A Classification System for Ground Stone Tools from the Prehistoric Levant.

Comparative studies of ground stone artifacts have been limited, due to widely varying terminology and typological schemes restricted to material from one or two specific sites. Most interim site reports describe such artifacts only briefly. Yet ground stone has important implications for the development of prehistoric technology and therefore deserves at least as much attention as is routinely given to chipped stone tools. This article presents definitions of technological and morphological terms and a general classification applicable to prehistoric Levantine sites. While morphological typology should certainly not be the final goal of ground stone analyses, few would dispute the need for relatively standardized terminology that will permit communication of finds.