Multidisciplinary Approaches to the Study of Stone Age Weaponry

Editors: Iovita, Radu, Sano, Katsuhiro (Eds.)
Recognizes and characterizes stone age weapons using controlled and replicative experiments
Casts new light on the role of weapon technologies in shaping the course of human evolution
Maximizes readers insights into archaeological perspectives from a variety of time periods and from all five continents with a large assortment of new analytical and experimental studies

The objective of this volume is to showcase the contemporary state of research on recognizing and evaluating the performance of stone age weapons from a variety of viewpoints, including investigating their cognitive and evolutionary significance.
New archaeological finds and experimental studies have helped to bring this subject back to the forefront of human origins research. In the last few years, investigations have expanded beyond examining the tools themselves to include studies of damage caused by projectile weapons on animal and hominin bones and skeletal asymmetries in ancient hominin populations. Only recently has there been a growing interest in controlled and replicative experiments. Through this book readers will be updated in the state of knowledge through a multidisciplinary scientific reconstruction of prehistoric weapon use and its implications.
Contributions from expert authors are organized into three themed parts: recognizing weapon use (experimental and archaeological studies of impact traces), performance of weapon systems (factors influencing penetration depth etc.), and behavioral and evolutionary ramifications (cognitive and ecological effects of using different weapons).

Number of Illustrations and Tables
70 b/w illustrations, 98 illustrations in colour
Topics
Paleontology
Archaeology
Cultural Anthropology
Evolutionary Biology
Cultural History
Behavioral Sciences

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