Intentional Fragmentation of Flint Products During the Neolithic (according the Pezmogty 3А site on the Middle Vychegda river, Komi Republic)

The article presents an analysis of information indicating the application of a technique of deliberate fragmentation of previously crafted and used flint objects by the population of the extreme North-East of Europe in the Neolithic. The stone industry of Pezmogty 3 A site with pit-combed ceramics of the Middle Neolithic specialized in the production of the so-called "thin bifaces" – arrowheads, knives and perforators with double-sided retouching. Identification of the characteristics features of a technique involving intentional fragmentation of finished implements and fractured blanks required the execution of a comprehensive study of the flint inventory including the investigation of artifact morphology, traceological (functional) analysis of the surface, as well as remontage and technological analysis. The functional purpose of 33 % of total secondary fractured implements could not be determined, The majority of implements with identified functional purpose are burins and small burins (44 %), followed by scrapers and chisels (8.4–8.5 %) with only a few perforators and hide-scrapers. The authors suggest that the technique of intentional fragmentation of implements and fractured blanks cannot represent a determinant cultural or chronological indicator, but it is rather significant for the investigation of the dynamics of stone industries and general life-support systems of Stone Age communities.