Assessing Biface Reduction and the Ideal Use-life of Fluted Bifaces

Summary

Various methods have been developed to assess the use-life of Paleoindian bifaces by focusing on morphological attributes. Comparative studies have often proven difficult in part because of the diverse nature of Paleoindian biface technologies in North America. While morphological ratios such as length-to-width vary considerably throughout biface use-lives, technological ratios related to fluting and lateral grinding typically remain more constant. In turn, technological variables may be more meaningful, and have the potential to inform us about decision making processes related to lithic technologies, i.e. when bifaces were discarded versus refurbished. The study sample analyzed here was selected to minimize external factors that could influence biface manufacture, such as raw material availability and package size. Fluted Clovis and Cumberland bifaces from the Lower Tennessee River Valley were selected because of the abundance of toolstone that is readily accessible throughout the region. Technological ratios and biface conditions were used to develop a general model for the ideal use-life of fluted Clovis and Cumberland bifaces.   

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 21438