Stone-flaking ‘spandrels’ experiment, Video 2: Documentation - Dr Mark Moore

This video shows aspects of the documentation process edited out of Video 1 of the ‘spandrels’ video series. The note-taking shown here is for Blow 18. Platform numbering for Blow 18 started from about 0:30. I rotated the core, examining the platform angles and mass relationships, visualizing the largest-size flake that might be removed from each. The platforms were numbered sequentially. By the end of Blow 19, when the experiment was stopped, 49 platforms were identified on the core, but all but 7 of these were eliminated during reduction. Three new platforms were identified after Blow 17, and at 1:15 these were noted on the form as circles. The six platforms existing on the core were then carried down into the next row, and a line was drawn at the end. At 1:35, the platform count (6) was entered into the Excel random number generator on the laptop computer and number 3 was chosen, which is Platform 37 on the core; a box was drawn around this platform on the form. At 1:59 the predicted outline of the flake was marked on the core, starting across the platform edge and proceeding onto the core face. The flake was struck at 2:25, and was somewhat mis-aligned relative to the prediction. Although not shown, the next step was to re-evaluate the core and put an X through the platforms removed by the Blow 18 flake; the short sequence at the start at the video shows this process for Blow 17. In the formal experiments, a second form was also completed after each blow, and all flakes and shatter were numbered and bagged. It took 1 hour and 6 minutes to conduct this 19-blow experiment for the video, but each formal experiment took an assistant and me about 8 hours to complete.