The Influence of Raw Material Availability on Lithic Assemblage Variability in the Koobi Fora Fm. (Kenya)

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2019: General Sessions" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

A defining feature of human tool use compared to our closest living relatives is the transport of tools. This distinction is most evident in the Early Stone Age where transport is a feature of even the earliest industries. Spatial variability in raw material proportions has often been assumed to reflect transport patterns; however, these measures must be considered with respect to other factors that influence raw material accessibility. Raw material availability is usually characterized by estimating the distance between primary raw material sources and archaeological sites. This measure is accurate for localities limited to primary sources. However, secondary sources (e.g. rivers) change their location and carrying capacity over time. Thus, more nuanced methods for characterizing availability are needed. Here we estimate landscape-scale raw material availability in the Koobi Fora Formation of Kenya. We use a systematic survey to characterize raw material abundance across relatively synchronous land surfaces. We use inverse distance weighting interpolation to estimate the availability of stone at known archaeological localities. These availability estimates were then compared to measures of reduction intensity at different localities. Measures of stone tool utilization often track raw material availability; however, there appear to be significant deviations that need further inquiry.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 25872