Mousterian
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Mousterian is a name given by archaeologists to a style of predominantly flint tools (or industry) associated primarily with Homo neanderthalensis and dating to the Middle Paleolithic, the middle part of the Old Stone Age. It was named after the type site of Le Moustier, a rock shelter in the Dordogne region of France. Similar flintwork has been found all over unglaciated Europe and also the Near East and North Africa. Handaxes, racloirs and points constitute the industry; sometimes a Levallois technique or another prepared-core technique was employed in making the flint flakes.
Mousterian tools were made by Neanderthals and date from between 300,000 BP and 30,000 BP. In Northern Africa and the Near East they were also produced by anatomically modern humans. In the Levant for example, assemblages produced by Neanderthals are indistinguishable from those produced by modern humans [1]. Mousterian technology is important because it took over the job of teeth in the front, and also because there was a reduction of robustness of some of the facial features. The use of Mousterian technology minimized pressure on the teeth and as a result the front teeth were no longer needed for environmental manipulation.
- Several Mousterian variants are known:
- Typical Mousterian
- Ferrassie Mousterian
- Quina Mousterian
- Denticulate Mousterian
- Mousterian of Acheulean Tradition (MTA)
[edit] References
- ^ Shea, J. J., 2003: Neandertals, competition and the origin of modern human behaviour in the Levant, Evolutionary Anthropology, 12:173-187.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Mousterian Neanderthal Stone Tools
- geocities.com - The Neanderthal Sites at Veldwezelt-Hezerwater, Belgium
- Neanderthals’ Last Stand Is Traced - New York Times article (Published: September 13, 2006)
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