Limnic Quartzite Reconsidered
Szekszárdi Adrienn
ELTE Department of Petrology and Geochemistry
The Tokaj Mountain is an excellent place for collecting flint tools due to rich local mineral deposits. The minerals (rocks) in question are limnoquartzite and limnoopalite. The occurrence of the above minerals is connected to a well-delineated area. Because of the excellent physical properties and easy reach, surface or near-surface outcrops that is, they were a favourite raw material for Palaeolithic tool making. Limnoquartzites and limnoopalites are characteristic raw materials of the Tokaj Mountain. Deposition of these minerals (rocks) is connected to the Miocene intermediate and acidic volcanic and post-volcanic activity. Detailed mineralogical analysis of these silica rock types has already been started, but the archaeometric methods necessary for locating smaller depositional environments have not yet been found. Further future analyses are still needed in order to solve this problem. Subject of this paper is to define the possible methods for the classification of both the local silica rocks and the flint tools prepared from these materials according to the place of origin.