The researcher from CENIEH Andoni Tarriño has just published a paper in the journal Archaeometry porposing a new classification system to describe the volumetric formats of clastic lithic products of geological and archaeological origin.

This new methodology and classification system is suitable for volumetric representation of rock fragments. It illustrates their variability perfectly and allows comparisons between different assemblages.
It is noteworthy that this work allowed us to understand the geometric and mathematical

"Besides, we can calculate mean values, equiprobability bivariate ellipses and others statistical parameters for a lithic assemblage of archaeological or geological origin", explains Tarriño.

This classification allows to compare the formats with the information relating to archaeological
sites, geological outcrops and other clast properties, such as lithological composition,
grain size, depositional environment, techno-typology and so on.

The deployment of this classification system will be useful for other three-variant representations
mentioned in the scientific literature, related to classificatory studies in petrology, geochemistry,
tectonics, soils, water and so on.

Finally, it is a very functional classification system with great potential for use in geology and
archaeology that solves an issue the previous solutions of which are not universally employed by
the scientific community.