Hammerstone

This article is about the tool stone. For the professional wrestler, see Alexander Hammerstone.
various hammerstones
An example of a cobble used as a hammerstone

In archaeology, a hammerstone is a hard cobble[1] used to strike off lithic flakes from a lump of tool stone during the process of lithic reduction.[2] The hammerstone is a rather universal stone tool which appeared early in most regions of the world including Europe, India[3] and North America. This technology was of major importance to prehistoric cultures before the development of metalworking.

  1. ^ Daniel, I. Randolph (27 April 1998). "Artifacts: Hammerstones". Hardaway Revisited: Early Archaic Settlement in the Southeast. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. p. 115. ISBN 9780817309008. Retrieved 14 November 2024. Cobbles identified as hammerstones are recognized by battering and extensive pitting present on ends, edges, or intermediate surfaces.
  2. ^ Charles Joseph Singer, Richard Raper, Trevor Illtyd Williams, A History of Technology, 1954, Clarendon Press
  3. ^ Neelima Dahiya, Arts and Crafts in Northern India: From the Earliest Times to C. 200 B.C., 1986, D.K. Publishers