Stone tools in Santa María de Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua. 300-800 AD

Abstract

This research addresses the analysis of lithic archaeological artifacts recovered in the municipality of Santa María de Nueva Segovia, located in the northwest of Nicaraguan territory, bordering the Republic of Honduras. It is based on the fact that these artifacts are the evidence that presents the greatest resistance to inclement weather, therefore, their presence in archaeological contexts will provide important information about their origin, use and development of the technology developed by the society that produced them. Each artifact is the result of various production processes. To approach the knowledge of the effort involved, the raw material, the applied carving techniques and the possible traces of use were analyzed through macroscopic observation and magnifying glass support. With all this one could infer the technological and economic development of the society that produced them. It is important to note that the present study derives from the project entitled “Recognition and Documentation of Archaeological Sites of the municipality of Santa María, Nueva Segovia”, in which eight archaeological sites weredocumented, from which the analyzed lithic sample comes. The project was carried out in the fi rst semester of 2021, under the direction of the Archaeological Center for Documentation and Research CADI of the Faculty of Humanities and Legal Sciences of the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua, UNAN, Managua with the fi nancial and logistical support of the Mayor’s Offi ce of the municipality of Santa María de Nueva Segovia and the collaboration of the Nicaraguan Institute of Culture (INC).