Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (85 page)

A flint or stone
CORE
from which
BLADES
have been struck. Such cores are typically conical or pyramidal in shape; to produce regular even blades a certain degree of preparation is needed as well as periodic rejuvenation. Both these activities produce their own distinctive
DEBITAGE
.

 
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A small blade of the type used in the Upper Palaeolithic of Europe.

 
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A tool made from a single thin narrow flake detached from a core. The controlled flaking technique is characteristic of the Upper Palaeolithic but it is also known from earlier cultures.

 
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See
CORE
.

 
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Extensive layers of peat and wetland vegetation that spread out across mainly upland landscapes, covering them like a blanket. Most blanket bog is
OMBROGENOUS BOG
, formed because of high rainfall on soils with poor drainage. It is likely that the drainage problem was, in many cases, caused by human over-exploitation of the area through woodland clearance and land-use practices that caused an iron-pan to develop at the base of the soil profile. In upland areas of the British Isles, especially in Ireland, blanket bog begins to form in later Neolithic times, earlier in localized areas, with very extensive tracts developing in the later Bronze Age. Archaeologically, blanket bog is important as a record of local environment and also because it preserves areas of landscape that were abandoned by their inhabitants.

 
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See
BLANKET BOG
.

 
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