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Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, vol.70, 2026 (AHCI, Scopus)
Central Anatolia played an important role in the process of the Neolithization of Southwest Asia and Europe. Its diverse landscape offers a wealth of natural and raw material resources, as evidenced by several long-term researched Neolithic sites. One of the key sites of this period is Tepecik-Çiftlik, where the same area was used for settlement for a thousand years. Previous results of element and isotopic analysis of numerous human bones suggest changing trends in the dietary habits of Neolithic communities on various construction-chronological levels of the site. Using morphometry, use-wear analysis and statistical methods, the aim of this study was to determine whether these trends are also reflected in the composition of macrolithic artefacts, a significant portion of which are related to food preparation. The assemblage divided into nine morphometric classes and especially into paired sets – lower and upper stones, mortars and pestles – proves considerable variability in quantity and preservation across the three best preserved levels designated as Level 2, 3, and 5/4. Improvements in the quantity and shape variability of the paired sets used for grinding-milling and pounding are most noticeable in Late Neolithic Level 3, where diverse analyses in human bones suggest an increased consumption of plants. Three other similarly rich Neolithic assemblages from the Anatolian Peninsula were compared in order to determine whether identical shapes and dimensions of ‘typical Neolithic’ food preparation tools could be confirmed during this important period, when domesticated resources began to be widely used. The results show various tool compositions at different sites.