Lithic Microwear Analysis of Tor Faraj Rockshelter

Abstract

Whether in ethnographic or in archaeological contexts, the use of tools can be best understood in terms of “operational sequences” (Creswell 1976). Operational sequences involve four linked sets of activities; material procurement, manufacturing, utilization, and discard. Many analyses of Levantine Mousterian assemblages have attempted to reconstruct the adaptive context of stone tool production and use (Binford 1968; Jelinek 1982; Munday 1979; Marks 1988; BarYosef and Meignen 1992). Yet, most of these reconstructions have emphasized only the initial stages of the operational sequence. Actualistic studies suggest that tool utilization and discard behavior have a profound effect on the structure of the archaeological record (see examples in Schiffer 1987). Thus, our ignorance of Levantine Mousterian tool use and discard patterns presents a major obstacle to a comprehensive explanation of Levantine Mousterian industrial variability.