Observations on the thermal treatment of chert in the Solutrean of Laugerie Haute, France

Intentional alteration of siliceous materials by heating has been documented for a number of archaeological assemblages (Bordes 1969a and b; Crabtree and Butler 1964; Shippee 1963) as well as from ethnographic accounts such as those assembled by Hester (1972). It has been asserted that pressure flaking is expedited by the properly controlled heating of such stones as chert or flint whereas subsequent percussion flaking is more likely to result in a higher incidence of breakage (Purdy and Brookes 1971; Bordes 1969b; Crabtree and Butler 1964). It should be pointed out, however, that in at least two explicit ethnographical accounts from North America and one from Africa as well as in at least one published archaeological specimen, the evidence indicates percussion flaking of heat treated materials. Powell (1875, 27-8) notes for the Plateau Shoshoni: