Reframing the Chipped Edge: Combining Materiality, Ontology, and Embodiment to Rethink Stone Tool‐Making and Human Conscious Behavior in the Paleolithic Past
Bar Efrati
Anthropology of Consciousness March 1, 2026 DOI: 10.1111/anoc.70016 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that combining material culture and materiality studies, the ontological turn, and embodiment theories can generate new insights into how material things shaped human experience in the Paleolithic. Uses a Late Acheulean handaxe from Jaljulia, Israel, as a case for exploring connections between objects, worldviews, and perceptions in early prehistoric times. |
Abstract
ABSTRACT: Combining different theoretical frameworks can lead to new insights into the role of material things in shaping human experience in the Paleolithic period. This paper first presents a historical review of three theoretical approaches in archaeology, anthropology, and the philosophy of mind: Material culture and materiality studies, the ontological turn , as it relates to the study of cognition in prehistory, and the application of embodiment theories to mind and perception, with a focus on early human consciousness. These theories then serve as a framework for the discussion of a Late Acheulean handaxe from Late Lower Paleolithic Jaljulia, Israel, with the aim of exploring the connection between objects, worldviews, and perceptions in early prehistoric times.
Citations in the library
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