Lithics

Lithics

Stone artifacts, normally made of chipstone. Can include any stone face or method of manufacture.

Primary reduction techniques

The reduction of nodules to cores. (cortex removal) Significant cortex content

Secondary reduction

Removal of blanks from cores. Usually no cortex, larger, thicker.

Retouch/ Tertiary reduction

Thinning or sharpening of flakes

Function

The use of tools, tool form and the discard of artifacts.

Flint Knapping

Chipped stone production. the process of lithic reduction towards making a tool of stones. Need: Hard, fine-grained and crystalline rocks.

Crystalline Quartz

Formed under heavy pressure in marine deposits.

Chert or flint

Found in Nodules (cores)

Basic Procedure

1. Remove outer layer - Cortex (primary)

2. Reduce nodule in size to form a preform/ blank (secondary)

3. Shape the blank into designed form (tertiary)

4. Sharpen or re-work

percussion flaking

A technique for producing stone artifacts by striking or knapping crystalline stone with a hard or soft hammer

Pressure flaking

Use of a tool such as wood or bone to drive flakes off by pressure (more control and produce long blades)

Flakes

Purposeful waste product

Shatter

NON purposeful waste product

Debitage

Pile of waste material

Perform/ blanked

Stages of reducing

Blade

Specific to function, longer then wide, roughly parallel sides, rectangular but convex.

Refitting

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Lithic Assemblage

1. Lithics categorized and counted

2. Standard type list is necessary to compare between sites and regions

3. Analysis is generally standardized.

Use-Wear

The analysis of stone tools using microscopy in order to interpret the function of the tools. Involves examination of morphology of the tool, edge fractures. Can be used to examine social behavior.

Use-Wear Polish

The alteration of the stone surface caused by use.

Stone tool types

Only general categories can be identified. Tools may have had many different uses then their form implies. A very wide variety of tool types exists. Each should be studied individually and under a microscope.

Uniface

Chipped stone tool, stone face flaked only on one side.

Biface

Chipped stone tool, flaked on both sides.

Projectile points

Chipped stone tool, meant to be projectile (in air). Common in Mississippi area.

Adze

Wood working tool.

Burin

Meant to gouge, hole or groove.

Axe

Wood working tool (usually huge and mounted on large pieces of wood).

Drill

Hafted too for making holes. Holes appear cone like (can tell if it is a fake artifact if it does not have these holes.

Hammer stone

Used to pound or strike objects.

Baner stone( Atlatl Weights)

Balanced and sided with throwing a spear with an atlatl gives equal weight to spear.

Nutting stone

Natural Depressions in stone, used to hold nuts to break them open. Ends of stones show hammer wear.

Ground-stone Pendant

Jewelry, typically suspended from a cord.

Perfurator

Pokes holes in hides/plants

Scraper

Cleans hides/ strips of plant fibers, etc. (Types: Thumbnail, Ovate, Side).

Steatite (soapstone)

Volcanic rock-like tufa. Is soft and easily carved. often seen as bowls. Floats on water and easily floats down rivers.

Groundstone

Highly polished/ smmothed by grinding. Used for games.

Historic lithics

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