Abstract
The first chronologies of Paleolithic times were based on the recognition of a succession of techno-complexes. These chronologies, largely inspired by those established by emerging geology, made abundant use of the "master fossil" concept. A particular type of tool was recognized as the marker of each major prehistoric period. On this basis, the sharing of common material productions over more or less extensive geographical areas was often considered as a means of defining "cultures", or even Paleolithic ethnolinguistic entities. Some have even referred to these as "civilizations". This approach is highly questionable, especially for the early periods when technical choices were limited. More recently, the recognition of biologically distinct, but occasionally hybridizing, Pleistocene hominin groups has rekindled these debates, posing in a new framework the questions of innovation, technical convergence and diffusion.
