Flintknapping: Making and Understanding Stone Tools - Tapa dura

"...very attractive to readers interested in ancient crafts, survival skills, or the history of technology... far superior to anything currently available." James C. Woods, director, The Herrett Museum, College of Southern Idaho "A mid-range user's guide to flintknapping is long overdue. There have been some admirable attempts to produce such a volume, but these have been targeted at specific, fairly narrow audiences. Not so with Flintknapping... [Whittaker's] clear aim is to reach professional archaeologists as well as hobbyists. I believe he achieves this goal with incredible skill and humor... I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in flintknapping." Plains Anthropologist "This great new publication is the new 'bible' on the subject of knapping." ATLATL "This is the best, most thorough summary available on flaked stone technology. The book skillfully blends instruction on how to make stone tools with information on how top interpret flaked stone artifacts." Northern Arizona Archaeology Society Newsletter "Whittaker presents this information at a level that will be readable by non-anthropologists as well as specialists in the field." James C. Woods, director, The Herrett Museum, College of Southern Idaho

Flintknapping is an ancient craft enjoying a resurgence of interest among both amateur and professional students of prehistoric cultures. In this new guide, John C. Whittaker offers the most detailed handbook on flintknapping currently available and the only one written from the archaeological perspective of interpreting stone tools as well as making them. "Flintknapping" contains detailed, practical information on making stone tools. Whittaker starts at the beginner level and progresses to discussion of a wide range of techniques. He includes information on necessary tools and materials, as well as step-by-step instructions for making several basic stone tool types. Numerous diagrams allow the reader to visualize the flintknapping process, and drawings of many stone tools illustrate the discussions and serve as models for beginning knappers. Written for a wide amateur and professional audience, "Flintknapping" will be essential for practicing knappers as well as for teachers of the history of technology, experimental archaeology, and stone tool analysis. John C. Whittaker is an assistant professor of anthropology at Grinnell College.