Paleolithic Hide Processing Activities

Hide, one of the various work materials used by the people from the Paleolithic onwards, is an essential material for making cloths and tents for survival. The technology and methods of hide processing and use, however, might be understood based on archaeological data and ethnoarchaeological studies because there aren’t many direct hide-related evidences in Paleolithic sites. Researchers from Korea and abroad have undertaken studies on the use-wear analysis of the end-scraper, and they have found that different work materials, including wood, bone, antler, and hide, leave different traces behind. Of them, the trace formed by hide occupies the majority. Therefore, it can be known that the end-scraper was a specialized tool for processing hide. Ethnoarchaeological studies on this subject show the various stages of hide processing and usage: hunting animals; several stages of processing hide; and use. End-scrapers have been recovered from a lot of sites in the Paleolithic. This fact indicates that hide processing and use were essential for surviving in that era. Depending on the period, region, environment, animal species, purpose of hide use, type of end-scraper, its use method, and hide processing method, they are slightly different. These led to the establishment of the local technological tradition. These facts shed light on the different aspects of the hide processing method at the local level

Geography · Image Processing and 3D Reconstruction