
^ Betancourt, Philip P., Hagios Charalambos: A Minoan Burial Cave in Crete: I. "Their lips are sealed: identifying hard stone, soft stone, and antler hammer direct percussion in Palaeolithic prismatic blade production" (PDF). ^ Driscoll, Killian García-Rojas, Maite (2014). In other words, the types of manufacturing waste present (e.g., rejuvenation flakes and/or blades, platform rejuvenation flakes, etc.) at a site can inform archaeologists about the stage in which blades were being produced. The analysis of obsidian debitage can reveal whether or not prismatic blade production occurred at a site and, if it had, what stages of production the process included. The production of prismatic blades creates not only a very standardized final product, but also a standardized waste assemblage. It is in this manner: First they get out a knife stone (obsidian core) which is black like jet and 20 cm or slightly less in length, and they make it cylindrical and as thick as the calf of the leg, and they place the stone between the feet, and with a stick apply force to the edges of the stone and, at every push they give, a little knife springs off with its edges like those of a razor. Fray Motolinia, a Spanish observer, recorded: Ethnohistoric sources recount the process of prismatic blade production. Obsidian prismatic blade production was ubiquitous in Mesoamerica, and these tools can be found at a large majority of Mesoamerican archaeological sites from the Preclassic period on until the arrival of the Spanish in the early 16th century. The proximal end contains the blade's striking platform and its bulb of applied force, while the distal end will consist of a snap break, a feather termination, or a stepped termination. These facets are created by the previous removal of blades from the core. The dorsal surface, on the other hand, exhibits scar ridges running parallel to the long axis of the blade. Flake scars are absent on the ventral surface of these blades, though eraillure flakes are sometimes present on the bulb. The ventral surface of the prismatic blade is very smooth, sometimes bearing slight rippling reflecting the direction of applied force and a very small bulb of applied force (indicative of pressure reduction). Triangular blades (in cross-section) are also common.
Prismatic blades are often trapezoidal in cross section, but very close in appearance to an isosceles trapezoid. Morphology An obsidian prismatic blade fragment from Chunchucmil, Yucatán, Mexico Prismatic blades were used for cutting and scraping, and have been reshaped into other tool types, such as projectile points and awls. The term is generally restricted to Mesoamerican archaeology, although some examples are found in the Old World, for example in a Minoan grave in Crete. The most famous and most prevalent prismatic blade material is obsidian, as obsidian use was widespread in Mesoamerica, though chert, flint, and chalcedony blades are not uncommon. This process results in a very standardized finished tool and waste assemblage. Prismatic blades are flaked from stone cores through pressure flaking or direct percussion. In archaeology, a prismatic blade is a long, narrow, specialized stone flake tool with a sharp edge, like a small razor blade. ( November 2010) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Please help improve it to make it understandable to non-experts, without removing the technical details. This material seems like it would work well, fairly light weight, strong, and tough.This article may be too technical for most readers to understand. Made, but it's certainly one of the best with a combination of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory who is one of the authors of a
Probably the best combination of strength and toughness that has everīeen achieved," said Robert O. With comparable heft to an aluminum or titanium alloy.
It's not very dense and it is more lightweight than steel,
That counteracts the inherent brittleness of glass but maintains its The glass, a microalloy made of palladium, has a chemical structure "Obsidian like" being glass with impurities. Natural obsidian is a pretty terrible substance to make a durable weapon with, but there are other "obsidian like" materials that could work.