[Bonetools] Wear traces on bone tools

[SIDERA Isabelle]

Dear Kate, Dear colleagues,

Wear studies on bone is a world involving several and complementary  
methods, especially but not only developed by the french school of  
technology.
The first one is to observe volume alterations : smoothing, flaking,  
shape of the use, resharpening etc. In brief, it consists in getting  
an overview of wear macro-impact and targetting on a possible use.
Several other methods deal with surface alterations : striations  
(number, direction, shape, depth, length and width), relief patterns,  
distribution of trace, degree and density of shine. They involve  
different kind of micoscopes, like binocular (x5 to x80) (see Legrand  
and Sidéra, Meneses Fernandez, Maigrot) optical microscope (x100 and  
x200) (see Legrand, Christidou, Lemoine, Griffith) or SEM associated  
with chemical analysis (see Anderson & Stordeur, Giacobini and  
d'Errico, Lemoine).
Of course, all of these methods are intimately related to precise  
experiment and studies of ethnographic implements, which permit to  
work by comparison.
Results are quite good and allow to lend lots of functions to cutting- 
edge and pointed tools. The publication 2007: Bones as Tools: Current  
Methods and Interpretations in Worked Bone Studies edited by  
Christian Gates St-Pierre and Renee B. Walker BAR IS, is a good point  
on the question.

Best wishes, I. Sidéra

Le 15 mars 10 à 10:43, Anne Brundle a écrit :

> I don't know the answer, but I was just thinking about the same  
> question
> this weekend. My feeling is that many interpretations of wear on bone
> tools are based on the three elements of (i)surface shine (ii)rounding
> on edges and (iii)presence and direction of striations, and then on
> whether the wear is 'light', 'normal' or 'heavy'. These value terms  
> tend
> to change, depending what the observer is accustomed to seeing and  
> what
> they have been looking at most recently, so it becomes difficult to  
> make
> comparisons between sites.
>
> I tend to feel cautious if trace analysis is interpreted too  
> positively,
> but I would love to hear from people who could make it work - it would
> be so good!
>
> Best wishes
> Anne
>
> Anne Brundle
> Curator of Archaeology
> The Orkney Museum
> Tankerness House
> Broad Street
> Kirkwall
> Orkney
> KW17 2JD
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu
> [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of Katherine M.
> Moore
> Sent: 12 March 2010 17:35
> To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the  
> study
> ofobjectand waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn.
> Subject: [Bonetools] Wear traces on bone tools
>
> Dear Colleagues:
>
> I am seeking general insights (or perhaps opinions) on trace analysis
> of bone tools. Various studies describe characteristics of traces
> left on bone by common materials (plant material, hide, soil, etc.).
> Is there a recent reference which establishes the characteristics of
> these traces using sytematic studies of modern bone tools? Even more
> importantly, are there blind tests of identification of worked
> material on bone tools such as those conducted by Keeley and Newcomer
> for stone tools? Those blind tests and others which followed have
> shown that such identifications of worked material on stone tools are
> probably not reliable. Do bone tool studies have better foundation?
>
> Thanks for your help and experience.
>
> best,
>
> Kate Moore
> Consulting Scholar
> University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
> 3260 South St.
> Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
>
>
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Isabelle SIDERA (CNRS)
UMR 7055 - MSH René-Ginouvès
21 Allée de l'Université - 92 023 Nanterre cedex

tel. 1 46 69 24 48 - fax : 1 46 69 25 69
http://www.mae.u-paris10.fr/prehistoire/persopre.php?ID=80=



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