Chimpanzee wooden tool analysis advances the identification of percussive technology
Lydia V. Luncz,
David R. Braun,
Joao Marreiros,
Marion Bamford,
Chen Zeng,
Serge Soiret Pacome,
Patrick Junghenn,
Zachary Buckley,
Xinyu Yao,
Susana Carvalho
Affiliations
Lydia V. Luncz
Technological Primates Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig 04103, Germany; Primate Models for Behavioral Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX26PN, UK; Corresponding author
David R. Braun
Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Joao Marreiros
Laboratory for Traceology and Controlled Experiments, MONREPOS-RGZM, Schloss Monrepos, Neuwied, 56567, Germany; ICArEHB, Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior FCHS, Universidade do Algarve, Faro 8005, Portugal
Marion Bamford
Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
Chen Zeng
Department of Physics and Data Science Program, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Serge Soiret Pacome
Centre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques, Abidjan 1303, Côte d’Ivoire
Patrick Junghenn
Department of Physics and Data Science Program, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Zachary Buckley
Department of Physics and Data Science Program, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Xinyu Yao
Department of Physics and Data Science Program, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Susana Carvalho
Primate Models for Behavioral Evolution Lab, Institute of Human Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX26PN, UK; ICArEHB, Interdisciplinary Center for Archaeology and Evolution of Human Behavior FCHS, Universidade do Algarve, Faro 8005, Portugal; Gorongosa National Park, Sofala, Mozambique
Summary: The ability of humans to mediate environmental variation through tool use is likely the key to our success. However, our current knowledge of early cultural evolution derives almost exclusively from studies of stone tools and fossil bones found in the archaeological record. Tools made of plants are intrinsically perishable, and as such are almost entirely absent in the early record of human material culture. Modern human societies as well as nonhuman primate species use plant materials for tools far more often than stone, suggesting that current archaeological data are missing a substantial component of ancient technology. Here, we develop methods that quantify internal and external damage pattern in percussive wooden tools of living primates. Our work shows that the inflicted damage is irreversible, potentially persisting throughout fossilization processes. This research presents opportunities to investigate organic artifacts, a significant and highly neglected aspect of technological evolution within the Primate order.
