An experimental investigation of the functional hypothesis and evolutionary advantage of stone-tipped spears.

ABSTRACT: Stone-tipped weapons were a significant innovation for Middle Pleistocene hominins. Hafted hunting technology represents the development of new cognitive and social learning mechanisms within the genus Homo, and may have provided a foraging advantage over simpler forms of hunting technology, such as a sharpened wooden spear. However, the nature of this foraging advantage has not been confirmed. Experimental studies and ethnographic reports provide conflicting results regarding the relative importance of the functional, economic, and social roles of hafted hunting technology. The controlled experiment reported here was designed to test the functional hypothesis for stone-tipped weapons using spears and ballistics gelatin. It differs from previous investigations of this type because it inclu

SUBMITTER: Wilkins J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4146534 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature