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Quartz artefacts are common components of flaked stone assemblages worldwide. However, flaked quartz can appear similar to quartz fractured by natural and other (non-flaking) cultural processes. Despite attempts to address this “quartz problem”, the analysis and interpretation of flaked quartz assemblages remain problematic. Here we present a review of literature investigating the quartz problem, and a case study that examines an experimentally flaked assemblage – including the presence of “markers” widely reported to be diagnostic of knapped quartz. The results suggest that freehand knapping of a vein quartz block will produce mostly shatter and small, undiagnostic pieces with few artifacts exhibiting previously suggested markers. An integrated approach, considering physical features of individual quartz pieces, along with assemblage composition, characteristics and context more broadly, is therefore crucial. The dataset created for this study is freely available, providing the first example of an open-access dataset to aid study of flaked quartz assemblages worldwide.

Revisiting the “Quartz Problem” in Lithic Studies: A Review and New, Open-access, Experimental Dataset