Publications

Here you can find my publications listed chronologically (they are also listed on the field and lab research pages, by topic. You can also find a comprehensive list on my CV  and on ORCID: ORCID iD iconhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-9531-1159, Google Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Edited Volumes

2020

Marreiros, J., Pereira, T., and Iovita, R. (Eds.) Controlled experiments in lithic technology and function, collection of Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, Springer.

 

 

 

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2016
Iovita, R. and K. Sano (Eds.) Multidisciplinary approaches to the study of Stone Age weaponry, Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology, Springer, Dordrecht.

 

 

 

Peer-Reviewed Articles

2024
Iovita, R., 2024. A return to function as the basis of lithic classification, in: Plutniak, S., Hussain, S.T., Riede, F. (Eds.), Between Variability and Singularity: Crossing Theoretical, Qualitative and Computer-Based Approaches to Types and Typologies in Archaeology. Sidestone Press.
 
Iovita, R., Rendu, W., Lindauer, S., Taimagambetov, Z., Kushch, G.A., Baryshnikov, G.F., 2024. A Newly Dated Late Pleistocene and Holocene Archaeological Assemblage from Bukhtarma Cave in the Southern Altai Piedmont, East Kazakhstan. J Paleo Arch 7, 21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41982-024-00187-x
 
Namen, A., Taimagambetov, Z., Varis, A., Coco, E., Coto-Sarmiento, M., Baigunakov, D., Zhumatayev, R., Iovita, R., 2024. Новые стратифицированные стоянки каменного века Тикенекти-2 и Ынтымак в предгорьях Иле Алатау: (Юго-Восточный Казахстан). Археология Казахстана 160–175. https://doi.org/10.52967/akz2024.2.24.160.175
 
Schmidt, P., Iovita, R., Charrié-Duhaut, A., Möller, G., Namen, A., Dutkiewicz, E., 2024. Ochre-based compound adhesives at the Mousterian type-site document complex cognition and high investment. Science Advances 10, eadl0822. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adl0822
 
Zhang, Jing, Fang, I., Wu, H., Kaushik, A., Rodriguez, A., Zhao, H., Zhang, Juexiao, Zheng, Z., Iovita, R., Feng, C., 2024. LUWA Dataset: Learning Lithic Use-Wear Analysis on Microscopic Images, in: Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition 2024. Presented at the Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition 2024, Seattle, WA. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2403.13171
 
2023
 
Murgabayev, S.S., Bakhtybayev, M.M., Maldybekova, L.D., Sizdikov, B.S., Iovita, R., 2023. Arkheologicheskie issledovanii͡a i͡uzhnykh sklonov Karatau (kompleks Shimaĭly) [Archaeological research of the southern slopes of Karatau (Shimayla complex)]. Povolzhskaya Arkheologiya 3, 118–133.
 
2022
Li, L., Lin, S.C., McPherron, S.P., Abdolahzadeh, A., Chan, A., Dogandžić, T., Iovita, R., Leader, G.M., Magnani, M., Rezek, Z., Dibble, H.L., 2022. A Synthesis of the Dibble et al. Controlled Experiments into the Mechanics of Lithic Production. J Archaeol Method Theory. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-022-09586-2
 
Namen, A., Cuthbertson, P., Varis, A., Schmidt, P., Taimagambetov, Z., Iovita, R., 2022a. Preliminary results of the first lithic raw material survey in the piedmont zones of Kazakhstan. asian archaeol 6, 53–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41826-022-00051-3
 
Namen, A., Iovita, R., Nickel, K.G., Varis, A., Taimagambetov, Z., Schmidt, P., 2022b. Mechanical properties of lithic raw materials from Kazakhstan: Comparing chert, shale, and porphyry. PLOS ONE 17, e0265640. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0265640
 
Namen, A., Schmidt, P., Varis, A., Taimagambetov, Z., Iovita, R., 2022c. Preference for Porphyry: Petrographic Insights into Lithic Raw Material Procurement from Palaeolithic Kazakhstan. Journal of Field Archaeology 47, 435–450. https://doi.org/10.1080/00934690.2022.2092265
Namen, A., Varis, A., Lindauer, S., Friedrich, R., Taimagambetov, Z., Iovita, R., 2022d. Nazugum, a new 4000 year old rockshelter site in the Ili Alatau, Tien Shan. Archaeological Research in Asia 30, 100370. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ara.2022.100370
 
Rodriguez, A., Yanamandra, K., Witek, L., Wang, Z., Behera, R.K., Iovita, R., 2022b. The effect of worked material hardness on stone tool wear. PloS one 17, e0276166.
 
Varis, A., Miller, C.E., Cuthbertson, P., Namen, A., Taimagambetov, Z., Iovita, R., 2022. The effect of formation processes on the frequency of palaeolithic cave sites in semiarid zones: Insights from Kazakhstan. Geoarchaeology 37, 594–616. https://doi.org/10.1002/gea.21909
 

2021

Cuthbertson, P., Ullmann, T., Büdel, C., Varis, A., Namen, A., Seltmann, R., Reed, D., Taimagambetov, Z., Iovita, R., 2021. Finding karstic caves and rockshelters in the Inner Asian mountain corridor using predictive modelling and field survey. PLOS ONE 16, e0245170. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245170
 
Iovita, R., Braun, D.R., Douglass, M.J., Holdaway, S.J., Lin, S.C., Olszewski, D.I., Rezek, Z., 2021. Operationalizing niche construction theory with stone tools. Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews 30, 28–39. https://doi.org/10.1002/evan.21881
 

2020

Coco, E., Iovita, R., 2020. Time-dependent taphonomic site loss leads to spatial averaging: implications for archaeological cultures. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications 7, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-00635-3
 

Fitzsimmons, K.E., Doboş, A., Probst, M., Iovita, R., 2020. Thinking Outside the Box at Open-Air Archeological Contexts: Examples From Loess Landscapes in Southeast Romania. Front. Earth Sci. 8, 561207. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.561207

Marreiros, J., Pereira, T., Iovita, R., 2020. Controlled experiments in lithic technology and function. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 12, 110. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-020-01059-5
 

Rodriguez, A., Pouydebat, E., Chacón, M.G., Moncel, M.-H., Cornette, R., Bardo, A., Chèze, L., Iovita, R., Borel, A., 2020. Right or left? Determining the hand holding the tool from use traces. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 31, 102316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102316

Coco, E., Holdaway, S., Iovita, R., 2020. The effects of secondary recycling on the technological character of lithic assemblages. J Paleo Arch. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41982-020-00055-4

Smith, G.M., Noack, E.S., Behrens, N.M., Ruebens, K., Street, M., Iovita, R., Gaudzinski-Windheuser, S., 2020. When lithics hit bones: evaluating the potential of a multifaceted experimental protocol to illuminate Middle Palaeolithic weapon technology. J Paleo Arch. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41982-020-00053-6

Rezek, Z., Holdaway, S.J., Olszewski, D.I., Lin, S.C., Douglass, M., McPherron, S., Iovita, R., Braun, D.R., Sandgathe, D., 2020. Aggregates, formational emergence, and the focus on practice in stone artifact archaeology. J Archaeol Method Theory. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-020-09445-y

Iovita, R., Varis, A., Namen, A., Cuthbertson, P., Taimagambetov, Z., Miller, C.E., 2020. In search of a Paleolithic Silk Road in Kazakhstan. Quaternary International. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2020.02.023

2019

Schmidt, P., Blessing, M., Rageot, M., Iovita, R., Pfleging, J., Nickel, K.G., Righetti, L., Tennie, C., 2019. Birch tar production does not prove Neanderthal behavioral complexity. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 201911137. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1911137116
 
Calandra, I., Schunk, L., Rodriguez, A., Gneisinger, W., Pedergnana, A., Paixao, E., Pereira, T., Iovita, R., Marreiros, J., 2019. Back to the edge: relative coordinate system for use-wear analysis. Archaeol Anthropol Sci. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-019-00801-y
 

Pfleging, J., Iovita, R., Buchli, J. (2019) Influence of force and duration on stone tool wear: results from experiments with a force-controlled robot. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences. 

2018

Gaudzinski-Windheuser, S., Noack, E.S., Pop, E., Herbst, C., Pfleging, J., Buchli, J., Jacob, A., Enzmann, F., Kindler, L., Iovita, R., Street, M., Roebroeks, W., 2018. Evidence for close-range hunting by last interglacial Neanderthals. Nature: Ecology and Evolution 2, 1087–1092. 

Fitzsimmons, KE, Sprafke, T, Zielhofer, C, Günter, C, Deom, JM, Sala, R, and R Iovita (2018) Loess accumulation in the Tian Shan piedmont: implications for palaeoenvironmental change in arid Central Asia. Quaternary International 469:30-43.

2017

Dibble, H.L., Holdaway, S.J., Braun, D.R., Douglass, M., Iovita, R., Lin, S., McPherron, S.P., Olszewski, D., Rezek, Z., Sandgathe, D. [alphabetically listed after 2nd author] “Major Fallacies Surrounding Stone Artifacts and Assemblages,” Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 24 (3), 813-851.

Fitzsimmons, K.E., Iovita, R., Sprafke, T., Glantz, M., Talamo, S., Horton, K., Beeton, T., Alipova, S., Bekseitov, G., Ospanov, Y., Deom, J.-M., Sala, R., Taimagambetov, Z. (2017) A chronological framework connecting the early Upper Palaeolithic across the Central Asian piedmont. Journal of Human Evolution 113, 107–126. 

Iovita, R., I. Tuvi-Arad, M.-H. Moncel, J. Despriée, P. Voinchet, and J.-J. Bahain (2017). High handaxe symmetry at the beginning of the European Acheulian: the data from la Noira (France) in context. PLoS One 12(5): e0177063.

2016

Iovita, R. and K. Sano “15 years since Knecht: advances in the study of Stone Age weapons” In Multidisciplinary approaches to the study of Stone Age weaponry, R. Iovita and K. Sano (Eds.), Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology, Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 289-297. doi:10.1007/978-94-017-7602-8_20

Iovita, R., H. Schönekeß, S. Gaudzinski-Windheuser, and F. Jäger “Identifying weapon delivery systems using macrofracture analysis and fracture propagation velocity: a controlled experiment.” In Multidisciplinary approaches to the study of Stone Age weaponry, R. Iovita and K. Sano (Eds.), Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology, Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 13-27. doi:10.1007/978-94-017-7602-8_2

Dobos, A. and R. Iovita. “The Lower Paleolithic of Romania revisited: new evidence from the site of Dealul Guran.” In Paleoanthropology at the Gates of Europe, K. Harvati and M. Roksandic (Eds.), Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology, Springer.

Doboș, A. and R. Iovita “La première colonisation préhistorique de la région du Nord du Danube.” In Identités culturelles et systèmes techniques au Paléolithique ancien: quelle actualité?, R. Rocca, L. De Weyer, B. Chevrier, and E. Nicoud (Eds). @rchéo-éditions, Paris.

2015

Pfleging J, Stücheli M, Iovita R, Buchli J. Dynamic Monitoring Reveals Motor Task Characteristics in Prehistoric Technical Gestures. PLoS ONE 10(8): e0134570. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0134570

Doboș, A. and R. Iovita. Paleoliticul inferior din România: o reevaluare din perspectiva descoperirilor din situl Dealul Guran. Materiale și cercetări arheologice SN. XIX, 5–17.

Rolett, B. V., E. W. West, J. M. Sinton, R. Iovita. “Ancient East Polynesian voyaging spheres: new evidence from the Vitaria Adze Quarry (Rurutu, Austral Islands)” J. Archaeol. Sci. DOI PDF

2014
Iovita, R.  “The role of edge angle maintenance in explaining technological variation in the production of Late Middle Paleolithic bifacial and unifacial tools.” Quatern Int. DOI PDF

Iovita, R., A. Dobos, K. E. Fitzsimmons, M. Probst, U. Hambach, M. Robu, M. Vlaicu, and A. Petculescu. “Geoarchaeological prospection in the loess steppe: preliminary results from the Lower Danube Survey for Paleolithic Sites (LoDanS)”. Quatern Int. DOI PDF

Iovita R., H. Schönekeß, S. Gaudzinski-Windheuser, and F. Jäger “Impact fracture patterns in exact replicas of Levallois points: the first results of a new controlled ballistic experimental protocol.” J Archaeol Sci. DOI PDF

2013
Fitzsimmons, K. E., U. Hambach, D. Veres, R. Iovita. “The Campanian Ignimbrite eruption: new data on volcanic ash dispersal and its potential impact on human evolution”. PLoS ONE. HTML

2012
Iovita, R., K. E. Fitzsimmons, A. Dobos, U. Hambach, A. Hilgers, and A. Zander. “Dealul Guran: evidence of Lower Paleolithic occupation of the southeast European loess steppe.” Antiquity 86(334): 973-989. PDF

2011
Iovita, R. “Shape variation in Aterian tanged tools and the origins of projectile technology: a morphometric perspective on stone fool function.” PLoS One 6(12): e29029. HTML

Iovita, R. and S. P. McPherron “The handaxe reloaded: a morphometric reassessment of Acheulian and Middle Paleolithic handaxes.” J Hum Evol 61: 61-74. PDF

Rezek, Z., S. Lin, R. Iovita, and H. Dibble  “The relative effects of core surface morphology on flake shape and other attributes.” J Archaeol Sci 38 (6): 1346-1359. PDF

2010
Iovita, R. P. “Quantifying and comparing stone tool resharpening trajectories with the aid of Elliptical Fourier Analysis.” In New Perspectives on Old Stones: Analytical Approaches to Palaeolithic Technologies, S.J. Lycett and P. Chauhan (Eds.), pp. 235-253. Springer, Dordrecht. DOI PDF

2009
Iovita, R. P. “Ontogenetic scaling and lithic systematics: method and application.” J Archaeol Sci 36(7): 1447-1457. DOI PDF

Iovita, R. P. “Re-evaluating connections between the Early Upper Paleolithic of Northeast Africa and the Levant: technological differences between the Dabban and the Emiran.” In Transitions in Prehistory: Papers in Honor of Ofer Bar-Yosef, J. Shea and D. Lieberman (Eds.), pp. 125-142. Oxbow Books, Oxford. PDF

pre-2009
Dibble, H.L., U. A. Schurmans, R.P. Iovita, and M. McLaughlin (2005) “The measurement and interpretation of cortex in lithic assemblages.” Am Antiquity 70 (3): 545-560. JSTOR PDF

Iovita, R. P. and T. G. Schurr (2004) “Reconstructing the origins and migrations of diasporic
populations: the case of the European Gypsies.” Am Anthropol 106 (2): 267-281. DOI PDF

Theses

2008
Iovita, R. P. Ontogenetic scaling in stone tools and its application to European Middle Paleolithic systematics. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. LINK