Use-wear traces : processes of development and post-depositional alterations

This is a report on research carried out to investigate (with Optical and Scanning Electron Microscopy) the polished surfaces which appear optically on the edges of flint tools after use. Naturally polished surfaces also appear optically on flint under some depositional conditions, and the project investigated both this natural polishing and its possible effects on the polishing produced by use. This research was prompted by a high power microwear analysis of implements from several sites of different ages which cast doubt on the distinctive appearance of polish on flint and furthermore suggested that post-depositional processes negatively alter the surface of flint implements and degrade the polished surfaces. In this work flint surfaces were polished under controlled conditions using different materials, to investigate the processes involved in the formation of polished edges rather than to replicate tasks which prehistoric people are likely to have carried out.