Fabrication and Use of Hamburgian Shouldered Points: New Data from Poggenwisch and Teltwisch 1 (Ahrensburg Valley, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany)

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to present certain characteristics of Hamburgian shouldered points that can be compared with Magdalenian lithic points. The collections studied are those of Poggenwisch and Teltwisch 1. The blanks of these points are narrow and thin blades with a relatively rectilinear profile. One question that is raised is whether they originate in part from a specific schema opératoire * (operational scheme) employed with the objective of obtaining these blanks, which seem to have been detached using a soft stone hammer. Despite some common characteristics, I observed a difference in the degree of standardisation between the two collections studied. The microburin technique was used during the shaping of the blanks into points. The basal modifications are highly variable, which has not yet been explained. One of the causes could be related to the hafting method, for which I propose an alternative that takes into account the profile of the points, as well as the lack of wood in the environment.