic assemblages. This absence has considerably influenced the discussion of hominid behavior and their cultural and cognitive abilities. In a case study on terminal Pleistocene artifacts from Ille Cave on Palawan Island, indications of the presence of several items of the modern trait list, foremost the first evidence of hafted lithic tools and the use of adhesives in the Philippine Palaeolithic, were detected through microwear analysis. The results showed that unretouched and morphologically less characteristic flaked artifacts often considered as mere expedient tools could have served as hafted armatures of multicomponent tools. For the ongoing discussion on the development and expansion of modern behavior, methods like microwear analysis can eliminate some limitations of traditional technological and morphological analysis of lithic assemblages.

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Section: Detecting Modern Traits With Microwear Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioural Complexity and Modern Traits in the Philippine Upper Palaeolithic

Pawlik¹

2012

asi

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“…Third, the vertical and horizontal separation of conjoining objects has contributed to understandings of depositional and post-depositional processes, especially assessments of stratigraphic integrity (e.g. Bollong 1994;Cahen 1978;Cahen et al 1979;Cahen and Moyersons 1977;Villa 1982). It is this last application that is of central concern here.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coastal Themes: An Archaeology of the Southern Curtis Coast, Queensland : An Archaeology of the Southern Curtis Coast, Queensland

Ulm¹

2006

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terra australis 24Terra Australis reports the results of archaeological and related research within the south and east of Asia, though mainly Australia, New Guinea and island Melanesia -lands that remained terra australis incognita to generations of prehistorians. Its subject is the settlement of the diverse environments in this isolated quarter of the globe by peoples who have maintained their discrete and traditional ways of life into the recent recorded or remembered past and at times into the observable present.Since the beginning of the series, the basic colour on the spine and cover has distinguished the regional distribution of topics as follows: ochre for Australia, green for New Guinea, red for South-East Asia and blue for the Pacific Islands. From 2001, issues with a gold spine will include conference proceedings, edited papers and monographs which in topic or desired format do not fit easily within the original arrangements. All volumes are numbered within the same series. List of volumes in Terra AustralisVolume 1: Burrill Lake and Currarong: Coastal Sites in Southern New South Wales. R.J. Lampert (1971) Volume 2: Ol Tumbuna: Archaeological Excavations in the Eastern Central Highlands, Papua New Guinea. J.P. White (1972) Volume 3 994.01Copyright of the text remains with the contributors/authors, 2006. This book is copyright in all countries subscribing to the Berne convention. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Inquiries should be made to the publisher. THE RESEARCH DOCUMENTED here represents the first systematic archaeological work in this area of the southeast Queensland coast and was undertaken as a major part of a larger, multicomponent project concerning archaeology and cultural heritage in the traditional country of Gooreng Gooreng speaking people. Sean's task was to build upon the results of exploratory site survey and excavation to address two key concerns. The first was the relationship of patterns of cultural change in his study area to those described elsewhere in southeast Queensland. The second was to ensure that any such comparisons were taphonomically well-founded, particularly with regard to the analytical integrity of the shell middens upon which he and other coastal researchers in Australia rely so heavily. Sean took to this task with a vengeance, closely surveying a large area of landscape and excavating an array of site types to provide himself with a solid sample of the archaeological variation thus revealed. Though most were not archaeologically rich, these sites provided substantial grist for Sean's taphonomic mill, prompting him to adapt conjoining techniques to work on bivalve shellfish -a simple but clever innovation -as well as to undertake much more sophisticated work on local variation in correction factors for the radiocarbon dating of marine shell. In the end, he was able to distil the three-phase cul...

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“…This level is encountered between 80-100 cm below the surface and was still continuing with no visible change in composition excavation, a methodology was required that would not only provide a general overview of the entire collection but also enable detailed analyses to be undertaken on select groups of artifacts. The chaîne opératoire approach was chosen as it has proven to be highly successful on other sites containing assemblages where a specific set of questions were posed (e.g., Bergman et al 1990;Bodu et al 1987;Cahen and Keeley 1980;Cahen et al 1979;Coulson 1986;Edmonds 1990;Skar and Coulson 1986). Although the chaîne opératoire is commonly used as a methodological approach for analyzing collections from European Stone Age sites, elements of this method have only recently been implemented in Southern Africa (e.g., Lombard 2005Lombard , 2006cLombard et al 2004;Van Peer and Wurz 2006;Villa et al 2005;Wurz 1999Wurz , 2000Wurz , 2005Wurz et al 2005).…”

Section: Methodology-the Chaîne Opératoirementioning

confidence: 99%

Untitled

2011

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Rhino Cave, located at the World Heritage site of Tsodilo Hills, is one of the three main Middle Stone Age (MSA) sites in Botswana. Initial investigations during the mid-1990s left unanswered a number of key questions regarding the early use of the cave. This prompted the current investigations, which have unearthed a wealth of MSA artifacts from a lag deposit. Results of a selectively employed chaîne opératoire analysis have revealed a very special set of behavioral patterns. It will be argued that the best-fit interpretation of the results from this investigation lies within the realm of ritualized behavior. The assemblage is characterized by an unexpectedly large number of MSA points, which are for the most part produced in non-locally acquired raw materials. These points are colorful, carefully and often elaborately made, and, once complete, never left the cave. They were either deliberately burned to the point where they could no longer be used, abandoned, or intentionally smashed. These artifacts were found together with tabular grinding slabs and pieces of the locally available pigment, specularite. This assemblage was recovered directly beneath a massive, virtually free-standing rock face that has been carved with hundreds of cupules of varying sizes and shapes. A section of the carved rock face was recovered from well within the MSA deposits in association with handheld grinding stones. INTRODUCTIONI t has been proposed that "collective ritual -with its formal characteristic of amplified, stereotypical, redundant display -might be expected to leave a loud archaeological signature" (Watts 2009: 62). According to a number of researchers (e.g., Knight 2009;Knight 2010;Power 1999Power , 2009Power and Aiello 1997;Watts 1999Watts , 2002Watts , 2009) the archaeological record of ochre use, dating from the late Middle Pleistocene, provides such a signature. Symbolism, a crucial feature of ritual behavior, has been central to the debate on behavioral modernity. . However, one area of investigation that could potentially reveal patterns of ritual behavior has received minimal attention within African MSA studies. This is the application of the chaîne opératoire. Results from this method identify sequences of conscious choices made by the original artifact makers. The combined results of these individual sequences can provide insight into behavior patterns which are indicative of broader culturally determined traits and norms. By applying this methodological approach to a site that contains unusual or atypical MSA features, it can identify other 'loud archaeological signatures'.As noted by McBrearty (2003: 514) "one of the most difficult tasks for the prehistorian is to identify the emergence of novel behaviors." The authors suggest that a set of novel behavioral patterns is a most apt description for the results that have emerged from a recent test excavation at Rhino Cave, located within the World Heritage site of Tsodilo Hills, Botswana. This site was initially excavated in the mid-1990s (Robbins et al...

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Stone Tools, Toolkits, and Human Behavior in Prehistory [and Comments and Reply]

Cited by 169 publications

References 11 publications

Behavioural Complexity and Modern Traits in the Philippine Upper Palaeolithic

Behavioural Complexity and Modern Traits in the Philippine Upper Palaeolithic

Coastal Themes: An Archaeology of the Southern Curtis Coast, Queensland : An Archaeology of the Southern Curtis Coast, Queensland

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