Boncuklu Tarla: Production and Social Dynamics of a Middle PPNB Knapped Stone Workshop (Mardin/Türkiye)

Abstract

Boncuklu Tarla, located about 2 kilometres west of the Tigris River, is one of the few sites continuously occupied throughout the entire Pre-Pottery Neolithic Period. This site offers key insights into the evolving techniques and typologies of knapped stone tool production during the Neolithisation process. In 2017, excavations revealed a knapped stone workshop on the floor of a domestic structure, dated to the Middle PPNB. A total of 2,067 artefacts-including cores, flakes, debris, and unprocessed raw material-were found in situ, stacked together. Of these, 1,564 pieces are flint and 503 are obsidian. The finds are especially significant for understanding the use of pressure flaking techniques. Detailed typological and technological analyses, supported by experimental studies, have helped reconstruct all stages of the cha & icirc;ne op & eacute;ratoire in this production context. The Boncuklu Tarla assemblage contributes important data on Neolithic craft specialization and the organization of lithic production within domestic spaces.