What's the Point? Part 2

Stone tools are virtually indestructible and remain preserved in the archeological record longer than any form of evidence. Often they are the only window into our distant past and eventhough some stone tools may look insignifinant they can be a rich source of information in the absence of fossils.

This small triangular flake not only tells us what it probably was used for but also tells us a lot about its maker.

Flake versus blade

Flake tools were used by both earlier hominins, such as Neanderthals, and modern humans although the latter prefered the narrower blade technology. This characteristic alone is of course not enough to identify the maker of this triangular flake as Neanderthal, but the flake, made from a locally sourced honey coloured flint, also bears other features that point to our extinct relative.

Flake scars

On the dorsal face of the triangular flake two distinctive longitudinal flake scars can be seen forming a central ridge. These flake scars resulted from earlier flake removals before the final product was struck off from the stone core by the tool maker.

This procedure is typical for the prepared core or Levallois technology of the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic (300-30,000 years ago). The core was intentionally prepared in such a way as to predetermine the shape of the flake that was taken from it.

This example of a discarded Levallois point core, from the same area where the triangular point was found (Sweikhuizen, Meuse valley, Southern Netherlands), shows the scar of a pointed flake that was removed from it.

Hard hammer percussion

The broad striking platform, the thick conical bulb and the eraillure scar on the ventral face of the flake are dead giveaways that the Neanderthal tool maker used a hard stone hammer to strike the flake of the core.

Left handed

The left skewed cones and left oriented eraillure scar (circled with thin white dotted lines) indicate that the tool maker may have been left-handed.

The retouch on the left side of the tip of the point also hints at the left-handedness of the maker. The right side of the tip has not been worked and only shows use-wear/impact marks.

Projectile point

We can only gues at what this flint point was used for but the longitudinal burin-blow like impact scars at the tip of the point are common in levallois points and are indicative of high speed and/or low angle impact, suggesting that this flake may have been used as a projectile (spear) point. (see also Aggsbach's post on this issue).

Not all levallois points were used as projectile points and the two examples shown on the left were probably used as hafted scrapers