The Aterianindustry is a name given by archaeologists to a type of stone tool manufacturing dating to the middle Palaeolithic in the region around the Atlas Mountains and the north west Sahara. Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic – lit. ... The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range in northwest Africa extending about 2400 km (1500 miles) through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and including The Rock of Gibraltar. ...
Created by ancient humans. The crania found in relation to the points do not look anatomically modern. Could have been created by a late Homo Ergaster. There is not enough evidence to know for sure.
Bifacially-worked leaf shaped and tanged projectile points are a common artefact type and so are racloirs and Levallois flakes. In archaeology, an artifact or artefact is any object made or modified by a human culture, and often one later recovered by some archaeological endeavor. ... A racloir is a name given by archaeologists to a certain type of flint tool made by prehistoric peoples. ... The Levallois technique is a name given by archaeologists to a distinctive type of flint knapping developed by humans during the Palaeolithic period. ...
Aterian points are characterized by a distinct "tang" or plug on the bottom, which allowed for a more secure fit to the spear shaft.
Originally thought to be arrow points, Aterian points may have been far too bulky to be used on primitive arrows, and were more likely points for a smaller variety of spear, the dart, which was more efficient in hunting small game than the normal-sized spear.
Another invention of the Aterian Industry was that of the spear-thrower, a small length of wood with a notch at one end for the back end of the spear shaft, which allowed for greater power in throws as well as greater accuracy.
Aterian sites end about 30,000 years ago when climate change forced the abandonment of most sites when the grasslands of the Sahara began drying up.
In fact, C. Reid Ferring (1975) states that "The Aterian is one of the most widely distributed Paleolithic industries of North Africa." Aterian sites are found in Morocco to Tunisia in the northwest and over much of the Sahara desert almost to the Nile Valley of Egypt to the east.
Aterian tanged points are one of the oldest types projectile points.
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