Abstract: This is a preliminary study of stone raw material exploitation at Donggutuo, a Lower Pleistocene archeological site in the Nihewan Basin, North China.The study covered aspects of raw material lithology, availability, quality and distribution, and the ways these materials were quarried and utilized.
The analysis revealed that raw materials used at the site are mainly chert, dolomicrite, siliceous dolomite, siliceous limestone, tectonic breccia, quartzite, and intermediate lava, identical to the bedrocks in the vicinity.Related documents and geological survey at the area unveiled that the chert was quarried from dolomite within the Gaoyuzhuang Formation of the Mesoproterozoic Changcheng Group, quartzite from the Yousuopu Formation of the Archaeozoic Qianxi Group, as well as from volcanic lava of Jurassic. Fractures formed by tectonic movement of Yanshan Stage and Himalaya Stage provided convenient conditions for quarrying of these materials.It is observed that collecting fragmentized rock pieces directly from fracture belts and quarrying from these fracture belts were the principal strategies of raw material exploitation adopted by the Donggutuo tool-makers.In general, raw material utilization extent at Donggutuo was low, and many stone artifacts could have been reduced, retouched and used further.
The paper also discussed relationships between raw material quality, availability and general features of the Donggutuo lithic industry, and made some suggestions for a comprehensive study of the Nihewan complex in the future.

Key words: Lower Paleolithic; Donggutuo; Lithic raw materials