Impact of Flaking Technique on Selection of Blanks  for Main Categories of Retouched Tools in the Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic of Northwestern Caucasus  (on the Materials of Mezmaiskaya Cave)

A. G. Nedomolkin

List of issues > «Geoarchaeology, Ethnology, and Anthropology Series». 2017. Vol. 22

Impact of Flaking Technique on Selection of Blanks for Main Categories of Retouched Tools in the Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic of Northwestern Caucasus (on the Materials of Mezmaiskaya Cave)

Full text (russian)

Author(s)

A. G. Nedomolkin

Abstract

The study is aimed to determine flaking products that were used as blanks for production of main categories of retouched tools, as well as the impact provided by change in the flaking technique on the blanks during the Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic in the northwestern Caucasus. Nowadays, most of these assemblages come from old excavations and lack a significant portion of micro-artifacts. Mezmaiskaya cave is presented now as the reference of an Upper Paleolithic (UP) / Epipaleolithic (EPP) site in the region. The analysis of lithic assemblages from Mezmaiskaya cave reveals that the assemblages from UP levels (layers 1A2, 1A1/1A2, and 1A1) show the following features: 1) micro-bladelets and bladelets with width of 4–10 mm were preferred blanks for manufacture of bladelets with a blunted back (backed bladelets) 2) micro-bladelets and bladelets with width of 3–7 mm, and narrow blades with width of 10–12 mm were used for manufacture of points 3) end-scrapers in these layers were made on wide and massive blanks – flakes and technical flakes 4) blades and flakes were selected for making burins, and the main selection criterion was the thickness of the blank (4 to 8 mm.). The EPP layer 1–3 in Mezmaiskaya cave differs from the earlier layers in the typological composition of tools, and in sizes and types of flaking products used as blanks for tools: 1) backed bladelets in this layer are made only on bladelets and narrow blades 2) points are made on bladelets, and standardized in width (4–7 mm) and thickness (1,5–3 mm) 3) mostly blades with width of 10–20 mm and thickness of 2–7 mm were used as blanks for production of end-scrapers 4) geometric microliths are made on bladelets and narrow blades. We can assume that a change in the flaking technique was one of main reasons for changes in blanks used for tools. Preliminary results indicate that the number of laminar products with metric parameters corresponding to the pressure technique increases upward and reaches maximum values in the upper horizons 1 and 2 of layer 1-3. Narrow blades with width of 10–17 mm were used to make segments, trapezes, triangles, end-scrapers, and denticulated tools. Bladelets were used for points, backed bladelets, and geometric microliths. In layers 1A2 and 1A1/1A2, the stone knapping was aimed to obtaining narrow and relatively massive bladelets and micro-bladelets that were used as blanks for the most numerous categories of tools – backed bladelets and points however, blades are not numerous in these layers.

Keywords

blade flaking, tool blanks, Upper Paleolithic, Epipaleolithic, Mezmaiskaya cave

UDC

902.21(470.6)"6325"

References

Aleksandrovskii A. L., Aleksandovskaya E. I., Beliaeva E. V., Golovanova L. V. Otlozheniya i kulturnye sloi peshcher Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza [Deposits and cultural layers of the caves of the North-Western Caucasus]. Sbornik nauchnykh trudov "Peshchery" [Proceedings "Caves"]. Perm, 2015, Vol. 38, pp. 35–67. (In Russ.)

Alexandrova O. I. Rezultaty trasologicheskogo analiza kamennogo inventarya verkhnepaleoliticheskogo sloya navesa Chygai na Severo-Zapadnom Kavkaze [The results of traceological analysis of the stone tools of Upper Paleolithic layers of the canopy Chygai in the North-Western Caucasus]. Novye materialy i metody arkheologicheskogo issledovaniya: materialy III Mezhdunarodnoi nauchnoi konferentsii molodykh uchenykh, 16–19 marta 2015 g. [New materials and methods of archaeological research: materials of the 3 International Scientific Conference of Young Scientists, March 16–19, 2015]. Moscow, 2015, pp. 8–10. (In Russ.)

Amirkhanov Kh. A. Verkhnii paleolit Prikubaniya [Upper Paleolithic of the Kuban region]. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1986, 113 p. (In Russ.)

Autlev P. U. Issledovanie kamennogo veka Zakubaniya za gody Sovetskoi vlasti [Study of the Stone Age of the Transkuban region during the years of Soviet Union]. Voprosy arkheologii Adygei [Issues of Archaeology of Adygea]. Maykop, 1988, pp. 3–22. (In Russ.)

Blazhko A. V. Sravnitelnyi analiz dannykh kompleksnogo izucheniya pozdnepaleoliticheskikh pamyatnikov Kavkaza [Comparative analysis of data from the complex study of the Late Paleolithic sites of the Caucasus]. Arkheologicheskii almanakh [Archaeological almanac]. 2004, Vol. 16, pp. 237–249. (In Russ.)

Blazhko A. V. Raskopki verkhnepaleoliticheskoi stoyanki v peshchere Korotkaya na Severo-Zapadnom Kavkaze [Excavations of the Upper Paleolithic site in the Korotkaya Cave in the North-Western Caucasus]. Arkheologicheskie otkrytiya-2006 [Archaeological discoveries-2006]. Moscow, 2009, pp. 349–350. (In Russ.)

Doronicheva E. V. Syrievye strategii drevnego cheloveka v srednem i pozdnem paleolite na Severo-Zapadnom Kavkaze. Dis. … kand. ist. nauk [Raw materials strategies of the ancient man in the Middle and Late Paleolithic in the North-Western Caucasus. Cand. of histor. sci. diss.]. St. Petersburg, 2013, 352 p. (In Russ.)

Doronicheva E. V. Rasselenie Homo Sapiens i mezhregionalnaya mobilnost v rannem verkhnem paleolite Kavkaza i Levanta [Resettlement of Homo Sapiens and interregional mobility in the early upper Paleolithic of the Caucasus and the Levant]. Obrazy i znaki v traditsiyakh Yuzhnoi i Yugo-Zapadnoi Azii . Sbornik muzeya antropologii i etnografii. T. LXI [Images and signs in the traditions of South and South-West Asia. Collection of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography. Vol. LXI]. St. Petersburg, 2015, pp. 212–226. (In Russ.)

Doronicheva E. V., Ivanov V. V. Opyt planigraficheskogo vydeleniya zon rasshchepleniya v verkhnepaleoliticheskom sloe (po materialam sloya 1A stoyanki Baranakha-4) [The experience of the planigraphic selection of cleavage zones in the Upper Paleolithic layer (based on the materials of layer 1A of the Baranakha-4 site)]. Radlovskii sbornik. Nauchnye issledovaniya i muzeinye proekty Muzeya antropologii i etnografii RAN v 2015 g. [Radlov's collection. Scientific research and museum projects of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography RAS in 2015]. St. Petersburg, 2016, pp. 354–363. (In Russ.)

Doronicheva E. V., Shackley M. S. Obsidian exploitation strategies in the Middle and Upper Paleolithic of the Northern Caucasus: New data from Mezmaiskaya cave. PaleoAnthropology. 2014, pp. 565–585.

Doronicheva E. V., Kulkova M. A., Shackley M. S. Ispolzovanie kamennogo syriya v verkhnem paleolite Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza [Exploitation of lithic raw materials in the Upper Paleolithic of the North-Western Caucasus]. Arkheologiya, etnografiya i antropologiya Evrazii [Archaeology, Ethnography and Anthropology of Eurasia]. 2013, Vol. 2 (54), pp. 40–53. (In Russ.)

Doronicheva E. V., Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B., Kulkova M. A. Stoyanka-masterskaya Besleneevskaya-1: ispolzovanie vysokokachestvennogo kremnevogo syriya v paleolite Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza [Site-workshop Besleneevskaya-1: use of high-quality flint raw materials in the Paleolithic of the North-Western Caucasus]. Evraziya v kainozoe. Stratigrafiya, paleoekologiya, kul'tury [Eurasia in the Cenozoic. Stratigraphy, Paleoecology, Culture]. 2017, Vol. 6, pp. 120–129. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V. Rubezh srednego i pozdnego paleolita na Severnom Kavkaze [The boundary of the Middle and Late Paleolithic in the North Caucasus]. Stratum plus. 2000, Is. 1, pp. 158–177. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V. Ob odnoi vazhnoi cherte pozdnego paleolita Kavkaza [One important feature of the Late Paleolithic of the Caucasus]. Nasledie Kubani [Heritage of Kuban region]. Krasnodar, 2008, pp. 78–117. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V. Dinamika izmeneniya sredy i kultury v pozdnem paleolite Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza [Dynamics of changes in environment and culture in the Late Paleolithic of the North-Western Caucasus]. Pyataya Kubanskaya arkheologicheskaya konferentsiya [The Fifth Kuban Archaeological Conference]. Krasnodar, 2009, pp. 80–83. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V. Pozdnii verkhnii paleolit Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza [Late Upper Paleolithic of the North-Western Caucasus]. Shestaya mezhdunarodnaya Kubanskaya arkheologicheskaya konferentsiya [The Sixth International Kuban Archaeological Conference]. Krasnodar, 2013, pp 84–87. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B. Vremya i prichiny zameshcheniya neandertaltsev sapiensami v Zapadnoi Evrazii [Time and reasons for the replacement of Neanderthals by Sapiens in Western Eurasia]. Chelovek i drevnosti [Man and antiquity]. Moscow, 2010, pp. 78–111. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B. Imeretinskaya kultura v verkhnem paleolite Kavkaza: proshloe i nastoyashchee [Imeretinskaya culture in the Upper Paleolithic of the Caucasus: past and present]. Pervobytnye drevnosti Evrazii [Primitive antiquities of Eurasia]. Moscow, 2012, pp. 59–102. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B. The Early Upper Paleolithic of the Caucasus in the West Eurasian Context. The Aurignacian of Yafteh cave and its context (2005–2008 excavations). Etudes et Recherches Archeologiques de l’Universite de Liège. Liège, 2012, pp. 137–160.

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B., Blazhko A. V. Radiouglerodnaya khronologiya pozdnego paleolita Kavkaza [Radiocarbon chronology of the Late Paleolithic of the Caucasus]. XXIV Krupnovskie chteniya po arkheologii Severnogo Kavkaza [XXIV Krupnovsky readings on the Archaeology of the North Caucasus]. Nalchik, 2006, pp. 58–61. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B., Cleghorn N. E. The emergence of bone-working and ornamental art in the Caucasian Upper Palaeolithic. Antiquity. 2010, Vol. 84, pp. 299–320.

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B., Doronicheva E. V. Issledovanie mnogosloinykh pamyatnikov srednego i pozdnego paleolita na Severo-Zapadnom Kavkaze v 2010–2013 gg. [Study of multilayered sites of the Middle and Late Paleolithic in the North-Western Caucasus in 2010–2013]. Arkheologicheskie otkrytiya 2010–2013 gg. [Archaeological discoveries in 2010–2013]. Moscow, 2015, pp. 337–339. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B., Nedomolkin A. G. O preemstvennosti i innovatsiyakh v finalno-pleistotsenovykh industriyakh Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza (predvaritelnye rezultaty) [On Continuity and Innovation in the Final Pleistocene Industries of the North-Western Caucasus (preliminary results)]. Arkheologicheskie otkrytiya-2014 [Archaeological discoveries in 2014]. Moscow, 2016, pp. 172–174. (In Russ.)

Golovanova L. V., Doronichev V. B., Cleghorn N. E., Koulkova M. A., Sapelko T. V., Shackley S. M., Spasovskiy Yu. N. The Epipaleolithic of the Caucasus after the Last Glacial Maximum. Quaternary International. 2014, Vol. 337, pp. 189–224.

Leonova E. V. Novye issledovaniya pamyatnikov verkhnego paleolita–mezolita v Gubskom ushchelie (predvaritelnye rezultaty) [New research of the sites of the Upper Paleolithic–Mesolithic in the Gubsky Gorge (preliminary results)]. Adaptatsiya kultur paleolita–eneolita k izmeneniyam prirodnoi sredy na Severo-Zapadnom Kavkaze [Adaptation of Paleolithic–Eneolithic cultures to changes in the natural environment in the North-Western Caucasus]. St. Petersburg, 2009, pp. 47–54. (In Russ.)

Leonova E. V. Predvaritelnye rezultaty novykh issledovanii peshchery Dvoinaya v Gubskom ushchelie [Preliminary results of new studies of the cave Dvoinaya in the Gubsky Gorge]. Kratkie soobshcheniya Instituta arkheologii [Brief reports of the Institute of Archaeology]. 2014, Vol. 236, pp. 11–15. (In Russ.)

Leonova E. V., Alexandrova O. I. Dinamika kulturnykh protsessov v verkhnem paleolite – mezolite Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza (po materialam mnogosloinykh pamyatnikov naves Chygai i peshchera Dvoinaya) [Dynamics of cultural processes in the Upper Paleolithic – Mesolithic of the North-Western Caucasus (based on the materials of multilayered sites of the Chygai Canopy and the Dvoinaya Cave)]. Istoriko-kulturnoe nasledie i dukhovnye tsennosti Rossii [Historical and cultural heritage and spiritual values of Russia]. Moscow, 2012, pp. 21–27. (In Russ.)

Nedomolkin A. G. Kriterii otbora zagotovok dlya osnovnykh kategorii orudii v finalnom verkhnem paleolite Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza [Criteria for selection of blanks for the main categories of tools in the Final Upper Paleolithic of the North-Western Caucasus]. Evraziya v kainozoe. Stratigrafiya, paleoekologiya, kultury [Eurasia in the Cenozoic. Stratigraphy, Paleoecology, Culture]. 2015a, Vol. 4, pp. 140–150. (In Russ.)

Nedomolkin A. G. O nekotorykh tendentsiyakh v razvitii plastinchatoi tekhnologii v verkhnem paleolite Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza (po materialam Mezmaiskoi peshchery) [On some trends in the development of lamellar technology in the Upper Paleolithic of the North-Western Caucasus (based on the materials of Mezmaiskaya Cave)]. Novye materialy i metody arkheologicheskogo issledovaniya: Materialy III mezhdunarodnoi konferentsii molodykh uchenykh [New materials and methods of archaeological research: Materials of the 3 International Conference of Young Scientists]. Moscow, 2015b, pp. 29–31. (In Russ.)

Pelegrin J. New Experimental Observations for the Characterization of Pressure Blade Production Techniques. The Emergence of Pressure Blade Making. New York, 2012, pp. 465–501.

Poplevko G. N. Metodika kompleksnogo issledovaniya kamennykh industrii [The method of complex study of stone industries]. St. Petersburg, Dmitrii Bulanin Publ., 2007, 388 p. (In Russ.)