Donald E. Crabtree Lithic Technology Collection
The Crabtree Lithic Technology Collection is a unique representation of Donald Crabtree’s (1912-1980) global impact and his lifelong work with lithic technology. From age 8 until his death at 68, Crabtree’s experimental flintknapping helped increase society’s understanding of our species’ earliest identifiable human technology.
Crabtree was recognized as a master stone worker by the 1930s, but it wasn’t until the 1960s that his work became a staple in the academic community. Upon his death in 1980, Crabtree bequeathed his entire collection to the University of Idaho Department of Anthropology, where it has been managed by the Alfred W. Bowers Laboratory of Anthropology. The Crabtree Collection, consisting of lithic items he created as well as Crabtree’s archives (documents, slides, photographs, negatives, etc.), comprises the most complete collection of his work. This collection also includes unprovenanced lithic artifacts created by Native and Indigenous people, artifacts which Crabtree surface collected or which were given to him by others.
The items in this collection serve a dual purpose in the study of lithic technology as they demonstrate Crabtree’s creativity and innovation in flintknapping as well as reflect the knowledge and practices of Indigenous people from around the world, including North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Japan.
View the Crabtree Lithic Technology Collection finding aid on Archives West for detailed information about the contents.