The Variability of Lithic Productions during the Mesolithic: Evaluation and Research Perspectives. Séance de la Société préhistorique française 27-28 octobre 2022, Nanterre
The objective of this meeting is to discuss the variability that occurs in the lithic production schemes of the Mesolithic (Early – Middle - and Late) in the light of recent advances made in technological studies, microwear studies and petrographic analyses. The goal of this meeting, during which this topic will be addressed from the perspective of Northern France and its immediately neighboring areas is more precisely (1) to better characterize the chronological and geographical extent of this variability and (2) to gain a better understanding of the existing chronocultural groups, that were in most cases initially defined based on typological criteria alone.
Indeed, studies carried out over the past decades in the North of France raise several new questions about the knapping styles(i.e. Coincy vs. Montbani) inherited from the work of Dr. Rozoy and seem to indicate that a much greater variability occurred in the bladelet productions of the Mesolithic than initially thought.One of the questions that is regularly asked concerns the impact of lithological and economic/functional circumstances on this variability.Is this impact not greater than often acknowledged? How adaptable were these bladelet productions to differences in raw material availability and to what extent where they affected by site function? What are the consequences for the chaines opératoires present at a specific site or at two different sites? Another recurrent question concerns the role of (elongated) flakes and blades at sites, that are often considered to be by-products of the preparation and/or rejuvenation of bladelet cores. However, knowing that a substantial amount of these blades and flakes were used as unretouched blanks, is it not possible that they were intentionally sought after and that they resulted from independent chaines opératoires? Or do they really represent opportunistic tools selected in an ad-hoc manner from amidst the knapping waste? And apart from these examples, what other factors contribute to the observable variability? Is variability in knapping techniques and methods influenced by cultural processes? Or even by intra- or intersite differences in knapping skill?
To find an answer to these types of questions, oral presentations and posters should rely as much as possible on data that offers detailed information on the characteristics and the diversity of the chaînes opératoires applied at a specific site or at a regional scale. Whether presenting a case-study or a regional overview, contributors are in other words encouraged to reflect on the reasons for the observed range of technological behavior they present. Presentations can be held in French or in English. Presentation time should not exceed 20 minutes for regional overviews and 15 minutes for site presentations.
Proposals for oral presentations and poster presentations can be sent in until the 15th of May on this page.
Loading... 
