ANTH 583P - Lithic Technology

Credits: Variable

This course will address the history, theory, and methods of lithic technology. Understanding lithic technology has been invaluable in archaeological interpretation, and knowledge of how this field has developed is useful in multiple aspects of the interpretation of material culture. In this class, various aspects will also be studied, from the nature and provenience of the most common rocks used for stone tools (petrography, sourcing, prehistoric procurement strategies); to different methods of knapping and tool making; as well as spatial analysis and local and regional organization of lithic production through a large variety of prehistoric contexts and case studies (readings and work on actual artifacts). Students will also have an opportunity to learn the basics of flintknapping to better understand the role of constraints and styles within the concept of communities of practice.