This paper investigates core reduction intensity in the early Protoaurignacian lithic assemblage from Fumane Cave in northeastern Italy. Reduction intensity serves as a key tool to characterize blank selection strategies, raw material management, and the variability of knapping strategies throughout the reduction sequence by reconstructing the operatory field of core assemblages. Finally, it also aids in addressing the relationship between blades and bladelets, providing valuable insights into the behavioral and chrono-cultural significance of laminar productions within the Aurignacian technocomplex. To achieve these research goals, experimental work employing 3D scanning technology was conducted. This facilitated the comparison of different methods and variables for measuring reduction intensity, including the percentage of non-cortical surface, the Scar Density Index (SDI), and a novel adaptation of the Volumetric Reconstruction Method (VRM). Results demonstrate the effectiveness and potential of adapting the VRM for the study of reduction intensity in Upper Paleolithic laminar cores, and the provided R scripts and datasets will enable this method to be applied to other contexts with minimal need for modification to the workflow. Analysis of reduction intensity measures applied to the Protoaurignacian assemblage from Fumane Cave reveals slight variations based on factors such as the abundance and proximity of selected raw materials for blank production. Notably, the most prevalent raw material variety, the Maiolica, yields a higher number of less reduced cores, while reduction levels across all cores discarded at the site remain relatively high. The observed variability in the operatory field and the interrelation between blade and bladelet productions underscore the complexity and flexibility of Protoaurignacian behavior. This inherent complexity challenges any definitive separation between the operatory fields of blade and bladelet productions. These findings are particularly important to emphasize the importance of considering reduction intensity when examining technological variability and human behavior in Aurignacian studies. The proposed adaptation of the VRM and the effective combination with other measures of reduction, promises to allow future research to incorporate reduction intensity as a vital temporal component within studies on stone tool production. This integration offers a pathway to enhancing our understanding of the adaptive behaviors exhibited by Homo sapiens across diverse ecological settings and provides a clearer framework for better framing the development of the Upper Paleolithic.

本文研究了意大利东北部 Fumane 洞穴早期原奥里尼亚克阶石器组合的核心还原强度。还原强度是通过重建核心组合的操作场来表征毛坯选择策略、原材料管理以及整个还原序列中的敲击策略的可变性的关键工具。最后，它还有助于解决叶片和小叶片之间的关系，为奥里尼亚技术综合体内层流生产的行为和时间文化意义提供有价值的见解。为了实现这些研究目标，开展了采用 3D 扫描技术的实验工作。这有助于比较测量减少强度的不同方法和变量，包括非皮质表面的百分比、疤痕密度指数（SDI）以及体积重建方法（VRM）的新颖改编。结果证明了采用 VRM 来研究旧石器时代晚期层状岩心还原强度的有效性和潜力，并且提供的 R 脚本和数据集将使该方法能够应用于其他环境，而无需对工作流程进行修改。对 Fumane 洞穴原奥里尼亚克系组合应用的减少强度措施的分析显示，根据毛坯生产所选原材料的丰度和接近程度等因素，略有变化。值得注意的是，最普遍的原材料品种 Maiolica 产出的还原程度较低的核心数量较多，而现场废弃的所有核心的还原水平仍然相对较高。观察到的操作场的变化以及叶片和小叶片生产之间的相互关系强调了原奥里尼亚克行为的复杂性和灵活性。这种固有的复杂性对叶片和小叶片生产的操作领域之间的任何明确分离提出了挑战。这些发现对于强调在奥里尼亚克研究中检查技术变异性和人类行为时考虑减少强度的重要性特别重要。拟议的 VRM 调整以及与其他减少措施的有效结合，有望使未来的研究将减少强度纳入石器生产研究中的重要时间组成部分。这种整合提供了一条途径，以增强我们对智人在不同生态环境中所表现出的适应性行为的理解，并为更好地构建旧石器时代晚期的发展提供了更清晰的框架。