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Evaluating prepared core assemblages with three-dimensional methods: a case study from the Middle Paleolithic at Skhūl (Israel)

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Abstract

Levallois technology is a hallmark of many Middle and Late Pleistocene stone artifact assemblages, but its definition has been much debated. Here we use three-dimensional photogrammetry to investigate the geometric variation among Levallois and discoidal core technologies. We created models of experimental and archaeological stone artifact assemblages to quantitatively investigate the morphologies of Levallois and discoidal core technologies. Our results demonstrate that technological characteristics of Levallois technology can be distinguished from discoidal variants by analyzing the relative volumes and angles of the two flaking surfaces. We apply these methods to a random subset of Middle Paleolithic cores from Skhūl (Israel) and show that, overall, the Skhūl archaeological sample falls in range with the experimental Levallois sample. This study advocates the investigation of core technology on a spectrum to elucidate particular reduction trajectories while maintaining visible outliers and dispersion within an assemblage. Our quantified approach to studying centripetal core technology broadly is particularly applicable in studies related to forager mobility strategy and raw material use. Ultimately, the methods developed here can be used across temporal and geographic boundaries and facilitate attribute-based inter-site comparisons.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Jean-Jacques Pelegrin and Pierre-Jean Texier and Nada Kreisheh for providing the experimental Levallois cores included in this analysis. The Harvard Peabody Museum enabled KR to study the Skhūl sample. The workflow outlined here is available in the supplemental information. Ana Barun provided helpful assistance with photogrammetrical modeling. The authors thank Christian Tryon, Tyler Faith, and four anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments on previous versions of this manuscript.

Funding

The National Science Foundation Integrative Education and Research Training grant 0801634 funded this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Harvard University, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, 11 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA

    Kathryn L. Ranhorn

  2. Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, 800 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC, 20052, USA

    David R. Braun, Daniel Wawrzyniak & Alison S. Brooks

  3. Archaeology Department, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, 7701, South Africa

    David R. Braun

  4. Department of Anthropology, University at Buffalo, SUNY, Amherst, NY, USA

    Rebecca E. Biermann Gürbüz

  5. Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Elliot Greiner

  6. Human Origins Program, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20052, USA

    Alison S. Brooks

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  1. Kathryn L. Ranhorn
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Correspondence to Kathryn L. Ranhorn.

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Ranhorn, K.L., Braun, D.R., Biermann Gürbüz, R.E. et al. Evaluating prepared core assemblages with three-dimensional methods: a case study from the Middle Paleolithic at Skhūl (Israel). Archaeol Anthropol Sci 11, 3225–3238 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-018-0746-z

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