Confronta i metodi

	Analisi delle tracce d'uso	Petrografia ceramica
Campo	Archeologia	Archeologia
Famiglia	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline
Anno di origine	1980	1976
Ideatore	Lawrence Keeley	Peter Stimmung
Tipo	Tool function inference	Clay and temper sourcing
Fonte seminale	Keeley, L. H. (1980). Experimental Determination of Stone Tool Uses. University of Chicago Press.	Quinn, P. S. (2013). Ceramic Petrology: The Interpretation of Ceramic Artifacts in Archaeological Science. Archaeopress.
Alias	microwear, tool use analysis	ceramic thin section analysis, pottery petrography
Correlati	4	4
Sintesi	Use-wear analysis (also called microwear or tool-use analysis) is a method that infers the function of stone tools from microscopic wear patterns on their cutting edges and surfaces. Pioneered by Lawrence Keeley in the 1970s-1980s, this technique examines damage patterns, polishes, and edge rounding produced as tools contact different materials during use. By analyzing these wear patterns, archaeologists can determine whether a tool was used to cut plant material, meat, bone, hide, or wood—revealing detailed information about task specialization and subsistence practices in prehistoric societies.	Ceramic petrography analyzes pottery through microscopic examination of thin sections cut from pottery sherds. This method determines clay sources, identifies non-plastic inclusions (temper), and reconstructs pottery production technology. Pioneered by Peter Stimmung and others, ceramic petrography reveals whether pottery was made locally or imported, and whether specific production groups or workshops created vessels with distinctive raw material recipes.