History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c10.s1.t3: A.2 Abbevillian Technique
History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c10.s1.t3
- Language
- English
A.2 Abbevillian Technique
v1.c10.s1.t3.1
This technique has derived its name from the site L Abbeville in France, where it was recognized for the first time (Bordes, 1968, pp. 52-54). This infact has the same types of flaking scars which are found to be on the Pebble tools made by the direct percussion stone hammer technique. Some time back there was a belief that use of this term would suggest culture contact of Africa or Asia with Europe, where Abbevillian was also recognized as an early stage of handaxe based culture. But this term is now used both for technique and culture stage quite independent from each other. In Europe Abbevillian stage is characterized by crude handaxes having deep flake-scars. The rough pointed tip, unflaked butt and zig-zagged sides suggest that these stone hammered specimens were proto-types of later finely made handaxes of the Acheulian tradition (Fig.3).
v1.c10.s1.t3.2
Not a single collection of the Indian sub-continent has been identified as Abbevillian. But some times the glimpses of this technique can be found in a number of techno-typologically advance industries..Occurence of crude handaxes, for instance, showing stone hammered scars in Acheulian collection evidence practice of the technique under consideration. There is a possibility that such specimens were the ones in which later stage of fine finishing could not be complied. However, there are a few sites such as Mahadeo-piparia (Supekar, 1968), Bariarpur (Joshi, 1961) etc., where along with Pebble tools, handaxes made by stone hammers are reported (Jayaswal, 1982, pp. 71-74). Fine Acheulian working in these are restricted.