The Function of Flake Tools in Prehistoric Society of East Sabah

(Fungsi Alat Repih Masyarakat Prasejarah Timur Sabah)

  • Siti Khairani Abd Jalil Centre for Global Archaeological Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia

Abstract

Flake tools are flake of stones which were used as a tool for light work by prehistoric society. These flakes are obtained by flaking the core, a process of making a pebble tool. However, the flake which obtained from core indicate there is a specific method to produce the flake tools. This special method shows the society during that time already have the knowledge to produce flake tools. Flake tools which come from human striking can be distinguished from naturally crack fragment based on the characteristics such as the presence of bulb percussion, ripples and fissures. The artifacts of flake tools which were analysed are from the Paleolithic sites in the Tingkayu Valley for instance the Tingkayu Open Site, Madai Cave and Baturong Cave. These three sites are located on the East Coast of Sabah. Two of them are cave sites from limestone formations which are Baturong Cave and Madai Cave. While the Tingkayu site is an open site. The analysis of flake tools for these three sites is focusing on the function of flake tools whether they have the same function or not. Thus, through image analysis should be conducted to identify the function and value of the flake tools for different activities. The results of use wear analysis showed that the prehistoric society of Eastern Sabah in general using flake tools for drilling, slicing, scraping, grinding and multi functions uses. This study proves that the early society of Eastern Sabah were more economical in producing stone tools because they used flake tools for multifunction.

References

Ahler, S.A., (1979). Functional analysis of Nonobsidian chipped stone artifacts: Terms, variables, and quantification. Dalam B. Hayden (ed.), Lithic use-wear analysis, Academic Press, Inc.

Anderson, P.C. (1980). A testimony of prehistoric tasks: Diagnostic residues on stone tool working edges. World Archaeology, 2(12), 181-194.

Andrefsky, W. (2004). Materials and contexts for a culture history of the Columbia Plateau. Dalam William Prentiss dan Ian Kuijt (ed.), Complex Hunter-Gatherers: evolution and Organization of Prehistoric Communities on the Plateau of North America, 23-35.

Andrefsky, W. (2005). Lithics: Macroscopic approaches to analysis. Cambridge University Press.

Andrefsky, W. (2008). Lithic technology: Measures of production, use and curation. Cambridge University Press.

Andrefsky, W. (2009). The analysis of stone tool procurement, production, and maintenance. Journal of Archaeological Research, 17, 65-103.

Bamforth, D. B. (2010). Conducting experimental research as a basis for microwear analysis. Dalam Jeffrey R. Ferguson (Ed.). Designing experimental research in archaeology. University Press of Colorado.

Barceló Álvarez, J. A., Pijoan-Lòpezm J., Toselli, A., & Vila I Mitjà, Assumpció. (2008). Kinematics in use-wear traces: An attempt of characterization through image digitalization. Dalam Longo, L. dan Skakun, N. (Ed), 'Prehistoric Technology' 40 Years Later: Functional Studies and the Russian Legacy, British Archaeological Reports International Series Vol. 1783. Archaeopress.

Bar-Yosef, O., & Wang, Y. (2012). Paleolithic archaeology in China. Annual Review of Anthropology, 41, 319-335.

Bellwood, P. (1988). Archeological research in South-Eastern Sabah. Sabah Museum Monograph, 2, 282.

Beyin, A. (2010). Use-wear analysis of obsidian artifacts from Later Stone Age shell midden sites on the Red Sea Coast of Eritrea, with experimental results. Journal of Archaeological Science, 37(7), 1543-1556.

Bryan, Alan L. (1980). The Stemmed Point Tradition: An Early Technological Tradition in Western North America. Dalam Swanson, H., Lucille, Jr., Harten, B., Claude, N., Warren, dan Donald, Tuohy, R., (Eds)., Anthropological papers in memory of earl. Idaho Museum of Natural History.

Cootes T. (2000), Model-based methods in analysis of biomedical images. Dalam Baldock, R. & Graham, J., (Eds.). Image processing and analysis: A practical approach. Oxford University Press.

Dennell, Robin W. (2009). The Palaeolithic settlement of Asia. Cambridge University Press.

Dibble, H. L. (1995). Middle Paleolithic scraper reduction: Background, clarification, and review of the evidence to date. Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory, 2(4), 299-368.

Dibble, H. L. & Pelcin, A. (1995). The effect of hammer mass and velocity on flake mass. Journal of Archaeological Science, 22, 429-439.

Dockall, J. E. (1997). Technological and functional variability of convergent tools from Nahr Ibrahim, Lebanon: Behavioral implications for Levantine Mousterian technological organization. Tesis Doktor Falsafah, Universiti Texas (tidak diterbitkan).

Elton, S. (2008). The environmental context of human evolutionary history in Eurasia and Africa. Journal of Anatomy, 212(4), 377-393.

Evans, A. A., & Donahue, R. E. (2005). The elemental chemistry of lithic microwear: An experiment. Journal of Archaeological Science, 32(12), 1733-1740.

Fullagar, R., & Jones, R., (2004). Usewear and residue analysis of stone artefacts from the Enclosed Chamber, Rocky Cape, Tasmania. Archaeology in Oceania 39, 79-93.

Gao, X., (2013). Paleolithic cultures in China: Uniqueness and divergence. Current Anthropology, 54, 358-370.

González-Urquijo, J. E., & Ibáñez-Estévez, J. J. (2003). The quantification of use-wear polish using image analysis. First results. Journal of Archaeological Science, 30(4), 481-489.

Grace, R. (1989). Interpreting the function of stone tools: The quantification and computerisation of microwear analysis. British Archaeological Reports International.

Grace, R.(2012). Interpreting the function of stone tools. Ikarus Books.

Graham J. (2000), Pattern recognition: Classification of chromosomes. Dalam Baldock, R. & Graham, J., (Eds.) Image Processing and Analysis: a Practical Approach. Oxford University Press.

Gramfort, A., Poupon, C., dan Descoteaux, M. (2014), Denoising and Fast Diffusion Imaging with Physically Constrained Sparse Dictionary Learning. Medical Image Analysis, 18(1): 36-39

Harrisson, T. & Harrisson, B. (1971) The Prehistory of Sabah. Kota Kinabalu (Sabah): Sabah Society, volume 4.

Hazarika, M. (2012). Lithic industries with Palaeolithic elements in Northeast India. Quaternary International, 269, 48-58.

Hiscock, P, Allen H. (2000). Assemblage variability in the Willandra lakes. Archaeology in Oceania, 35, 97-103.

Ibáñez, J.J., González-Urquijo, J.E., & Gibaja, J., (2014). Discriminating wild vs domestic cereal harvesting micropolish through laser confocal microscopy. Journal of Archaeological. Science, 48, 96-103.

Inizan, M.L., Roche, H., & Tixier, J. (1992). Technology of knapped stone. Meudon Codex.

Jaffrie Ignatius (2000). Pulau Balambangan dan sumbangannya kepada zaman Paleolitik di Asia Tenggara. Tesis Sarjana (tidak diterbitkan). Universiti Sains Malaysia: Pulau Pinang.

Keeley, L.H. (1980) Experimental determination of stone tool uses. University of Chicago Press.

Layton, Thomas N. (1970) High Rock Archaeology: An Interpretation of the Prehistory of the Northwestern Great Basin. Ph.D. Dissertation (unpublished). Cambridge University.

Lerner, H. (2007a), Digital image analysis and usewear accrual as a function of raw material: An example from Northwestern New Mexico. Lithic Technology, 32,(1), 5167.

Lerner, H. (2007b), Lithic raw material variability and the reduction of shortterm use implements: An example from Northwestern New Mexico, British Archaeological Reports. Oxford.

Lerner, H. (2009) Lithic Raw Material Variability and Usewear Accrual on Shortterm Use Implements: An Example from Northwestern New Mexico. Dalam Sternke, F., Costa, L. J., & Eigeland, L., (Eds.). Nonflint raw material use in prehistory: Old prejudices and new directions, Proceedings of the 15th Congress of the U.I.S.P.P. Archaeopress, Oxford: 8191.

Lerner, H., Dytchkowskyj, D., & Nielsen, C. (2010). Raw material variability, use-wear accrual rates and addressing the ambiguity of some use-wear traces: An example from northwestern New Mexico. Riv Sci Preist LX, 309-329.

Manninen, M. A., & Knutsson, K. (2014). Lithic raw material diversification as an adaptive strategy-Technology, mobility, and site structure in Late Mesolithic northernmost Europe. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 33, 84-98.

Mokhtar Saidin. (2014). Urutan Kronologi Prasejarah Sabah. Dalam Mokhtar Saidin & Jeffrey Abdullah (Eds.). Sumbangan Sabah kepada Arkeologi Asia Tenggara: Hasil penyelidikan 20 Tahun (1993-2013). Monograf Muzium Sabah Volume 12. Jabatan Muzium Sabah.

Mokhtar Saidin. (1998). Kebudayaan Paleolitik di Malaysia - Sumbangan Tapak Lawin, Perak dan Tingkayu, Sabah. Tesis Doktor Falsafah (tidak diterbitkan). Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Martin, C. M. (2009). Analysis of flaked stone lithics from Virgin Anasazi sites near Mt. Trumbull, Arizona Strip (Unpublished Doctoral dissertation). University Of Nevada, Las Vegas).

Mellars, Paul. (2006). Going east: New genetic and archaeological perspectives on the modern human colonization of Eurasia. Science, 313, 796-800.

Mijares, Armand (2002) The Minori Cave expedient lithic technology. Quezon City: Contributions to Archaeology Series. University of the Philippines Press.

Mokhtar Saidin dan Jeffrey Abdullah. (2007). Sungai Perak kuno: Sumbangannya kepada zaman Paleolitik di Malaysia. Jurnal Arkeologi Malaysia, 20, 14-21

Moreaud, M., Revel, R., Jeulin, D., & Morard, V. (2009), Size of Boehmite Nanoparticles by TEM Images Analysis. Image Analysis and Stereology, 28, 187-193.

Musil, Robert R. (1988). Functional Efficiency and Technological Change: A Hafting Tradition Model for Prehistoric North America. Dalam Judith A. Willig, C. Melvin Aikens, & John L. Fagan, (Eds.). Early cOccupation in Far Western North America: The Clovis-Archaic Interface, Nevada State Museum Anthropological Papers 21, Carson City: 373 - 388.

Narr, Karl. (1966). Die frühe und mittlere Altsteinzeit Süd- und Ostasiens. Handbuch f ür Urgeschichte.

Odell, G. H. (2003) Lithic analysis. Manuals in Archaeological method, theory, and technique. Springer.

Otte, M. (2010). Before Levallois. Quaternary International, 223, 273-280.

Parr, G. & W. Polzleitner (2001), Fundamentals. Dalam Kropatsch, W. G. & Horst Bischof, Digital Iimage analysis: Selected techniques and applications, Springer.

Pawlik, A. (2004). The Palaeolithic site of Arubo 1 in central Luzon, Philippines. Indo- Pacific Prehistory Association Bulletin, 24, 3-12.

Pope, G.G., (1989). Bamboo and human evolution. Natural History, 10, 49-56

Rabett, R. J. (2012). Human adaptation in the Asian Palaeolithic: Hominin dispersal and behaviour during the late Quaternary. Cambridge University Press.

Rottensteiner, F. (2001). Precise photogrammetric measurement. Dalam Walter G. Kropatsch and Horst Bischof, Digital Image Analysis: Selected Techniques and Applications, Springer, New York,: 411-438.

Semenov, S. (1964). Prehistoric technology, diterjemah oleh M.W. Thompson, Cory, Adams & Mackay, London.

Shott, M. J., & Weedman, K. J. (2007). Measuring reduction in stone tools: an ethnoarchaeological study of Gamo hidescrapers from Ethiopia. Journal of Archaeological Science, 34(7), 1016-1035.

Smith, A. M. (2006). Characterizing Late Pleistocene and Holocene stone artefact assemblages from Puritjarra rock shelter: a long sequence from the Australian desert. Records of the Australian Museum, 58, 371-410.

Solheim, Wilhelm G., II. (1970). Prehistoric archaeology in eastern mainland Southeast Asia and the Philippines. Asian Perspectives, 13, 47-58.

Stemp,W.J., & Stemp, M., (2001). UBM laser profilometry and lithic use-wear analysis: Avariable length scale investigation of surface topography. Journal of Archaeological Sciences,. 28, 81-88.

Sussman C. (1985). Microwear on quartz: Fact or fiction? World Archaeol, 17, 101-111.

Tringham R., G. Cooper, G. Odell, B. Voytek, & A. Whitman. (1974). Experimentation in the formation of edge damage: A new approach to lithic analysis. Journal of Field Archaeology, 171-196

Whittaker, J. C. (2010). Flintknapping: Making and understanding stone tools. University of Texas Press.

Xu, J., Janowczyk, A., Chandran, S., & Madabhushi, A. (2011), A High-Throughput active contour scheme for segmentation of histopathological imagery. Medical Image Analysis, 15(6).

Yoo, T. S., & Metaxas, D. N. (2005). Open science - Combining open data and open source software: Medical image analysis with the insight toolkit. Medical Image Analysis, 9(6).
Published
2022-01-06
How to Cite
ABD JALIL, Siti Khairani. The Function of Flake Tools in Prehistoric Society of East Sabah. Melayu: Jurnal Antarabangsa Dunia Melayu, [S.l.], v. 15, n. 1, p. 1-24, jan. 2022. ISSN 2682-8049. Available at: <https://jurnal.dbp.my/index.php/Melayu/article/view/8091>. Date accessed: 22 dec. 2024. doi: https://doi.org/10.37052/jm.15(1)no1.