Technological Choice and Raw Material Availability: Lithic Production Implements in Western Belize

ABSTRACT

In lithic studies, much attention is devoted to analyses of production processes and finished tools while little attention is paid to production implements. Hammerstones present an interesting problem as many areas with readily available lithic raw material sources lack materials for high-quality hammerstones. This paper uses a case study from a chert-rich area, the upper Belize River valley of western Belize, to examine how the Late Classic Maya acquired material to be used as hammerstones. This paper finds that lithic producers used locally available poor-quality stone as well as imported materials, such as groundstone, as hammerstones, suggesting multiple acquisition networks existed through which lithic producers obtained percussion implements.

KEYWORDS:

• Lithic production
• hammerstones
• Classic Maya
• lithic economies
• technological organization

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Charlotte Pevny for her comments and insightful critiques that improved the quality of the paper. Thanks also to Bernadette Cap for talking through the issues of technological choice and hammerstone use. Comments from two anonymous reviewers provided avenues for clarification and expansion of the ideas presented in this paper.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data Availability Statement

The data concerning the hammerstones discussed here is available in the text. Further information is available on request from the author.

Notes on Contributor

Rachel A. Horowitz is a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology at Tulane University. She received her PhD in anthropology from Tulane University. Her research interests include lithic technology, technological organization, the Maya, and economic organization.

Notes

1 Five additional hammerstones were recovered from excavations, but these come from contexts lacking diagnostic chronological markers or date to earlier time periods.

Additional information

Funding

Research at Callar Creek Quarry, Belize, was conducted under the auspices of Mopan Valley Archaeological Project (MVAP) directed by Jason Yaeger, with the permission of the Belize Institute of Archaeology. Funding was provided by a National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (BCS Grant # 1416212), a National Geographic Young Explorer Grant (Grant # 9089-12), and a Summer Merit grant from the School of Liberal Arts at Tulane University.