Use of Middle Palaeolithic Tools in San Quirce (Alar del Rey, Palencia, Spain)

This paper presents the results of the functional analysis of the Middle Palaeolithic stone assemblages from the 2009 excavation at the San Quirce site in Palencia (Spain). The main raw material used for tools manufacturing was a local quartzite available on the Pisuerga river terraces. Massive and flake tools were manufactured, with sharp denticulate edges used in different productive activities (they mainly used unretouched flake blanks), primarily related to the exploitation of plants, animal substances and, to a lesser extent, mineral resources (hammerstones for lithic knapping). Resharpened edges have been also detected through the analysis of micro-flake elements.