The Organization of Chipped-Stone Economies at Piedras Negras ...

they had the same meaning and value. This type varies greatly in size, but no examples
have been discovered above 15 cm in length at Piedras Negras.
5.5.4: Fully-Worked Biface
Finally, the most elegant, time-consuming, and, by most archaeological standards,
well-executed eccentrics are the fully-worked biface eccentrics (Figure 5.12). The
knapper would begin with a partially- or fully-worked biface of either laurel leaf or celt
morphology. The thinness and fine percussion scars of many specimens suggest that a
soft-hammer was used in the reduction process. If notches, crescents, or stems were
desired, then an indirect-percussion technique often would be used. Finally, direct
pressure-flaking was used to finish the form and remove smaller notching flakes. These
eccentrics usually were chipped into iconic forms, rather than naturalistic forms. This
type varies greatly in size, but no examples have been discovered above 21 cm in length
at Piedras Negras.
5.6: DEBITAGE TYPES
During the production of the previously described microcrystalline-quartz tools
and eccentrics, technologically diagnostic flakes, blades, and chunks were removed. It
should be noted, however, that large flakes, blanks, and preforms might also have been
used as biface- and multidirectional-flake cores. Multidirectional flake-cores are the
second most common source of microcrystalline-quartz cutting tools. Consequently, so-
called waste flakes cannot be claimed to be such without proper contextual information.
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