Abstract Spheroids are Lower Paleolithic stone tools documented in African and Eurasian archeological sites ascribed to the later Oldowan and Acheulian cultural complexes. While reported since the 1960s, there is disagreement about how they were made, or whether their morphology resulted from non-intentional processes related to flake production or percussive activities. Recently, attention has turned towards resolving the issue of intentionality in spheroid production. Based on our observations of the large collection of limestone spheroids from the Early Acheulian site of ‘Ubeidiya (Levant), dated to ca. 1.4 Ma, we test the hypothesis that these were intentionally produced by attempting possible operative schemes for their manufacture. In addition to experimental knapping, we also provide a morphotechnological analysis of the products from each experiment, identifying typical flake morphologies and breakage patterns within each lithic set. In addition, refitting of each experimental lithic set provides a clear picture of the sequencing of gestures used by expert, experienced, and novice knappers, shedding new light on the decision-making processes leading up to the production of these enigmatic tool types.

Abstract Technological strategies for biface manufacture adopted during the Acheulean represent a significant shift in the Lower Palaeolithic. The appearance of intentional bifacial shaping indicates the imposition of form on stone tools not seen previously. Despite this importance, there is considerable scope for research into hominin decision-making while factoring in the differential properties of varied raw materials. Here, we discuss the results of an experimental knapping program of Acheulean handaxes on Naibor Soit quartzites (NSQ), aiming at investigating technological strategies observed at the Lower Floor TK Site (TKLF), Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. We examine the unique properties of the NSQ raw material and the challenges faced during knapping slabs at various stages of the handaxe reduction sequence. We explore how the selection and extraction of suitable slabs for handaxe manufacture and the impact of specific geological structures within this raw material determine the final artefact form. We note the effect this had on the need for careful choices in selecting suitable slabs at the raw material sources based on considerations of the properties of the slab, thickness, and width, amongst other factors. Functional requirements and the NSQ slabs’ properties influenced strategies adopted for handaxe façonnage and the final tool morphology. We discuss choices made by Acheulean toolmakers when they adopted freehand and bipolar knapping techniques. These decisions can be identified through the nature of the debitage generated and the organization of flake scars on handaxes. We suggest that Acheulean hominins displayed high skill levels and evolved knapping strategies. These strategies allowed them to adapt to the complex task of implementing specific shaping techniques on NSQ slabs. This provides one of the few experimental studies that directly explore the impact of the particular requirements of flaking quartzites during the Acheulean. This study contributes to understanding the diversity of strategies and behavioral flexibility exhibited by Acheulean hominins. Highlights • Experimental knapping of handaxes on Naibor Soit quartzite (NSQ) slabs, Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. • Reproduction of the reduction sequence used for handaxe façonnage on slabs at the Acheulean level of Lower Occupation Floor in Thiongo Korongo site (TKLF). • Investigating decision-making at various stages of the handaxe reduction sequence. • Issues related to the NSQ, leading to breakage and steps adopted by the knapper to control for the same. • Inferences on Acheulean technological abilities based on experimental studies and knapping decisions at stages in the reduction sequence.

Sequencing and characterising high-resolution units in which both natural and anthropogenic records can be examined on comparable scales is essential for understanding spatial behaviour and site formation processes. This requires a multidisciplinary approach that has previously been applied to the Neanderthal site of Abric del Pastor (Alcoi, eastern Iberia), revealing short-term occupations with high spatiotemporal resolution in stratigraphic unit IV, particularly focused on the lithic assemblages. In this study, we extend this methodological framework to stratigraphic unit V, investigating lithic record formation processes by applying archaeostratigraphic and spatial analyses, incorporating raw materials, technical attributes, and refits. Additionally, this research integrates soil micromorphology and sedimentary n-alkane analysis to explore critical aspects of sedimentary formation processes. Specifically, these techniques were used to corroborate the presence of in sitv hearths and rule out the possibility of erosional processes in the western sector of the rockshelter, where no archaeological materials were recorded. Our results, with refits as a benchmark, reveal at least two distinct stages of anthropogenic formation, characterised by recurring knapping activities primarily concentrated in the northern zone. These activities display internal variability in terms of flint type usage and activity intensity. Moreover, this knapping area is spatially segregated from three other zones: one containing a single hearth, close to the rockshelter wall, with no associated archaeological materials, possibly aligned with sleeping/resting purposes; another with a diachronic accumulation of faunal remains; and a third with an absence of archaeological record, in which postdepositional processes have not been detected. By identifying discrete formation events, we provide a detailed example of Neanderthal spatial variability, highlighting the deliberate use of certain zones for similar activities over time. This pattern contrasts with the spatial organisation of stratigraphic unit IV and other Neanderthal contexts, reflecting shifting strategies in the arrangement and use of space.

Revisiting collections from old excavations with new research objectives and analytical tools brings them to life and integrates them into evolving models of human-landscape interactions. This paper examines hominin behaviour and adaptations at the late Middle Palaeolithic open air camp site Far’ah II, dated to ~ 49 ka by analyzing the spatial patterning of assemblages from the 1976–1978 excavation seasons. This was facilitated by the large area excavated and the fact that all lithics and most bones larger than 2.5 mm were recorded using three dimensional coordinates. Examining the refitted flint sequences highlights the use of variable technological systems, including the Levallois unidirectional convergent method. Use wear on the ground stone tools suggests they were used for knapping as well as food processing, and the faunal assemblage reflects a wide range of species that were consumed on-site. By combining lithic refitting studies and spatial mapping of artefact and bone distribution using GIS, we have dissected the occupation history and demonstrate that the living floor defined during the excavations actually consists of at least two different occupation events, that partially overlap in the central area of the site. This analysis demonstrates that Far’ah II was probably a favoured locality, revisited by Middle Palaeolithic hominins due to its proximity to a rich mosaic of habitats.

This short report presents newly discovered Palaeolithic rock art panels within the Ocreza Valley (Lower Tejo River), central Portugal, comprising several engraved zoomorphic figures, including auroch and horse. Together, they substantially increase upon the previous headless horse found in 2000, and the style of the engravings is identical to Upper Palaeolithic open-air engravings from other areas of western Iberia, including the Côa, Sabor, Tua, Siega Verde, La Salud, Zêzere valleys, and Vale Boi. Currently, no clear deposits with Upper Palaeolithic artefacts have been identified over and next to the newly discovered rock. However, these discoveries indicate the occupation of Ocreza Valley during the Upper Palaeolithic and a possible concentration of Upper Palaeolithic rock art in this area of the Tejo Valley, yet to be established. If confirmed by future fieldwork, such Palaeolithic rock art may be overlapping the territory of an already-known Holocene-dated Tejo Rock Art Complex.

This study describes a Middle Stone Age (MSA) assemblage from Ha Makotoko, Lesotho. Excavated in 2010, the assemblage dates to > 42 ka and falls within Marine Isotope Stage 3. Faunal remains indicate a grassland environment during the time of occupation. The lithic artefacts found at Ha Makotoko comprise a predominantly flake-based industry with some blades and an increasing frequency of bladelets throughout the sequence. Artefacts were primarily made on fine-grained materials and cores were mainly struck irregularly. The few tools present include points, and miscellaneously retouched pieces are common. Use-wear traces on points show direct evidence of hafting, with butchering and woodworking indicated. The MSA assemblage from Ha Makotoko is compared to material from the nearby sites of Ntloana Tšoana and Rose Cottage Cave, as well as sites further to the east in the Maloti-Drakensberg Mountains and along South Africa’s southeastern coast. These comparisons confirm its association with the post-Howiesons Poort technocomplex of Marine Isotope Stage 3 and reveal similarities to the final MSA. However, the high amount of informal retouch and other differences further complexify what is already considered a technologically highly variable period. Presenting this assemblage here adds additional evidence for a phase of the Middle Stone Age that remains poorly understood in its entirety. Situated along the intersection of Afroalpine and grassland environments in western Lesotho, Ha Makotoko offers a bridging record for these contrasting ecologies that highlights the diverse applicability of post-Howiesons Poort and final MSA toolkits.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s41982-025-00238-x.

The Altai mountains contain a number of cave and rockshelter sites that have given crucial information about human evolution in Asia. Most of these caves are located in the Gornyi Altai of Siberia, while the southern flank of the range remains much less known. Bukhtarma Cave was a karstic cave located near the former village of Peshchera, on the banks of the Bukhtarma River running through the foothills of the southern (Kazakh) Altai mountains. The Soviet East Kazakhstan Archaeological Expedition carried several excavation campaigns in the cave in the early to mid 1950s, discovering Paleolithic stone tools as well as animal bones. The collections were split between the East Kazakhstan Regional Museum of Local History in Öskemen (the lithic and part of the faunal collection) and the Zoological Institute in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) (most of the fauna). Subsequently, the site was flooded by the construction of the Bukhtarma Reservoir in 1958, such that further fieldwork is impossible. However, in 2020, we reanalyzed the zooarchaeological collections and obtained several 14C dates. Based on the excavation documentation and the newly obtained dates exclusively taken from cut marked and carnivore-modified bone, we reconstruct at least three Paleolithic archaeological horizons, spanning the time between ca. 47–30 ka cal BP and exhibiting Middle and Upper Paleolithic characteristics, as well as the remains of several Holocene occupations, the latest of which dates to the Bronze Age. We present here a summary of the lithic and faunal assemblage and draw general conclusions about the site’s placement within the regional Paleolithic.