Plant microremains provide direct evidence for the functions of stone knives from the Lajia site,northwestern China

A large number of stone knives have been recovered from Neolithic archaeological sites in East Asia. However, direct evidence regarding the functions of the stone knives has been scarce, and hence, their functions have remained controversial. In this study, we recovered and analysed ancient starch grains and phytoliths from residues adhering to stone knives excavated from the Lajia site, Qinghai Province, northwest China, thus providing direct evidence for the functions of the knives. Our analyses were based on the following: (1) an assemblage of 278 identifiable starch grains, representing grains from the stems of foxtail millet (Setaria italica) and broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum) (65.1 % of the total) and the stems of Hordeum and Triticum species (3.6 % of the total), and (2) an assemblage of 361 identifiable phytoliths, the majority of which were from the stems and leaves of plants such as Panicoideae and related taxa (96 % of the total). Our study demonstrates that one of the functions of the stone knives was the harvesting crops. In addition, a few starch grains from food legumes and roots (3.4 % of the total) indicate that the stone knives were also likely used to process, peel and cut some foods.