At Fistikli Höyük, numerous objects made out of locally available calcareous stone were recovered. Three characteristics of these objects were recorded: shape, traces of production, and use. From an inspection of the shapes, four major functions of these items can be inferred. The most prevalent are flat pieces, the majority of which are round or oval. Among the round pieces, there seem to be three size categories: jetons (small), “disks” (with a diameter of roughly 15 cm) and “plates” of 20 to 30 cm diameter. From the well preserved disks and plates, it is clear that most of them must have been produced through simple chipping. At least five complete plates were found in situ, mostly in contexts that suggest a use in cooking-related activities. Frequent use wear that resulted from heating, namely cracks and a grey to yellowish coloring, point in the same direction.
A small number of limestone pieces were ground into bowl forms. Several pieces of deep, coarsely shaped bowls with curved walls were found, one of them with a decoration on the top of the rim. The surface of these bowls is coarsely scraped with a hard tool, maybe a flint knife, that left parallel striations both outside and inside of the vessels. Other shapes, such as “wedges” and “triangles,” are probably functionally related. They occur in various sizes, and the limestone pieces selected for their production are relatively hard. A more enigmatic calcareous item is what we have called, for want of a better term, “truffles.” These small, dome-shaped pieces have a diameter of ca. 2 to 3 cm and are mostly made of very soft, chalky limestone. Such items may have been made out of pulverized limestone that was mixed with water.
Clearly, the calcareous material was preferentially used for the production of flat, rather large objects - these kinds of items constitute roughly 50% of the sample - that could serve as either lids or supports in daily activities. Judging by use wear, heating was part of these activities. So far, no good parallels from other Halaf sites are available.