PATRICK SCHMIDT (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Deutschland)
Miércoles, 7 de noviembre de 2018, a las 12,00 h.
Institució Milà i Fontanals – CSIC (Aula 2, 1er pis) C / Egipcíaques, 15. Barcelona
In archaeology, heat treatment of stone is the process of ‘making’ a new material for tool production. Its invention in the African Middle Stone Age was an important step in the evolution of transformative technologies and the cultural evolution of early humans in general. Heat treatment also played an important role in the process of neolithisation. In Europe, it has traditionally been understood as a new invention that early farmers brought with them on their way into Europe. However, stone heat treatment was already known in the European Mesolithic and the question of whether there was local transmission, from the last hunter gatherers to the first farmers, arises. In this talk, I will explore both theories and provide data that plead against local transmission. The argumentation is based on archaeometric analyses of Mesolithic and Neolithic heat-treated assemblages.
