Assessing Relative Chronology via Identification of Knapping Techniques: The Case Study of Blade and Bladelet Production in Komishan Cave, Mazandaran, Iran

Regarding the evolution of the production technique over a long period of prehistory, chipped stone assemblages provide many features that are recognizable and suitable for relative chronology, among which production techniques including hard/soft direct percussion, indirect percussion and pressure, especially in blade and bladelet production, are more reliable. This paper presents a research on blade and bladelet production techniques identified in the chipped stone assemblage of Komishan Cave in Mazandaran, a multi-period site presenting cultural material from Mesolithic, Neolithic and later periods including Chalcolithic, Bronze and Iron Ages. The lithic industry indicates the application of soft direct percussion and punch technique in blade and bladelet production in Mesolithic period, while in the Neolithic, pressure technique is presented in conical, bullet shaped and boat shaped cores and their products. Another evolution in the production technique of blades and bladelets occurred in later periods, detected through observation of traces of applying metal tips in punches and pressure tools, which obviously was impossible during Neolithic.