Editing Stone tool (section)

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{{Distinguish|Tool stone}}
{{Stone Age|235}}
'''Stone tools''' have been used throughout [[human history]] but are most closely associated with [[prehistory|prehistoric]] cultures and in particular those of the [[Stone Age]]. Stone tools may be made of either [[ground stone]] or [[Lithic reduction|knapped stone]], the latter fashioned by a craftsman called a [[flintknapper]]. Stone has been used to make a wide variety of tools throughout history, including arrowheads, spearheads, hand axes, and [[Quern-stone|querns]]. Knapped stone tools are nearly ubiquitous in pre-metal-using societies because they are easily manufactured, the [[tool stone]] raw material is usually plentiful, and they are easy to transport and sharpen.

The [[Lithic analysis|study of stone tools]] is a cornerstone of [[prehistoric archaeology]] because they are essentially indestructible and therefore a ubiquitous component of the [[archaeological record]]. [[Ethnoarchaeology]] is used to further the understanding and cultural implications of stone tool use and manufacture.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sillitoe |first1=Paul |last2=Hardy |first2=Karen |title=Living Lithics: ethnoarchaeology in Highland Papua New Guinea |journal=Antiquity |date=2 January 2015 |volume=77 |issue=297 |pages=555–566 |doi=10.1017/S0003598X00092619 |s2cid=159524906 }}</ref>

Knapped stone tools are made from [[cryptocrystal]]line materials such as [[chert]], [[flint]], [[radiolarite]], [[chalcedony]], [[obsidian]], [[basalt]], and  [[quartzite]] via a splitting process known as [[lithic reduction]]. One simple form of reduction is to strike stone [[lithic flake|flake]]s from a nucleus (core) of material using a [[hammerstone]] or similar hard hammer fabricator. If the goal is to produce flakes, the remnant [[lithic core]] may be discarded once too little remains. In some strategies, however, a flintknapper makes a tool from the core by reducing it to a rough [[uniface|unifacial]] or [[biface|bifacial]] [[Lithic reduction#Preform|preform]], which is further reduced by using [[Hammerstone#Soft hammer|soft hammer]] flaking or by [[pressure flaking]] the edges. More complex forms of reduction may produce highly standardized blades, which can then be fashioned into a variety of tools such as [[Scraper (archaeology)|scraper]]s, [[knife|knives]], [[sickle]]s, and [[microliths]].