Hunter-Gatherer Specialised Subsistence Strategies in Greece during the Upper Palaeolithic from the Perspective of Lithic Technology

Description

This work is explores the connection between specialised subsistence and specialised lithic technology during the late Upper Palaeolithic in Greece. It addresses the question of whether, at sites where a single animal species was being targeted, lithic production was different to that at sites where a wide range of animals were being hunted. Lithic assemblages from three sites are included in the study: Klithi rockshelter and Kastritsa cave, both in Epirus, and Franchthi cave in the Argolid peninsula. After a general introduction to the archaeological character of each site, the morphological aspects of the lithic assemblages are discussed and the metric characteristics analysed. The sites are then compared in terms of morphological characteristics, the dimensions of cores, debitage and tools. The aim is to examine whether any consistent patterns can be identified between the three sites that would suggest that lithic production was being differentially organised.