20.10.2022

Palaeolithic surface sites in Arabia: sampling methodology, analytical protocols, limitations and potential for interpreting prehistoric human settlement

Colloquium by Dr. Yamandú H. Hilbert

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Time: 20th October, 13:00

Speaker: Dr. Yamandú H. Hilbert

Title: Palaeolithic surface sites in Arabia: sampling methodology, analytical protocols, limitations and potential for interpreting prehistoric human settlement

Abstract: Stone tools (lithics) are the most durable of human cultural expressions and constitute a highly abundant source of information on the productive activities undertaken by our ancestors. Due to their resilient nature lithics are often incorporated into geomorphological processes including, but not limited to, erosion, deposit, redeposition etc and bear complex taphonomic trajectories. Furthermore, as products of specific task-bound activities undertaken by anthropic agents, their interpretation can be a daunting endeavour due to their, at times, chaotic nature. This is particularly true for most surface lithic scatters found across arid and semi-arid environments, given that geological processes have, in most cases, erased all direct traces of sediment cover; thus, rendering an absolute chronological attribution impossible. The data that can be gleaned from such assemblages, however, is considerable and provides an additional layer of information on resource management, technical know-how and, to some extent, landscape use. This presentation will show how to approach lithic surface sites based on a series of case studies from Saudi Arabia, Oman, and the UEA ranging chronologically from the Lower, Middle, Upper and Late Palaeolithic periods.

If you are interested in joining the Colloquium, please send a mail to miri.mertnerspam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de.