AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF THE ANATOMICAL DISTRIBUTION OF CUT MARKS CREATED BY FILLETING AND DISARTICULATION ON LONG BONE ENDS* A. B. GALÁN 1 and M. DOMÍNGUEZ-RODRIGO 1,2 † 1 Department of Prehistory, Complutense University, Prof. Aranguren s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain 2 IDEA (Instituto de Evolución en África), Museo de los Orígenes, Plaza de San Andrés 2, 28005 Madrid, Spain Analogical frameworks created through experimentation are a vital part of taphonomic studies for interpreting the archaeological record. Understanding the anatomical location of cut marks is crucial for interpreting the butchery behaviour of humans in the past, as well as for indirectly inferring the subsistence and economic function of archaeological sites. Two experimental/ ethnoarchaeological studies have provided taphonomists with analogues to interpret filleting and disarticulation butchery behaviours from archaeofaunal assemblages. However, these analogues were made with limited control and both involved the use of metal knives. The present work provides the first systematic and controlled study of cut mark distribution on long bones made with stone tools, aimed at differentiating cut marks created by filleting or defleshing from those inflicted during disarticulation. It also studies the variability of cut mark distribution according to stone tool type (simple flakes, retouched flakes and handaxes). The results show some differences with previous studies made with metal tools and offer an updated analogue to interpret butchery (filleting, dismembering and skinning) from prehistoric contexts. KEYWORDS: CUT MARKS, SIMPLE FLAKES, RETOUCHED FLAKES, HANDAXES, DISARTICULATION, FILLETING, ANALOGY INTRODUCTION Descriptions of the characteristics of cut marks and of the criteria used to distinguish these marks from other types of marks have been made by several authors (e.g., Guilday et al. 1962; Walker and Long 1977; Bunn 1981; Potts and Shipman 1981; Shipman 1983; Cook 1986; Lyman 1987; Milo 1994; Fisher 1995; Greenfield 1999; Bello and Soligo 2008, Domínguez-Rodrigo et al. 2009a). Several of these works include descriptions of cut mark morphology, including macro- scopic and microscopic characteristics. Walker and Long (1977) carried out experiments to define the types of cut marks produced by different stone tool cutting edges. Other studies have focused on the effectiveness of different stone tool types (Walker 1978). These determined that unre- touched flakes are more effective than retouched flakes in butchery activities (Walker 1978). More recent studies have contributed to differentiating cut marks from trampling marks (Olsen and Shipman 1988; Domínguez-Rodrigo et al. 2009a), and have analysed cut mark morphology according to tool type: metal versus stone (Walker 1978; Greenfield 2006; Jones 2011), simple versus retouched flakes (Walker 1978; Domínguez-Rodrigo et al. 2009a) or handaxes (Bello et al. 2009; de Juana et al. 2010). Systematic work on the behavioural meaning of the anatomical distribution of cut marks was first carried out by Binford (1981). His ethnoarchaeological work with the Nunamiut enabled *Received 2 May 2012; accepted 19 June 2012 †Corresponding author: email m.dominguez.rodrigo@gmail.com Archaeometry 55, 6 (2013) 1132–1149 doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4754.2012.00730.x © 2012 University of Oxford