An Assessment of the Limitations of Macroscopic Lithic Raw Material Identification and Parent Nodule Assignment within Archaeological Contexts in Minnesota and an Analysis of Lithic Raw Material Utilization at 21LN2

Abstract

The objective of this study was twofold; one, test the limitations of macroscopic lithic raw material identification and parent nodule assignment with regard to materials commonly identified within prehistoric contexts in Minnesota (the secondary study); and two, assess the lithic raw material utilization at 21LN2 (the primary study). The initial results of the secondary study indicate that macroscopic observation can be an effective method with regard to differentiating and identifying lithic raw material types commonly encountered at archaeological sites in Minnesota. The results also suggest that Minimum Analytical Nodule Analysis should be quite applicable to most lithic assemblages identified at archaeological sites in Minnesota. The results of the primary study demonstrate that the prehistoric inhabitants of 21LN2 operated within a vast sphere of interaction and relied heavily upon local and non-local lithic resources. Indications are that the Law of Least Effort does not adequately describe the procurement pattern found at 21LN2. Non-locally procured raw materials tend to exhibit a higher degree of curation and retooling appears to have been an important aspect of the lithic industry at the site. The results of the study also demonstrate that high quality raw materials of non-local provenience were, in general, reduced more efficiently and retouched with greater intensity than other raw material types identified at the site.