Firestones in the near Eastern Neolithic

Firestones or strike-a-lights made of flint exhibit a characteristic kind of wear, seen as a series of sharp, irregular blow-offs and scars within restricted areas of the edge. They are well known from the Stone and Bronze Ages of Northern Europe. In the Near East firestones have been identified at...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Mortensen, Peder (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: IFAPO 2006
In: Syria
Year: 2006, Volume: 83, Pages: 153-158
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Description
Summary:Firestones or strike-a-lights made of flint exhibit a characteristic kind of wear, seen as a series of sharp, irregular blow-offs and scars within restricted areas of the edge. They are well known from the Stone and Bronze Ages of Northern Europe. In the Near East firestones have been identified at several Neolithic sites (Çatal Höyük, Aşıklı Höyük, Labweh and Beidha). It is suggested that the method of making fire by striking a piece of flint or sulphur against another piece of flint was generally used in Anatolia and in the Levantine Neolithic, whereas the apparent lack of firestones – and of tanged arrowheads as well – in the Zagros and in the Hassuna/Samarra chipped stone assemblages might suggest that in the Neolithic we are dealing with two different, regionally determined lithic traditions: a western tradition, prevailing in Anatolia and the Eastern Mediterranean, and an eastern tradition covering Northern Mesopotamia and the Zagros.
ISSN:2076-8435
Contains:Enthalten in: Syria
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.4000/syria.214