Technology and Terminology of Knapped Stone - IRIT

Fig. 42 — Views used in lithic illustration (French system).
Polyhedrons and spheroids are oriented according to the debitage axis of the last flake
removed. If this can not be determined, they can be oriented as the illustrator thinks best
(fig. 16 : 1 and 2).
• Tools on a natural blank
These include tools on slabs (fig. 41 : 3), on pebbles (fig. 41 : 5), on blocks, on frost
flakes (fig. 50). They are most commonly oriented according to their morphological axis.
3. Description o f the objec t
3.1. View s
The system used was developed by anthropologists for drawing human skulls. In this
system, the views are desig nated as follows :
- norma frontalis for the front view;
- norma occipitalis for the rear view;
- norma lateralis {sinistra and dextra) for the left and right lateral views;
- norma verticalis and norma basilaris for the top and bottom views.
This system allows the description of a three-dimensional object by a series of
two-dimensional images. These images give separate views of each side of the object,
supplemented by sections or section views if required.
The conventional method of deriving the different views of an object uses orthogonal
projection onto each of the faces of an enclosing block. Each successive view is obtained by
rotating the object 90° from the principal view.
Six views are therefore sufficient to fully describe the surface of any three-dimensional
object (fig. 42), but this number is rarely needed to represent a lithic artefact. It is sufficient to
select appropriate views for the adequate comprehension of the object.
108