Waisted blades in Australia?
Abstract
Waisted tools from two localities in Australia are compared with the better known, flaked waisted blades from New Guinea. In size, shape and type of edge modification, the two Australian samples differ both from each other and from New Guinea specimens. While waisting itself is seen as appearing in Australia through independent invention rather than as a shared concept, other aspects of the technology, which were universal, are seen as preconditions for waisting. These increased the probability of waisting's being invented in the region more than once.