Antiquity (volume 84, issue 325, September 2010)
Palaeolithic cutlery 400 000–200 000 years ago:
tiny meat-cutting tools from Qesem Cave, Israel
Ran Barkai, Cristina Lemorini & Avi Gopher
Discovery
Figure 1. Location of the site of Qesem Cave in Israel.
Click to enlarge.
Minuscule flakes made from recycled flint were identified at the late Lower Palaeolithic site of Qesem Cave in
Israel (Figure 1), dated to 400–200 thousand years ago (kya) (Barkai et al. 2003; Gopher et al. In press). Our
ongoing research at this exceptionally well-preserved site indicates that it was repeatedly occupied by early
hominins, ancestral to Homo sapiens and/or Neanderthals (Hershkovitz et al. In press), who left ample
evidence of their lifestyle. Our analysis of the tiny flakes (Figure 2) suggests that they were used to cut meat.
The occupants of Qesem Cave produced innovative flint tools, and in particular sharp flint blade knives, using
cutting-edge technology of the time (Barkai et al. 2009). They hunted cooperatively, bringing body-parts of
fallow deer back to the cave, which were then butchered, shared (Stiner et al. 2009), and — as suggested by
fire usage throughout the cave's 7.5m-deep stratigraphy — eventually barbecued. Microscopic use-wear
analysis of flint artefacts from Qesem Cave, complemented by experimental replication work, revealed that a
diversified assemblage of flint blades was manufactured and used. Thick-edged blades, shaped through
retouch, were used for scraping semi-hard materials such as wood or hide, whereas blades with straight,
sharp working edges were used to cut soft tissues (Lemorini et al. 2006). Functional studies point to shortlived usage of these meat-cutting blades, which were hardly ever re-sharpened for further use. This behaviour
was evidently sustained by an innovative systematic blade production technology, providing a constant supply
of fresh cutting edges (Barkai et al. 2009).
Figure 2. Archaeological minuscule flakes from Qesem Cave (scale in mm). Click to enlarge.
Figure 3. Archaeological parent-flake (core-on-flake) from Qesem Cave (scale in mm). Click to enlarge.
Figure 4. Replica of a minuscule flake used to cut meat in controlled butchering experiments. Click to enlarge.
Figure 5. Further illustration of replica of a minuscule flake used to cut meat in controlled butchering
experiments. Click to enlarge.
Tiny flakes from Qesem Cave
Blades, however, were not the only meat-cutting tools used. We recently identified a specific category of
minuscule flakes, typically removed from available parent-flakes (Figure 3). Parent-flakes were selected from
already available flakes that were, most probably, produced originally for other purposes than as cores for the
production of tiny flakes. In many cases parent-flakes were made on former tools such as scrapers and
retouched flakes. This ongoing production, in a mode of behaviour reminiscent of recycling, attests to another
significant aspect of hominin behaviour. Very small flakes have also been reported in Lower and Middle
Palaeolithic sites worldwide (e.g. Goren-Inbar 1988; Dibble & McPherron 2006; Ashton 2007), but the ultimate
aim of their production remained obscure owing to the lack of technological, functional and experimental
studies. Here we summarise the results of a functional study of a sample of 86 tiny �recycled� flakes from
Qesem Cave and 192 parent-flakes from which such flakes were removed. This sample was collected
according to techno-typological criteria and originates from all strata of the cave.
The tiny flakes were removed from the ventral face of the parent-flake ('core-on-flake') with little or no
preparation. Consequently, they differ from ordinary flakes as they have two ventral, flat and smooth, faces.
These minuscule flakes are not longer than 1–3 cm and, by convention, not thoroughly studied. At Qesem
Cave all artefacts, regardless of size, were collected and studied, thus giving fresh insights into aspects of
prehistoric human behaviour.
We produced a reference sample of minuscule double-ventral flake replicas and parent-flake replicas for use
on different materials (Figures 4 & 5). The replicas were made from archaeological flint flakes collected from
the surface of the cave and from damaged contexts. For functional analysis of the small double-ventral flakes
and the parent-flakes we used a light-reflecting stereoscope (Nikon SMZ) at 3.5× to 35× magnification and a
light-reflecting metallographic microscope (Nikon Eclipse) at 100×, 200× and 500× magnification.
Results
Comparison of use-wear traces on the replicas to those identified on the authentic artefacts disclosed use
traces on 34 (39.5 per cent) of the 86 minuscule authentic flakes but only 12 (6 per cent) of the 192 parents
(traces at the specific location where the tiny flake was removed), confirming that the tiny flakes were the
desired object. Examination of these minuscule flakes revealed that most were used to cut soft materials such
as meat. Some showed traces of contact with fleshy tissues and bone, suggesting disarticulation or the
separation of flesh or muscle tissues from bones. Experiments with replicas verified that the flakes were razorlike implements, sharp enough for users to easily cut muscles, tendons or skin, while their size restricted their
efficiency in cutting deep muscles. Absence of hafting traces on the minuscule flakes indicated that they were
probably hand-held (Figure 6). Our experiments suggested that these sharp flakes might facilitate butchering
of small animals or tasks such as cutting of skin or sinew strips in larger animals.
Many of these minuscule implements had two lateral sharp edges and a typically dull (hinged) distal end,
making them 'safe' for use near the mouth. Thus, they might well also have been used as hand-held knives
while eating. Moreover, for instant and rapid actions requiring sharp implements they would have presented
an excellent solution, easily achieved via a simple knapping technique based on recycling of old discarded
flakes.
Figure 6. Hand-held archaeological minuscule flake from Qesem Cave.
Click to enlarge.
Conclusions
These findings shed new light on meat consumption behaviours of early hominins (also Stiner et al. 2009) and
draw attention to a little-explored aspect of lithic studies, namely the recycling of old flakes as cores in the
production of specific, sharp, tiny flakes for delicate and precise meat-cutting activities. Tiny recycled flakes
were used as hand-held cutting tools as part of a diversified meat-processing Palaeolithic tool-kit.
Acknowledgements
Field work in Qesem Cave is supported by the CARE Archaeological Foundation, the Leakey Foundation and
the Thyssen Foundation. Laboratory work and dating are supported by the Israel Science Foundation and the
Wenner Gren Foundation. We thank R. Yerkes, S. Lev-Yadun and L. Maul for reading and improving this
paper. We would like to thank K. Drechsel for skilfully producing Figure 1.
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Authors
* Author for correspondence.
Ran Barkai*
Institute of Archaeology, Tel-Aviv University, 69978 Tel-Aviv, Israel (Email:
barkaran@post.tau.ac.il)
Cristina Lemorini
Dipartmento di Scienze Storiche, Archeologiche ed Antropologiche dell'Antichita, Università di Roma
'La Sapienza', Italy
Avi Gopher
Institute of Archaeology, Tel-Aviv University, 69978 Tel-Aviv, Israel