Flints knapped for use as knives, of Scandinavian origin. Knapping is the shaping of flint, chert, obsidian, or other conchoidal fracturing stone through the process of lithic reduction to manufacture stone tools such as arrows, butchery knives and axe heads, etc. The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic, also called Old Stone Age, is a period in prehistory, distinguished by the original development of stone tools, that covers 99% of the period of human technological prehistory.