Microblades in the context of lithic and bone industries of the Late Mesolithic and the Early Neolithic at Zamostje 2 (1995-1997 excavations)

Starting from the Upper Paleolithic, microblade technology came into widespread use and continued its development throughout the Mesolithic and the Neolithic. Using a sample of items from the excavations carried out at the Zamostje 2 site in 19951997, an assemblage of flint microblades originating in the Late Mesolithic and the Early Neolithic layers was analyzed, which made it possible to identify retouched items as well as derive some conclusions on the purposes the microblades were used for and their distribution. The aim of this paper is to determine the development level of microblade technology using the materials from the studied site, and its task is to assess the role of microtools in the context of lithic and bone industries. The analysis employed archaeological methods of research such as comparative-typological, statistical and technological methods. The ‘microblade' term was meant to include a broader range of knapped fragments with a length-to-width ratio of 2:1 and above and the width of not less than 12 mm. In total, 572 artifacts from the Late Mesolithic and 338 artifacts from the Early Neolithic layers were examined. The study found that microblading technology at Zamostje 2 had limited application; in most cases, chopping was not intentional. Typologically, retouched microblades were items of individual forms, both excavated layers yielded few of such items. At the site, microblades were used as insets into a bone or horn base and in some cases served as blanks for making arrowheads.