Oldowan raw material procurement and use: Evidence from the Koobi Fora formation

Abstract

Raw material availability has been shown to be a major factor affecting the material culture of Oldowan tool users. Studies of artefact provenance often focus on site-specific raw material availability. Here, we use data from primary and secondary sources of raw material to develop a model of basin-scale stone availability in the eastern Turkana Basin, during the KBS and Okote Members of the Koobi Fora Formation. ED-XRF was used as a method of characterizing raw material sources and artefacts using trace elements. This model is applied to the site of FxJj 50 to investigate transport and discard patterns. © 2009 University of Oxford.