An Expedient Lithic Technology in Northern Luzon (Philippines)

Abstract

The persisterne of a simple litbic technology east of the so-called Movius Line has long evoked the interest of prehistorians. Two plausible hypotheses bave been presented. The first involves the availability in Southeast Asia of wooden materials such as bamboo, which can easily be shaped into tools. The second concerns the predominarne of coarse-grained raw materials (e.g. andesite), which are difftcult to shape into formal tools. This study took a two-stage approach to test the hypotheses. An experimental study using andesite and chert flakes on bamboo, rattan and meat was conducted to identify probable microwear traces. The second stage involved microwear analysis of prehistoric andesite and chert flakes from Minori Cave (Luzon). The experimental study showed that microwear analysis could be conducted on andesite flake tools. Microwear analysis showed that some of the prehistoric flakes were, in fact, used on hard contact materials. possibly bamboo.