Geomaterials

Description

Presentation: The Geomaterials course covers the recognition and characterization of various geomaterials used by humans since Prehistory for making lithic tools and construction. The course is divided into two parts. The first part, Classification of Geomaterials, is taught by a geologist from the UniCA Earth Sciences department. The second part, Flint Petroarchaeology, is taught by a professional petroarchaeologist from the preventive archaeology company Paléotime. Course coordinators: Florence Bigot-Cormier, Paul Fernandes. In-person: 12 hours of lectures, 12 hours of tutorials. Prerequisites: Before the course, I must have at least some basic knowledge of geology (scientific baccalaureate, undergraduate courses, readings, documentaries, etc.). Objectives: By the end of this course, I should be able to name the main rock types and their formation modes; perform a macroscopic analysis of rock samples to identify them precisely; describe the principles and contributions of petrology to characterizing prehistoric lithic industries, material provenance, and alteration processes. Content: Classification of Geomaterials: This first part describes various geomaterials potentially used by hominids from the perspective of their composition and origin (sedimentary rocks, magmatic rocks...