Site 79 is a location where multiple archaeological activities have taken place over the last couple of decades. It is located in northern Oman, specifically in the Al Batinah province, inside the...Show moreSite 79 is a location where multiple archaeological activities have taken place over the last couple of decades. It is located in northern Oman, specifically in the Al Batinah province, inside the current city of Sohar. The site contained archaeological finds and features from multiple different periods. This thesis focuses on the lithic material from the Neolithic period that has been found at the site. This includes material from a recent surface collection in 2018 but also material that has been found there in the past. This thesis explores the different lithic industries from the Neolithic period of Oman and aims to determine the periods that are represented by the material at Site 79. This is done by comparing the material that was found to dated material from comparable sites located in Oman and the United Arab Emirates. The analysis of the lithic material found at Site 79 by comparing it to dated material in the literature showed that there is material from the Early, Middle and Late Neolithic. This is because types of arrowheads can be connected to time periods in which they were mainly produced. At the site there were multiple lithic facies identified. Among them were Fasad arrowheads, trihedral arrowheads, and fusiform arrowheads. A majority of the material that could be tentatively dated pointed to the Late Neolithic, however there is enough material from earlier periods to prove that the site must have been in use more than once. Looking at the unfinished or seemingly broken nature of most of the arrowheads the site was probably a lithic workshop. This would also explain the relatively large assemblage of lithics that was found at the site compared to other Neolithic sites in Oman. The research presented here adds to a growing body of evidence on the Neolithic period of Oman and increases our knowledge about the characteristics of this period in Oman.Show less
This research attempted to answer the following question: ‘What was the function of the Mesolithic small (<88,5mm) barbed bone points from the North Sea and what does this contribute to our...Show moreThis research attempted to answer the following question: ‘What was the function of the Mesolithic small (<88,5mm) barbed bone points from the North Sea and what does this contribute to our understanding of subsistence strategies of the inhabitants of the North Sea Basin?’ In order to answer this question an assemblage of 28 archaeological small barbed bone points – that originate from the North Sea in front of the Dutch coast of Zuid-Holland – was studied. This thesis started in chapter 1 with an outline of research that was already conducted on these points by Verhart (1986; 1988; 2000) Tsiopelas (2010) and Spithoven (2016). Thereafter, it was explained in chapter 2 how the research was conducted: literature research, experimental archaeology and use wear analysis. In chapter 3, it was outlined how these points fit within the archaeological context: Mesolithic Doggerland. The shooting experiment conducted for this research was discussed in chapter 4 and in chapter 5 the results of this experiment were compared with the results of the use wear analysis. The use wear analysis was conducted on 28 archaeological points in comparison to six experimental points from the shooting experiment. In chapter 6, the social factors which could have influenced the life history of the points were discussed, as well as their function and the representativeness of this research. In the concluding chapter of this thesis (7) the research question was answered followed by a review of the used methods and suggestions for future research. The function of the small barbed bone points from Mesolithic Doggerland could be inferred from the use wear analysis. The points are all (heavily) curated weapon tips. They have developed a high degree of wear and about half of the studied points have remains of reworked barbs present as well. The research area is only a small area of Mesolithic Doggerland which already yielded about 800 of these small barbed bone/antler points. The curation of these points, the function as weapon tips and the overrepresentation within the archaeological record of Mesolithic Doggerland suggests that these weapons were used very frequently. Therefore, it can be inferred that hunting was one an important subsistence strategy. The most used hunting weapon could have been the bow and arrow because the small points are interpreted as arrowheads. However, the use wear analysis could not confirm that the points were specifically used as arrowheads.Show less
