Characteristics of Lithic Sound to Assess a Rock’s Predictability of Flaking

Dados Bibliográficos

ID11380859
AutoresDavid Scott DeForest (University of Missouri), R L Lyman (0000-0003-2651-7959, University of Missouri, autor correspondente)
Ano2022
Volume47
Fascículo3
Páginas221-230
Data de publicação2022-07-03
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoLithic Technology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0197-7261 • E-ISSN: 2051-6185
EditoraInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01977261.2022.2029284
OpenAlexW4210250277
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas3
Referências citadas34

It has been suggested that a lithic resource’s candidacy for predictability of fracture when knapped, and whether or not a stone has been heat treated, can be assessed by the duration, pitch, and loudness of sound made when a stone is struck. A hammer stone machine held and struck specimens of 16 lithic types. Acoustic information was processed with a Kay Computer Speech Laboratory. Differences exist in sound duration, pitch and loudness between lithic types, un-heat-treated and heat-treated stone, and stone of the same type but of high and of low quality. Heat treated samples conduct sound waves of longer duration than unheated samples, and heat-treated samples’ sounds were louder than un-heat-treated samples. An ancient knapper could use perceptible differences in sound produced by a nodule when tapped with a hammerstone to select or discard nodules or flakes of one lithic type over another based on anticipated predictability of flaking

Acoustics · Archaeology · Duration (music · Hammer · Loudness · Predictability · Sound (geography · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Rock Art Studies · Engineering · History · Mathematics · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology · Geology