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Stories Written in Stone Abstracts Volume Provisory July 2013 t5
Stories Written in Stone Abstracts Volume Provisory July 2013 t5
Edited by
Otis N. Crandell and
Vasile Cotiug
Sponsors
2013
Editura Universitii Alexandru Ioan Cuza din Iai, 2013
Arheoinvest Research Platform, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iai
Bd. Carol I, nr 11, corp. H
Iasi, 700506
Romania
Phone: [+40] 232.201.636 / [+40] 744.389.551
Fax: [+40] 232.201.636
Email: arheoinvest@gmail.com
Web: http://arheoinvestsymposium.uaic.ro/
ISSN: 978-973-703-758-9
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Contents
A distinctive type of flint in Early Neolithic Balkans: Balkan flint in Bulgarian context
Maria Gurova ....................................................................................................................... 27
A 7th millennium BC house complex of ukurii Hyk in the light of the lithic
assemblage
Bogdana Mili (a) and Barbara Horejs (b) ............................................................................. 28
Stone tools and society in the Hungarian Early and Middle Bronze Age: a preliminary
report
Anna Priskin.......................................................................................................................... 29
Detecting human mobility in the Pyrenees through the analysis of chert tools during the
Upper Palaeolithic
Marta Snchez de la Torre.................................................................................................... 30
Lithic implements at Ariud: preliminary results
Sndor Jzsef Sztncsuj (a) and Katalin T. Bir (b)................................................................ 31
Raw material circulation from South of France towards North-eastern of Iberian Peninsula
throughout Prehistory: evidences, troubles and historical signification
Xavier Terradas, David Ortega and Juan F. Gibaja ............................................................ 32
Raw material economy at the Magdalenian site in Klementowice, Eastern Poland
Tadeusz Winiewski (a) and Lucjan Gazda (b) ........................................................................ 33
Clive Bonsall (a), Maria Gurova (b), Chavdar Nachev (c), Chris Hayward (d) and Nicholas
Pearce (e) ............................................................................................................................... 74
Raw material analysis of military gunflints from Schloss Neugebude, Vienna, Austria
Michael Brandl (a), Christoph Hauzenberger (b) and Gerhard Trnka (c) ............................... 75
Sourcing of Hudson Bay lowland chert by ICP-MS and FTIR, to characterize the Spanish
River lithic biface cache
Patrick Julig (a) and Darrel G. F. Long (b) ............................................................................ 77
Managing a region: patterns of Late Pleistocene human settlement in North-Western Libya
analysed through the lithic raw material procurement
Giuseppina Mutri .................................................................................................................. 78
The "Mucientes Flint" of the Iberian North Plateau (Spain)
M. Natividad Fuertes-Prieto (a), Ana Neira-Campos (a), Esperanza Fernndez-Martnez (b),
Fernando Gmez-Fernndez (c), Eduardo Alonso-Herrero (d) .............................................. 79
Mineralogy and structure of selected raw materials as reason of their quality
Maciej Pawlikowski and Marta Wrbel................................................................................ 80
Archaeometric characterization of chert and radiolarite artifacts from the Early Holocene
assemblages at El Mazo Rockshelter (Asturias, Spain)
John D. Rissetto (a,b), Giancarlo Pepponi (b), Igor Gutirrez-Zugasti (c,d), Manuel R.
Gonzlez-Morales (d) and David Cuenca-Solana (d) ............................................................. 81
Potential siliceous sources during prehistory: results of prospections in east margin of Ebro
Basin (NE Iberian Peninsula)
Mara Soto (a,b), Bruno Gmez de Soler (a,b), Josep Vallverd (a,b), Manuel Vaquero (b,a) ..... 82
First attempts to carry out a petrographic and geochemical characterization of chocolate
flint from the Wierzbice Zele mine compared with other flint rocks from Central
Poland
Dagmara Werra (a), Rafa Siuda (b) and Oliwia Grafka (b) .................................................... 84
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Organisers
Host institution:
Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi
Organised in partnership with:
Arheoinvest Research Platform, Iai
Geology Department, Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca
Society for Archaeological Sciences
International Association for Obsidian Studies
Meiji University Center for Obsidian and Lithic Studies
Committees
President:
Otis Crandell - Babe-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca
Vice President:
Vasile Cotiug - Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iai
Secretariat:
tefan Caliniuc - Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iai
Ctlin Hriban - Institute of Archaeology, Iai
Scientific Committee:
Astolfo Araujo - Universidade de So Paulo, Brazil
Makoto Arimura - Kanazawa University, Japan
Antoine Tony Baker - Denver, U.S.A.
Paolo Biagi - Universit Ca Foscari Venezia, Italy
Katalin Bir - Hungarian National Museum, Budapest, Hungary
Adrian Burke - Universit de Montral, Canada
Otis Crandell - Babe-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Christophe Delage - Muse de Prhistoire La Sabline, Lussac-les-Chteaux, France
Maria Gurova - Institute of Archaeology and Museum, Sofia, Bulgaria
Corina Ionescu - Babe-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Patrick Julig - Laurentian University, Sudbury, Canada
Maria Estela Mansur - CONICET, Ushuaia, Argentina
Jose Lopez Mazz - Museo Nacional de Antropologa, Mexico City, Mexico
Mark Moore - University of New England, Armidale, Australia
Yoshihiro Nishiaki - University of Tokyo, Japan
Akira Ono - Meiji University Center for Obsidian and Lithic Studies, Tokyo, Japan
Maciej Pawlikowski - AGH -University of Science and Technology, Cracow, Poland
George Rip Rapp - University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, U.S.A.
Natalia Skakun - Academy of Sciences, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Gerhard Trnka - University of Vienna, Austria
Senica urcanu - Museum of Moldavian History, Iai, Romania
Planning Committee:
Andrei Asndulesei
Mihaela Asndulesei
Radu-tefan Balaur
Andrada Raluca Buca
Petronela Cuzic
Sebastian Drob
Tudor Mandache
Ionu-Cristi Nicu
Maria Rileanu
Session 1.
Raw material exploitation strategies:
mining and surface collecting
This session covers research involving mining, quarrying and surface collecting strategies. It also
covers tools and methods used for mining and quarrying knappable stone. Presentations are not
limited to prehistoric studies. They may include historical or present day mining or quarrying
methods, on an industrial scale or by hobbyists. Presentations may also describe research that has
been conducted on specific mines or quarries.
Figure 1. Map of the southern Pampas of Argentina showing the main orographic features and toolstone sources:
Tandilia (e.g. quartzites, chalcedonies, silicified dolomite, granites); Ventania (e.g. quartzites, sandstones, granites,
rhyolite); Patagonian Shingle Formation (e.g. basalts, rhyolites, opaque siliceous stones, chalcedonies, quartz);
Coastal Pebble Deposits (e.g. basalts, rhyolites, opaque siliceous stones, chalcedonies).
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Session 2.
Ancient lithic trade and economics
This session looks at topics such as trade routes, use of imported vs. local materials, different
values placed on certain raw materials, and specialised occupations related to lithic materials in
prehistory.
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Figure 1. Left: A. Map showing high quality materials source areas (1. Carpathian obsidian; 2. Moldavian flint; 3.
Balkan flint). Right: Examples of high quality materials (a. Carpathian obsidian; b. Moldavian flint; c. Balkan flint).
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References
Blanchet, J. C., Plateaux, M. et Pommepuy, C. 1989.
Matires premires et socits protohistoriques
dans le Nord de la France. Action Thmatique
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Figure 1. Localization of the Blicquian sites (Belgium) and examples of Ghlin flint and Bartonian flint.
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References
Eixea, A; Villaverde, V. y Zilho, J. 2011:
Aproximacin al aprovisionamiento de materias
primas lticas en el yacimiento del Paleoltico medio
del Abrigo de la Quebrada (Chelva, Valencia).
Trabajos de Prehistoria 68: 65-78.
Faus, E. 2008-2009: Apuntes sobre afloramientos y
reas con presencia de materias primas silceas
localizadas en las comarcas del Comtat y La Marina
Alta (Alacant). Alberri 19: 9-38.
Garca-Carrillo, A.; Cacho, C. y Ripoll, S. 1990:
Sobre la seleccin del slex y su aprovisionamiento
en el Tossal de la Roca (Vall dAlcal, Alicante).
Espacio, Tiempo y Forma, serie I, Prehistoria y
Arqueologa IV: 15-36.
Menargues, J. 2005: La explotacin de las rocas
locales en los yacimientos paleolticos de la Ratlla
del Bubo (Crevillent, Alicante) y la Cova de les
Cendres (Teulada, Alicante). En M. Santonja, A.
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Figure 1. Middle Palaeolithic sites in the central region of the Iberian Mediterranean.
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Figure 1. Artefacts of Balkan Flint from the Early Neolithic site of Yabalkovo (south Bulgaria). (Photo by M.
Gurova.)
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Stone tools and society in the Hungarian Early and Middle Bronze
Age: a preliminary report
Anna Priskin
Mra Ferenc Mzeum, Szeged, Hungary. Email: anna.priskin@gmail.com
Keywords: Bronze Age; Hungary; Benta Valley; chipped stone tools; microregional study
Various field methods were used at different
sites in the course of the research project in
the Benta Valley with different results: field
survey, intensive field survey, shovel point
test, shovel test, excavation. During this
research chipped stone artefacts from eleven
Early and Middle Bronze Age settlements,
which included one hilltop and many
horizontal settlements, were analysed. The
lithic tools were analysed in terms of
typology, technology and the utilization of
raw materials. The results from the various
settlement types and the published lithic finds
from the Szzhalombatta-Fldvr tell
settlement were compared. Furthermore, I
attempted to reconstruct the extent of
connections
between
contemporary
communities based on the local, regional and
long-distance raw materials. The results may
provide new information on the function of
each settlement within the settlement network
and the organization of the manufacture of the
lithic tools. This data may bring us closer to a
better understanding of the social and
economic structure of the Early and Middle
Bronze Age.
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Session 3.
Stone tool production and processing techniques
How were stone artefacts made? This session will look into the various methods used to process
raw material and produce tools or even artwork by knapping. Presentations in this session may
be theoretical or based on modern analogy. They may also be based purely on methods used by
modern knappers today.
This session will also focus on other usages of microcrystaline quartz in the modern era.
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Acknowledgements
The article results from the project
Archaeology of Serbia: Cultural identity,
integrating factors, technological processes
and role of Central Balkan in the evolution of
European prehistory (no. 177020) funded by
Ministry of Education and Science and
Technological Development of the Republic
of Serbia.
References
ari, J. 2011. Lower Paleolithic Site Kremenac near
the Village Rujnik (Serbia), StarinarLIX.7-31.
Beograd.
Rink, W. J., N. Mercier, D. Mihailovi, M. W. Morley,
J. W. Thompson and M. Roksandi 2013. New
Radiometric Ages for the BH-1 Hominin from
Balanica (Serbia): Implication for Understanding
the Role of the Balkans in Middle Pleistocene
Human Evolution. PloS ONE 8(2): e54608, 1-7.
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Figure 1. Double-sided chopper from the open-air site of Kremenac in Rujnik village near Ni, Serbia.
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References
Eriksen B. V., 2008 Dynamic technological analysis of
Bronze Age lithics. A tribute to an unconventional
archaeology. In: Z. Sulgostowska, A. J.
Tomaszewski (eds.) Man Millennia
Environment.
Migal W., 1997 Selected aspects of specialization in
mining and flint knapping. In: Romuald Schild,
Zofia Sulgostowska (eds.) Man and flint.
Olausson D., 1997 Craft specialization as an agent of
social power in the south Scandinavian Neolithic.
In: Romuald Schild, Zofia Sulgostowska (eds.) Man
and flint.
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Session 4.
Use-wear analyses
An important field of study in lithics is related to what the artefacts were used for and use-wear
analyses often give a better insight into this topic. This session will focus on research related to
use-wear analysis (also known as traceology) and various signs of usage on knapped stone
tools.
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The reality and confusion of post-depositional alterations and usewear: an experimental case on basalt
Lena Asyran (a, b, c), Andreu Oll (b,a) and Norah Moloney (d)
(a) rea de Prehistria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002
Tarragona, Spain. Email: (L. Asyran) lenaprehistoria@gmail.com; (A. Oll) aolle@iphes.cat
(b) IPHES, Institut Catal de Paleoecologia Humana i Evoluci Social, C/Marcel.li Domingo s/n
(Edifici W3), Campus Sescelades, 43007, Tarragona, Spain.
(c) Artsakh State University, M. Gosh 5, Stepanakert, Nagorno Karabagh.
(d) Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Jos Gutirrez Abascal, 2. 28006 - Madrid,
Spain. Email: tcfa305@ucl.ac.uk
Keywords: experimental case; basalt; use-wear patterns; post-depositional surface modifications
modifications noted on the Middle to Upper
Pleistocene lithic assemblages of the Azokh
Cave site (Nagorno Karabagh, Lesser
Caucasus). Our specific aims were:
1) to identify use-wear patterns on basalt and
to understand the extent to which these differ
from the patterns described on other rocks;
2) to determine the type of alterations bear
trampling can produce on the surface of basalt
artefacts (e.g. edge damage, micro-fractures,
rounding, striations, etc.); and
3) to look for criteria that may assist in
distinguishing bear trampling from use-wear
traces on basalt.
Although some aspects of both events (i.e.
use-wear and PDSM) remain to be studied in
depth, the experiment has improved our
understanding of the effects of use-wear and
post-depositional trampling on basalt lithic
artefacts. In particular, it has allowed us to
recognise mechanical alterations (e.g. cracks,
striations, fractures, pseudo-retouch) caused
by bear trampling and to note differences
between these modifications and those caused
by use.
Reference
Burroni, D., Donahue, R.E., Pollard, A.M.
(2002). The Surface Alteration of Flint
Artefacts as a Record of Environmental
Processes. J. of Archaeological Science; 29;
pp. 1277 1287
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References
Wojciechowski W., Cholewa P. 1995. Osady
najwczeniejszych rolnikw i hodowcw na
stanowisku 16 w Strzelinie, Studia Archeologiczne,
XXVII, Wrocaw: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu
Wrocawskiego.
Ehlert M., Kufel-Diakowska B. in press.
Wykorzystanie surowcw krzemiennych przez
spoecznoci kultury ceramiki wstgowej rytej na
osadzie w Strzelinie 16, gm. loco, woj.
dolnolskie, Silesia Antiqua, 49 (2013).
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Use-wear studies of Bronze and Iron Age lithics from the Madaba
Plains
Nikki Oakden
University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Email: nikkioakden@hotmail.com
Keywords: Jordan; Near East; Bronze Age; Iron Age; lithic; use-wear; Tell al-Umayri
This paper addresses the under-representation
of lithic material in the interpretation of
Bronze and Iron Age archaeological
assemblages in the Levant. Lithic material has
been recovered from Tell al-Umayri, Bronze
and Iron Age site south of Amman, Jordan,
since 1992 and a preliminary typology of Tell
al-Umayri lithic tools has been constructed
by a research team at Mount Royal University
(Alberta, Canada). Experimental versions of
some of these tool types were then recreated
from chert of approximately the same quality
and utilized in a series of experiments which
duplicated activities such as agricultural
harvesting, textile manufacture and other craft
production. These activities are believed to
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The effects of raw material properties on edge attrition: a highresolution study of unretouched experimental flakes
Cornel M. Pop
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany. Email:
cornel_pop@eva.mpg.de
Keywords: lithics; edge attrition; experimental archaeology; raw material properties
obtained
through
(a)
cross-section
microphotographs (taken at a magnification of
20x) of edge molds, which were sectioned at
regular 5 mm intervals after a set number of
incisions, and (b) change images created from
high-resolution (105px/mm) whole-edge
planview photographs taken at regular
intervals (Figure 1). The edge molds were
created with dental impression material
(Polyvinylsiloxane) using a custom molding
and sectioning device. This device was
designed to ensure that molds taken at
different stages of the experiment were
always sectioned at the same angle and at the
same location along an artifacts edge.
Preliminary results of the experiment suggest
that various physical properties of the raw
materials, including modal grain size and
granulometric homogeneity, play a role in the
observed attrition rates. However, their
influence is quite complex and was found to
vary at different stages of the experiment.
Coarser raw materials, for example, tend to
experience higher initial edge losses, likely
due to the quick removal of any weakly bound
grains, but then tend to become more resistant
to attrition than finer grained materials. At the
same time, such raw materials tend to exhibit
more dulling near the edge (at .5mm) but
maintain lower edge angles farther away from
the edge (at 3mm). This suggests that,
generally, raw material properties cannot be
linked to discard rates in any straightforward
way; their effects on attrition may, however,
reveal potentially interesting aspects of raw
material selection based on intended function.
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Figure 1.
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How to drill in bone and other organic materials: a case study from a
Linear Pottery Culture settlement in central Poland
Katarzyna Pyewicz (a) and Marcin Szeliga (b)
(a) Institute of Prehistory, Adam Mickiewicz University in Pozna; w. Marcin 78,
61-809 Pozna, Poland. Email: kpyzewicz@gmail.com
(b) Institute of Archaeology, Maria Curie-Skodowska University in Lublin; Pl. Marii CurieSkodowskiej 4, 20-031 Lublin, Poland. Email: marcinszeliga@wp.pl
Keywords: Linear Pottery Culture; central Poland; lithic perforators and borers; use-wear
analyses; experimental research
characterized by having very slender sharp
retouched pointed ends, normally located
within the distal parts. This group of tools is
one of the largest collections of the Linear
Pottery culture materials of this type both in
Poland and central Europe.
During our studies we applied morphological,
experimental and use-wear analyses to assess
technological and functional aspects of lithic
borers and perforators. Special attention was
paid to analyzing macro and micro traces of
hafting, usage or reutilization of lithic tools.
We found certain correlations between how
artifacts were used, their morphology, the
applied technology and the choice of flint raw
material. We also attempted to explain some
elements of behaviour of Neolithic societies
in the context of production and use of the
flint materials.
Acknowledgements
The investigations were funded by the
National Science Centre in Poland, on the
basis
of
decision
no.
DEC2011/03/N/HS3/02016.
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Figure 1. Perforators from the Linear Pottery Culture settlement in Tominy, Oarw commune (central Poland).
1-4. wieciechw flint; 5. obsidian. (Drawn by M. Szeliga).
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Session 5.
Characterising lithic sources
In order to trace the provenance of an artefact, it is necessary to distinguish between different
potential sources. There are many methods of doing this ranging from visual to microscopic to
chemical analyses. This session will focus on methods that may be used to distinguish between
materials as well as characterisation studies of specific raw material sources.
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References
Gurova, M. Ch. Nachev, 2008. Formal Early Neolithic
Flint Toolkits: Archeological and Sedimentological
aspects.
In:
Geoarchaeology
and
Archaeomineralogy (Eds. R. I. Kostov, B.
Gaydarska, M. Gurova). Proceedings of the
International Conference, 29-30 October 2008
Sofia, Publishing House St. Ivan Rilski, Sofia,
29-35.
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Characterization of Balkan Flint artefacts from SE Europe using LAICP-MS, EPMA and pXRF
Clive Bonsall (a), Maria Gurova (b), Chavdar Nachev (c), Chris Hayward (d) and Nicholas Pearce (e)
(a) School of History, Classics and Archaeology, University of Edinburgh, William Robertson
Building, Old Medical School, Edinburgh EH8 9AG, U.K. Email: clive.bonsall@ed.ac.uk
(b) National Institute of Archaeology and Museum, BAS, 2 Saborna str., Sofia, Bulgaria. Email:
gurovam@yahoo.fr
(c) National Museum Earth and Man, 4 bul. Cherni vrah, Sofia, Bulgaria. Email:
chnachev@hotmail.com
(d) School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Grant Institute, The Kings Buildings,
West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JW, U.K. Email: chris.hayward@ed.ac.uk
(e) Institute of Geography and Earth Sciences, University of Wales, Llandinam Building,
Penglais Campus, Aberystwyth SY23 3DB, U.K. Email: njp@aber.ac.uk
Keywords: Balkan Flint; SE Europe; geochemical fingerprinting; LA-ICP-MS; EPMA; pXRF
Platform) in northern Bulgaria from where it
was distributed throughout much of
Southeastern
Europe
(Kozowski
&
Kozowski 1984; Voytek 1987). But did it all
come from sources on the Moesian platform
and, if so, where were those sources located?
Our paper is concerned with the very
important but still unresolved problem of the
origins of Balkan Flint. The difficulties of
provenancing flint using geochemical
fingerprinting techniques are discussed, and
preliminary results of trace element analyses
using LA-ICP-MS, EPMA and pXRF are
presented.
Figure 1. Examples of Balkan Flint artefacts from ten Early Neolithic sites in SE Europe, illustrating the strong
visual resemblance of the materials from different sites.
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Figure 1. 1. Nodule of Mucientes flint. 2. Denticulated bifacial tool from Los Villares site. (Valderas, Len. Photo
by J. L. Puente.)
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Session 6.
Lithotheques: collections of comparative raw materials
Archaeologists around the world that are working with prehistoric cultures are aware of the
importance of understanding the lithic materials that people have used to make their tools in the
past. By successfully identifying which tool stone materials past cultures have used we can
further define how they have interacted with their landscapes, either by identifying past landuses and movements or through the identification of past cultural exchanges and interactions.
However, associating cultural lithic materials with geological sources can be a difficult task
without appropriate regional data. Lithic materials can be very similar from one location to
another and a better understanding of each of these sources is necessary. The creation of regional
lithotheques or comparative lithic reference collections allows us to better understand how, why,
when and where past cultures procured such lithic raw materials. The principal objective is to
establish an archaeological tool that will allow us to better define past relationships between
cultural and natural lithic materials. This session will explore the various uses that lithotheques
can offer to archaeological research, from macroscopic comparative identification of lithics to
microscopic and geochemical analyses. Presentations in this section may also be reports on
specific lithics collections, either private or public.
Session organisers: Adrian Burke and Christian Theriault
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Figure 1. Screenshots of the database user interfaces. a. source information page from the online website interface;
b. new sampled source page on the smartphone application; and c. a live map showing the current location (blue
arrow) and nearby sources already in the database (red and green dots).
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Otis Crandell (a), Mariuca-Diana Vornicu (b) and Vasile Cotiuga (c)
(a) Geology Department, Babe-Bolyai University, str. M. Kogalniceanu, nr. 1, Cluj-Napoca,
Romania. Email: otis.crandell@ubbcluj.ro
(b) History Department, Alexandru Ioan Cuza Univesrity, Bd. Carol I, nr 11, Iai, Romania.
Email: mariucav@gmail.com
(c) Arheoinvest Research Platform, Alexandru Ioan Cuza Univesrity, Bd. Carol I, nr 11, Iai,
Romania. Email: vasicot@uaic.ro
Keywords: lithotheque; chert; jasper; provenance; East Carpathians; Moldavian Plateau;
Romania
corresponding database at Babes-Bolyai
University and described by Crandell (2005,
2006).
There are many materials and sources within
the study area. The materials found during
this study were grouped based on similar
characteristics and geological origin. The
main rock types are: flint (from chalk), chert
(from limestone), biogenic jasper, quartzitic
sandstone, fine grained siliceous sandstone
(often with high opal content), opal (menilite),
and black jasper (lydite). These materials, as
with their parent rocks, are spread out along
the length of the Eastern Carpathians. Due to
the area being a flysch belt, outcrops of the
parent rocks are often mixed and vary in size.
The lithotheque and its database is a useful
resource for archaeologists. It may be used for
comparison with artefacts in order to identify
raw material sources, which in turn helps to
determine trade and exploitation patterns.
References
Crandell, O.N. 2005, Macroscopic Analysis
and Characterisation of Chert from
Transylvania for Provenance Purposes,
Sargetia, Acta Musei Devensis, 33: 137-153.
Crandell, O.N. 2006, Macroscopic and
Microscopic Analysis of Chert; A Proposal
for Standardisation of Methodology and
Terminology, Buletinul Cercurilor tiinifice
Studeneti, 12: 7-30.
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Figure 1. Left: Map of the raw material sources recorded during this study (Note that many locations had more than
one material type present). Right: Examples of raw materials collected. a. & b. flint from the Miorcani mine, c. chert
from the Voievodeasa River, d. opal (menilite) from the Humor River, e. black jasper (lydite) from the Moldoviei
River, f. quartzitic sandstone from the Tarcu River, g. biogenic jasper from Dmuc Valley.
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Table 1. Short version of the proposed macroscopic classification of rock types suitable for flaking activities in
Patagonia (Argentina).
ROCK TYPE
MAIN CLASSIFICATION
Crystalline quartz
Silicates
Cryptocrystalline quartz
Opal
Vulcanites
Igneous rocks
Plutonites
Pyroclastic rocks
---------
Sedimentary rocks
Clastic rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Metamorphite
SECONDARY CLASSIFICATION
---------Chalcedony
Flint
Jasper
--------Acidic vulcanites
Intermediate to basic vulcanites
Acidic plutonites
Intermediate to basic plutonites
Pyroclastic breccia
Lapillite
Thick grained tuff
Fine grained tuff
Psephyte
Sandstone
Pelites
Foliated
Not foliated
example of the generation of a geologically
based
common
language
from
an
archaeological perspective, which we expect
can be useful among Patagonia lithic analysts.
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Session 7.
Gemology: siliceous rocks as gemstones
This session will look at a different application of siliceous rocks as gemstones. One of the most
common categories of material used to produce gemstones is in fact quartz and other silicates,
often microcrystaline quartz varieties such as agate, opals, jaspers and many others as well as
obsidian. Presentations in this section may be reports on specific materials, methods of
processing the stones, gemstone workshops or historical examples of stone jewellery.
Presentations may be related to any time period from prehistory to the present and may be
related to gemstones produced as a large scale industry, in small scale traditional workshops or
by hobbyists.
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Session 8.
Obsidian: methodological issues of obsidian provenance
studies and a new perspective of archaeological obsidian
This session has two specific goals and focuses. 1. Introducing new methodological prospects of
obsidian analysis or the synthesis of archaeological obsidian studies in specific areas; and 2.
Discussing a way of standardization of geologic obsidian samples and sharing among different
laboratories. Recent obsidian researches are advancing and extending inter-regionally and
internationally, as well as in various analytical bases. In particular, results of recent obsidian
source identification clarified that the activities of obsidian procurement by prehistoric people
extended in wide area across the present nation states. This situation demands us to discuss and
push us to make certain rule of data sharing and exact sample sharing, in order to prevent from
possible confusion as risk management. In this context, methodological issues of obsidian
provenance studies and the standardization of geologic obsidian will serve various sound bases
of obsidian archaeology.
Session organisers: Akira Ono, Hiroyuki Sato, and Tristan Carter
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References
Oyokawa, M., Miyasaka, K., Ikeya, N., Suda,
Y., Hashizume, J., Hori, K., and Yatou, S.
2013 Field Survey of Obsidian sources in
the Kirigamine Region of the Central
Highlands, Nagano Prefecture, Japan: the
Wada-toge nishi and Tsuchiyabashihigashi obsidian sources. Natural Resource
Environment and Humans 3 (in press, in
Japanese with English abstract).
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Figure 1. Map of obsidian source distribution and Hiroppara wetland location (modified from Oyokawa et al., 2013).
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Figure 1. Discrimination diagram of La/Hf versus Ce/Th compositional data using NAA for the geologic obsidian
and artifacts of Doteue site layer BBV.
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References
Bnesz, L. (1991): Neolitick dielna na vyrobu
obsidinovej industrie v Kaove. Vychodoslovensky
Pravek 3968.
Hillebrand, J. (1928): A nyirlugosi obsidiannucleus
depotleletrl (On the Nyirlugos obsidian core depot
find). Archaeolgiai rtest Budapest 42 39-42.
Kasztovszky, Z. & Bir, K. T. (2004): A krpti
obszidinok osztlyozsa prompt gamma aktivcis
analzis segtsgvel: geolgiai s rgszeti
mintkra vonatkoz els eredmnyek AMhely
2004 1/1 915.
Kasztovszky, Z. & Bir, K. T. (2006): Fingerprinting
Carpathian Obsidians by PGAA: First results on
geological and archaeological specimens. In:
Proceedings of the 34th International Symposium
on Archaeometry, 3-7 May 2004. E-book,
http://www.dpz.es/ifc/libros/ebook2621.pd
f - Zaragoza 2006 301308.
Kasztovszky Z., Bir K. T., Mark A., Dobosi, V.
(2008): Cold Neutron Prompt Gamma Activation
Analysisa
Non-Destructive
Method
for
Characterization of High Silica Content Chipped
Stone Tools and Raw Materials. Archaeometry
50/1 1229.
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The obsidian evidence for the scale of social life during the
Palaeolithic
Theodora Moutsiou
Royal Holloway, University of London, UK. Email: dora81m@yahoo.com
Keywords: obsidian; Palaeolithic; Europe; Africa; social evolution
the cognitive and behavioural abilities of the
individuals involved in the transfers.
Obsidian-bearing sites spanning the temporal
framework of the Palaeolithic and located in
Africa and Europe are analysed with the aim
of elucidating the evolution of modern social
behaviour. Obsidian is a rock that forms only
under very special conditions; its geological
sources are infrequent and distinguished from
each other on the basis of unique chemical
properties. As such it is possible to
reconstruct the distances of its movement and
use these data to infer the scale of social life
during the Palaeolithic. A strong correlation
between obsidian use and long distances is
observed implying that the hominins involved
in the circulation of the specific material were
behaving in a socially modern way.
According to the obsidian data the evolution
of modern social behaviour has been a gradual
process that was initiated in East Africa at
least during the Middle Stone Age.
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Obsidian Studies in Japan and the role of the Center for Obsidian and
Lithic Studies, Meiji University
Akira Ono (a), Yoshimitsu Suda (a), Shigeo Sugihara (b), Tarou Kannari (a) and Jun Hashizume (a)
(a) Center for Obsidian and Lithic Studies, Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan. Email: (A. Ono):
onoak@meiji.ac.jp; (Y. Suda) geosuda@meiji.ac.jp; (T. Kannari) tarou.pbox@gmail.com; (J.
Hashizume) j_hashi@meiji.ac.jp
(b) Emeritus Professor, Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan. Email: sugihara@kisc.meiji.ac.jp
Keywords: Japanese obsidian; COLS; geological standardization; obsidian research networks;
XRF
systems; 2) the reconstruction of obsidian
formation
mechanisms
and
the
standardization of obsidian samples through
various
geochemical
analyses;
3)
palaeoenvironmental reconstruction during
MIS3 and MIS2, with a particular relation to
Palaeolithic and Jomon subsistence; and 4)
the establishment and development of
international obsidian research networks.
More than 160 geologic obsidian sources have
been recognized in the Japanese Islands, and
the COLS has analyzed obsidian artifacts
from approximately 500 archaeological sites.
Parallel to the archaeological provenance
research,
the
Instrumental
Analysis
Laboratory at the COLS promotes the
international
project
for
geological
standardization of obsidian. The aims of this
project are 1) to compare chemical data
among laboratories, and 2) to establish
standard geological reference samples for the
non-destructive analysis of obsidian artifacts.
This project offers an opportunity to establish
a worldwide protocol for the non-destructive
analysis of obsidian artifacts, as well as a
method for the source identification of
archaeological obsidian artifacts. The COLS
will continue to advance basic obsidian
analysis and the research into humanenvironment interactions.
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Figure 1. Major obsidian sources in Hokkaido and the sites associated with Shirataki obsidian beyond Hokkaido.
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