The effects of blank size and knapping strategy on the estimation of core’s reduction intensity

Abstract

The intensity of reduction on lithic assemblages has implications in the understanding of hominin behaviors such as mobility patterns, type and intensity of occupations, raw material management and cognitive abilities, as well as in the formation of lithic assemblages. In the last decades, numerous methodological proposals have been developed aimed at estimating the reduction intensity in retouched tools and cores. Regarding the analysis of the reduction in cores, several studies have focused on technical parameters, in many cases without considering the different reduction strategies used. In this paper, we present the results of a sequential experimental program aimed at evaluating the effect of two different reduction strategies (unifacial unipolar and bifacial multipolar centripetal), as well as the size of the original nodules, in the estimation of the intensity of reduction on cores. Our results show that both, the core reduction strategies and the size of the nodules, affect the estimation of reduction intensity. Therefore, we pose the necessity of considering a series of aspects, such as the perimetric development and faciality of the exploitation, as well as the size of nodules, to more accurately infer the intensity of reduction in cores.