<p>The Robberg technocomplex of southern Africa (~ 26 to 12 thousand years ago) is the earliest well-defined and widespread technocomplex of the southern African Later Stone Age. Here, we present descriptions of lithic assemblages assigned to the Robberg technocomplex from the site of Knysna Eastern Heads Cave 1 (KEH-1), located on the modern-day southern coast of South Africa. Technological organization at KEH-1 is in line with the main defining characteristics of the Robberg, including a focus on bladelet production, the presence of cores typical to Robberg assemblages, and a low frequency of retouched tools. The majority of silcrete in the KEH-1 assemblage was heat-treated, but the use of silcrete for lithic production was not dependent on the use of heat treatment. While lithic reduction is oriented toward bladelets, large quartzite flakes play a notable but poorly understood role in the system. However, the assemblage from KEH-1 differs in key ways from other published Robberg assemblages, including relatively low reduction intensity, infrequent use of bipolar percussion, and low emphasis on lithic miniaturization. Data from KEH-1 add to our understanding of technological variation within the Robberg and highlight the importance of understanding how site dynamics influence lithic technological organization.</p>

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Robberg Lithic Technology from Knysna Eastern Heads Cave 1

  • Sara E. Watson,
  • Nicolas Zwyns,
  • Teresa E. Steele,
  • Alex Mackay,
  • Naomi Cleghorn

摘要

The Robberg technocomplex of southern Africa (~ 26 to 12 thousand years ago) is the earliest well-defined and widespread technocomplex of the southern African Later Stone Age. Here, we present descriptions of lithic assemblages assigned to the Robberg technocomplex from the site of Knysna Eastern Heads Cave 1 (KEH-1), located on the modern-day southern coast of South Africa. Technological organization at KEH-1 is in line with the main defining characteristics of the Robberg, including a focus on bladelet production, the presence of cores typical to Robberg assemblages, and a low frequency of retouched tools. The majority of silcrete in the KEH-1 assemblage was heat-treated, but the use of silcrete for lithic production was not dependent on the use of heat treatment. While lithic reduction is oriented toward bladelets, large quartzite flakes play a notable but poorly understood role in the system. However, the assemblage from KEH-1 differs in key ways from other published Robberg assemblages, including relatively low reduction intensity, infrequent use of bipolar percussion, and low emphasis on lithic miniaturization. Data from KEH-1 add to our understanding of technological variation within the Robberg and highlight the importance of understanding how site dynamics influence lithic technological organization.