Editing Obsidian (section)

==Prehistoric and historical use==
{{anchor|prehistoric_use_anchor}}
[[File:Arrowhead.jpg|thumb|upright|Obsidian [[arrowhead]]]]

The first known archaeological evidence of usage was in [[Kariandusi]] (Kenya) and other sites of the [[Acheulian]] age (beginning 1.5 million years BP) dated 700,000 BC, although only very few objects have been found at these sites relative to the Neolithic.<ref>{{cite journal|first1=Sarah|last1=Bunny|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q7v_rDK0uOgC&pg=PA25|title=Ancient trade routes for obsidian|journal=New Scientist|date=April 18, 1985}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Schmandt-Besserat|first1=D.|volume=3|title=Early technologies|date=1979|publisher=Undena Publications|location=Malibu, Ca.|isbn=0890030316}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Merrick|first1=H.V.|last2=Brown|first2=F.H.|last3=Nash|first3=W.P.|title=Society, Culture, and Technology in Africa Import.|date=1994|publisher=Univ Museum Pubns|volume=11|isbn=1931707057|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=12K5JmVC8tYC&pg=PA29}}</ref><ref>J. D. Fage. [https://books.google.com/books?id=jjBYQCpfCNkC&pg=PA30 The Cambridge history of Africa: From c. 1600 to c. 1790, Part 1050], Cambridge University Press, 1979 {{ISBN|0521215927}}</ref><ref>National Museum of Kenya. [http://www.museums.or.ke/content/blogcategory/21/27/ Kariandusi] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071024140122/http://www.museums.or.ke/content/blogcategory/21/27/ |date=October 24, 2007 }}. Retrieved June 30, 2012</ref> Manufacture of obsidian bladelets at [[Lipari]] had reached a high level of sophistication by the late Neolithic, and was traded as far as Sicily, the southern Po river valley, and Croatia.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Martinelli|first1=Maria Clara|last2=Tykot|first2=Robert H.|last3=Vianello|first3=Andrea|title=Lipari (Aeolian islands) obsidian in the late Neolithic. Artifacts, supply, and function|journal=[[Open Archaeology]]|date=April 20, 2019|volume=5|issue=1|pages=46–64|doi=10.1515/opar-2019-0005|doi-access=free|s2cid=150094926}}</ref> Obsidian bladelets were used in ritual [[circumcision]]s and cutting of umbilical cords of newborns.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Brown|first1=Keri A.|last2=Tykot|first2=Robert H.|title=Obsidian in the Tavoliere, Southeastern Italy — A regional study|journal=Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports|date=August 2018|volume=20|pages=284–292|doi=10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.04.035|bibcode=2018JArSR..20..284B|s2cid=134356403|url=https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/obsidian-in-the-tavoliere-southeastern-italy--a-regional-study(6007b859-88d7-418e-bf69-372627294c35).html}}</ref> Anatolian sources of obsidian are known to have been the material used in the Levant and modern-day Iraqi Kurdistan from a time beginning sometime about 12,500 BC.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CT_FWEfanCIC&pg=PA91|title=Archaeological Chemistry|author1=A. M. Pollard|author2=Carl Heron|publisher=Royal Society of Chemistry|year=2008|isbn=978-0854042623}}</ref> Obsidian artifacts are common at [[Tell Brak]], one of the earliest Mesopotamian urban centers, dating to the late fifth millennium BC.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Oates|first1=J.|last2=McMahon|first2=A.|last3=Karsgaard|first3=P.|last4=Quntar|first4=S. A.|last5=Ur|first5=J.|title=Early Mesopotamian urbanism: a new view from the north|journal=Antiquity|date=January 2, 2015|volume=81|issue=313|pages=585–600|doi=10.1017/S0003598X00095600|s2cid=3803714|url=https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/4269009/Ur_EarlyMesoUrbanism.pdf?sequence=1}}</ref> Obsidian was valued in [[Stone Age]] cultures because, like [[flint]], it could be fractured to produce sharp blades or arrowheads in a process called [[knapping]]. Like all glass and some other naturally occurring rocks, obsidian breaks with a characteristic [[conchoidal fracture]]. It was also polished to create early [[mirror]]s. Modern [[archaeologists]] have developed a [[relative dating]] system, [[obsidian hydration dating]], to calculate the age of obsidian [[Artifact (archaeology)|artifact]]s.

===Europe===
Obsidian artifacts first appeared in the European continent in Central Europe in the [[Middle Paleolithic]] and had become common by the [[Upper Paleolithic]], although there are exceptions to this. Obsidian played an important role in the [[Neolithic Revolution|transmission of Neolithic knowledge and experiences]]. The material was mainly used for production of [[chipped tools]] which were very sharp due to its nature. Artifacts made of obsidian can be found in many Neolithic cultures across Europe. The source of obsidian for cultures inhabiting the territory of and around Greece was the island of [[Milos]]; the [[Starčevo–Körös–Criș culture]] obtained obsidian from sources in Hungary and Slovakia, while the [[cardium (pottery)|Cardium]]-Impresso cultural complex acquired obsidian from the island outcrops of the central [[Mediterranean]]. Through trade, these artifacts ended up in lands thousands of kilometers away from the original source; this indicates that they were a highly valued commodity.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Tripković|first1=Boban|title=The Quality and Value In Neolithic Europe: An Alternative View on Obsidian Artifacts|journal=South Eastern Europe Proceedings of the ESF Workshop, Sofia|volume=103|year=2003|pages=119–123|url=https://www.academia.edu/452257|access-date=June 21, 2019}}</ref> [[John Dee]] had a mirror, made of obsidian, which was brought from Mexico to Europe between 1527 and 1530 after Hernando Cortés's conquest of the region.<ref name="bl.uk">{{Cite web|url=https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/john-dees-spirit-mirror|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200401121456/https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/john-dees-spirit-mirror|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 1, 2020|title=John Dee's spirit mirror – The British Library|date=April 1, 2020|access-date=April 1, 2020}}</ref>

===Middle East and Asia===
[[File:20141231 155025- Prehistoric- Obsidian-Turkey-cropped.jpg|thumb|Obsidian tools from Tilkitepe, Turkey, 5th millennium BC. [[Museum of Anatolian Civilizations]]]]
In the [[Ubaid period|Ubaid]] in the [[5th millennium BC]], blades were manufactured from obsidian extracted from outcrops located in modern-day [[Turkey]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/06/science/06archeo.html|title=In Syria, a Prologue for Cities|author=John Noble Wilford|date=April 5, 2010|work=The New York Times}}</ref> [[Ancient Egypt]]ians used obsidian imported from the eastern Mediterranean and southern [[Red Sea]] regions. Obsidian [[scalpel]]s older than 2100 BC have been found in a Bronze Age settlement in Turkey.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727750-200-scalpels-and-skulls-point-to-bronze-age-brain-surgery/|title=Scalpels and skulls point to Bronze Age brain surgery|author=Jo Marchant|work=New Scientist}}</ref> In the eastern Mediterranean area the material was used to make tools, mirrors and decorative objects.<ref name="George Robert Rapp">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7VMVguiMmY0C&pg=PA81|author=George Robert Rapp|publisher=Springer|year=2002|title=Archaeomineralogy|isbn=978-3540425793}}</ref>

The use of obsidian tools was present in Japan near areas of volcanic activity.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.oki-geopark.jp/en/episode/lifestyle/history/obsidian/|title=Obsidian &#124; Oki Islands UNESCO Global Geopark}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Izuho|first1=Masami|last2=Sato|first2=Hiroyumi|year=2007|title=Archaeological obsidian studies in Hokkaido, Japan: Retrospect and prospects|journal=Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association Bulletin|volume=27|doi=10.7152/bippa.v27i0.11982|doi-broken-date=November 1, 2024|url=https://journals.lib.washington.edu/index.php/BIPPA/article/download/11982/10607|access-date=March 2, 2022}}</ref> Obsidian was [[Hoshikuso Pass obsidian mine site|mined during the Jōmon period]].

Obsidian has also been found in [[Gilat]], a site in the western [[Negev]] in Israel. Eight obsidian artifacts dating to the [[Chalcolithic]] Age found at this site were traced to obsidian sources in [[Anatolia]]. [[Neutron activation analysis]] (NAA) on the obsidian found at this site helped to reveal trade routes and exchange networks previously unknown.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Yellin|first1=Joseph|last2=Levy|first2=Thomas E.|last3=Rowan|first3=Yorke M.|title=New Evidence on Prehistoric Trade Routes: The Obsidian Evidence from Gilat, Israel|journal=Journal of Field Archaeology|year=1996|volume=23|issue=3|pages=361–68|doi=10.1179/009346996791973873}}</ref>

===Americas===
{{see also|Obsidian use in Mesoamerica}}
[[File:ObsidianWareLopezMAPHidalgo2.JPG|thumb|left|Obsidian worked into plates and other wares by Victor Lopez Pelcastre of Nopalillo, Epazoyucan, Hidalgo. On display at the [[Museo de Arte Popular, Mexico City]].]]
[[Lithic analysis]] helps to understand pre-Hispanic groups in [[Mesoamerica]]. A careful analysis of obsidian in a culture or place can be of considerable use to reconstruct commerce, production, and distribution, and thereby understand economic, social and political aspects of a civilization. This is the case in [[Yaxchilán]], a Maya city where even warfare implications have been studied linked with obsidian use and its debris.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Brokmann|first=Carlos|title=Tipología y análisis de la obsidiana de Yaxchilán, Chiapas|journal=Colección Científica|number=422|publisher=INAH|year=2000|language=es}}</ref> Another example is the archeological recovery at coastal [[Chumash people|Chumash]] sites in California, indicating considerable trade with the distant site of [[Casa Diablo Hot Springs]] in the [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]].<ref>{{cite web|first=CM|last=Hogan|year=2008|url=http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=18502|title=Morro Creek|editor=A. Burnham|website=Megalithic.co.uk|access-date=November 20, 2011}}</ref>

Obsidian tools found in [[Mission Santa Clara]] has shown the existence of exchange networks between various tribes in [[California]]. Obsidian in California comes from 5 major locations all around the state, and when Mission Santa Clara was built, the tribes took their obsidian tools with them and from the analysis the of the obsidian tools it showed that all 5 major location of obsidian were present.<ref>Panich, L. M. (2016). Beyond the colonial curtain: Investigating indigenous use of obsidian in Spanish California through the PXRF analysis of artifacts from Mission Santa Clara. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 5, 521–530. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2016.01.008 </ref>

[[File:Takalik Abaj obsidian 1.jpg|thumb|Raw obsidian and obsidian blades from the Mayan site of Takalik Abaj]]
[[Pre-Columbian]] Mesoamericans' [[Obsidian use in Mesoamerica|use of obsidian]] was extensive and sophisticated; including carved and worked obsidian for tools and decorative objects. Mesoamericans also made a type of sword with obsidian blades mounted in a wooden body. Called a ''[[macuahuitl]]'', the weapon could inflict terrible injuries, combining the sharp cutting edge of an obsidian blade with the ragged cut of a serrated weapon. The [[polearm]] version of this weapon was called ''[[tepoztopilli]]''.

[[Mirrors in Mesoamerican culture|Obsidian mirrors]] were used by some Aztec priests to conjure visions and make prophecies. They were connected with [[Tezcatlipoca]], god of obsidian and sorcery, whose name can be translated from the Nahuatl language as 'Smoking Mirror'.<ref name="bl.uk"/>

[[File:Obsidian from Milos in Crete, 3000-2300 BC, AMH, 144707.jpg|thumb|left|Obsidian imported from [[Milos]], found in [[Minoan civilization|Minoan Crete]]]]
Indigenous people traded obsidian throughout the Americas. Each [[volcano]] and in some cases each volcanic eruption produces a distinguishable type of obsidian allowing archaeologists to use methods such as non-destructive energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence to select minor element compositions from both the artifact and geological sample to trace the origins of a particular artifact.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Panich|first1=Lee|last2=Michelini|first2=Antonio|last3=Shackley|first3=M.|date=December 1, 2012|title=Obsidian Sources of Northern Baja California: The Known and the Unknown|url=https://scholarcommons.scu.edu/anthro_fac_pubs/38|journal=Faculty Publications}}</ref> Similar tracing techniques have also allowed obsidian in Greece to be identified as coming from [[Milos]], [[Nisyros]] or [[Gyali]], islands in the [[Aegean Sea]]. Obsidian cores and blades were traded great distances inland from the coast.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Stark|first1=Barbara L.|last2=Boxt|first2=Matthew A.|last3=Gasco|first3=Janine|last4=González Lauck|first4=Rebecca B.|last5=Hedgepeth Balkin|first5=Jessica D.|last6=Joyce|first6=Arthur A.|last7=King|first7=Stacie M.|last8=Knight|first8=Charles L. F.|last9=Kruger|first9=Robert|date=March 1, 2016|title=Economic growth in Mesoamerica: Obsidian consumption in the coastal lowlands|journal=Journal of Anthropological Archaeology|volume=41|pages=263–282|doi=10.1016/j.jaa.2016.01.008|issn=0278-4165|doi-access=free}}</ref>

In Chile obsidian tools from [[Chaitén Volcano]] have been found as far away as in [[Chan-Chan]] {{convert|400|km|abbr=on}} north of the volcano, and also in sites 400&nbsp;km south of it.<ref name=pino>{{cite journal|author1=Mario Pino Quivido|author2=Rayen Navarro|name-list-style=amp|title=Geoarqueología del sitio arcaico Chan-Chan 18, costa de Valdivia: Discriminación de ambientes de ocupación humana y su relación con la transgresión marina del Holoceno Medio|journal=Revista Geológica de Chile|year=2005|doi=10.4067/S0716-02082005000100004|volume=32|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Naranjo|first=José A|author2=Stern, Charles R|title=Holocene tephrochronology of the southernmost part (42°30'–45°S) of the Andean Southern Volcanic Zone|year=2004|volume=31|issue=2|pages=225–40|oclc=61022562|doi=10.4067/S0716-02082004000200003|journal=Revista Geológica de Chile|doi-access=free}}</ref>

===Oceania===
The [[Lapita culture]], active across a large area of the Pacific Ocean around 1000 BC, made widespread use of obsidian tools and engaged in long distance obsidian trading. The complexity of the production technique for these tools, and the care taken in their storage, may indicate that beyond their practical use they were associated with prestige or high status.<ref name="Specht2018">{{Cite book|last=Specht|first=Jim|editor-last1=Cochrane|editor-first1=Ethan E.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZRODwAAQBAJ|title=The Oxford Handbook of Prehistoric Oceania|chapter=Research issues in the circum-New Guinea islands|editor-last2=Hunt|editor-first2=Terry L.|date=2018|publisher=Oxford University Press|page=100|isbn=978-0-19-992507-0|language=en}}</ref>

Obsidian was also used on [[Easter Island|Rapa Nui]] (Easter Island) for edged tools such as ''Mataia'' and the pupils of the eyes of their [[Moai]] (statues), which were encircled by rings of bird bone.<ref>Eric Kjellgren; JoAnne Van Tilburg; Adrienne Lois Kaeppler (2001). Splendid Isolation: Art of Easter Island. Metropolitan Museum of Art. pp. 39–. {{ISBN|978-1-58839-011-0}}.</ref> Obsidian was used to inscribe the [[Rongorongo|Rongorongo glyphs]].