People and ground stone tools in the Zagros Neolithic : economic and social interpretations of the assemblage from Bestansur, Iraqi Kurdistan
Recent research into ground stone technology has moved beyond the earlier typological approach of describing and classifying the artefact at the point when it entered the archaeological record, towards a perspective which studies the broader sequences of processes and activities by which people made, used, and deposited the artefacts. Most studies of Neolithic Zagros ground stone assemblages have not, until now, been subjected to these new approaches. My thesis analyses and interprets a ground stone assemblage (424 tools and 412 items of debitage and unworked stone) from the Early Neolithic settlement of Bestansur in the Central Zagros (Iraqu Kurdistan). It uses the 'object biography' approach to address these research aims. These are to find and interpret the whole life-history of the artefacts, to identify the characteristics of the people who made and engaged with them, and third, to explore the role of ground stone in the development of social process and relations in the Early Neolithic of the eastern Fertile Crescent, particularly in quotidian and ritual processes such as commensality and funerary practice. The thesis reviews the development of ground stone research in the Neolithic Zagros. It uses the
Mudd, David
People and ground stone tools in the Zagros Neolithic : economic and social interpretations of the assemblage from Bestansur, Iraqi Kurdistan. Recent research into ground stone technology has moved beyond the earlier typological approach of describing and classifying the artefact at the point when it entered the archaeological record, towards a perspective which studies the broader sequences of processes and activities by which people made, used, and deposited the artefacts. Most studies of Neolithic Zagros ground stone assemblages have not, until now, been subjected to these new approaches. My thesis analyses and interprets a ground stone assemblage (424 tools and 412 items of debitage and unworked stone) from the Early Neolithic settlement of Bestansur in the Central Zagros (Iraqu Kurdistan). It uses the 'object biography' approach to address these research aims. These are to find and interpret the whole life-history of the artefacts, to identify the characteristics of the people who made and engaged with them, and third, to explore the role of ground stone in the development of social process and relations in the Early Neolithic of the eastern Fertile Crescent, particularly in quotidian and ritual processes such as commensality and funerary practice. The thesis reviews the development of ground stone research in the Neolithic Zagros. It uses the
people grind_stone tool neolithic economic_social interpretation assemblage iraqi kurdistan recent ground stone technology move_beyond earlier typological describe classify artefact point enter archaeological_record towards perspective study broad sequence process activity people make_use artefact study neolithic ground stone assemblage subject new_approach analysis interprets grind_stone assemblage tool item unworked stone early_neolithic settlement central kurdistan object_biography address aim interpret whole life_history artefact identify characteristic people make engage third explore_role ground stone development social_process relation early_neolithic eastern fertile particularly quotidian ritual process funerary_practice review development ground stone neolithic use