The carinated denticulates from the Paleolithic site of Isernia La Pineta (Molise, Central Italy): Tools or flaking waste? The results of the 1993 lithic experiments

During 1993 a campaing of lithic experiments was carried out near the National Paleolithic Museum and archaeological park at Isernia La Pineta, with the aim of reproducing the morphologies of the tools found at the Paleolithic site in order to try to understand the techniques used for their manufacture and the possible uses to which they were put. In this article the results of this work are presented. The flint artifacts were faithfully reproduced using the same types of raw material used by the prehistoric artisans, and using a variety of different techniques (anvil technique, direct percussion and bipolar technique), among which the bipolar technique seems to assume a particular importance. Of considerable interest is the fact that in the light of the experiments the denticulates and carinated becs, which at the site of Isernia La Pineta represent more than 90% of what are usually considered "tools" according to the conventional typological schemes, turned out in fact to be the residue of cores, that is flaking waste. Furthermore, flakes of small dimensions, derived from flint tablets or flakecores by means of the bipolar technique, were used as cutting tools in different possible activities and revealed their high degree of functionalism in contrast with the carinated "tools". The analysis of the traces of wear have shown that the great majority of these are found on the small unretouched flakes rather than on the "tools" such as the denticulates and becs, thereby demonstrating that the latter represent blanks for obtaining real tools, that are the cutting edges of unretouched flakes. The industry from Isernia is thus shown to be very opportunistic, based on an intense exploitation of raw material and practically lacking those which, according to the conventional schemes usually adopted, can be considered as retouched "tools".