This paper presentsthe results of two archaeological experiments: butchering and hide processing of a roe deer with stone tools made on quartz, quartzite and rock crystal. The Portuguese Upper Palaeolithic sequence presents some variation in term of lithic raw materials exploited when compared to the rest of Europe — stone tools are highly composed of quartz, quartzite and rock crystal. Use-wear studies on these kinds of non flint rocks are very scarce. Moreover, a reference collection that documents use-wear features on them, derived from their use on various materials (such as animal, vegetal or mineral) is still not available. Equally, there was no experimental work done in Portugal dealing with the replication of cut marks on animal bones made by stone tools. This experimental work allowed an integrated approach of Palaeolithic Technology and Zooarchaeology, promising interesting further projects.

Peer reviewed