Heat treatment of silcrete
Tratamiento térmico de la silcreta
- Date
- c. 72 ka · confidence medium
- Place
- Pinnacle Point 5-6, Mossel Bay, South Africa
- Credited to
- Homo sapiens
- Field
- Matter & energy
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
Controlled heating of silcrete in buried fires to improve its knapping and obtain fine blades. The first use of fire as a materials-engineering tool.
Sporadic use has been proposed from as early as 164 ka at the same site; systematic use is clear by 72 ka.
What it led to
- Mediocre stone converted into quality raw material: geological independence
- Standardised microliths and bladelets
- Thinking in long operational chains with invisible stages
Built on
- Control of firec. 1 Ma
- Control of fire
Made possible
- Microliths (backed bladelets)c. 71 ka
- Pottery vessels (Xianrendong)c. 20 ka
- Pottery vessels (Xianrendong)