[Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
Etan Ayalon
etana at eretzmuseum.org.il
Mon Mar 7 06:32:56 CET 2011
Dear Petar and all others,
String instrument bridge practically has notches only on the top, not on the bottom. You can't tighten strings when they pass beneath the bridge. Compare to 10th-12th century bone bridges I published from Caesarea Maritima, Israel (BAR Int. Ser. 1457, 2005, Fig. 26:273-274) with notches only on the top, with parallels from Egypt etc.
Looking close at the photo, these notches are not similar to those made, for instance, by a saw or a knife - they are wider, with round edges, and kind of "turn around" the piece a little beyond the notch itself. So it still looks to me more like notches that were widened by a repeated movement of some soft throng than waste of something that was cut with a saw or knife.
Etan Ayalon
________________________________
From: bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of Petar Zidarov
Sent: Sunday, March 06, 2011 7:13 PM
To: antler. ivory and horn.Mailing list for archaeologists of the researchgroup for the study of object and waste of bone
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
Hi everyone,
If we consider functionality for separating / guiding wire and threads, why not consider a string guide, technically called bridge in plucked string instruments.
If you check the pictures under Afghan tanbur and Herati dutar in this webpage - http://www.atlasofpluckedinstruments.com/central_asia.htm (also attached here)
you will find that there are bridges dividing the strings in courses of main, rhythm and resonance strings in some ancient looking instruments...
Again, I am not a musician or musicologist, so I will be happy for a critical opinions from specialists.
Best wishes,
Petar
--
Petar Zidarov
Lab of Archaeometry & Experimental Archaeology
Department of Archaeology, New Bulgarian University
21 Montevideo Str., Body 2, office 219
BG-1618 Sofia, BULGARIA
cell phone: +359 898 347 252
--- On Sat, 3/5/11, Alice Choyke <h13017cho at iif.hu> wrote:
From: Alice Choyke <h13017cho at iif.hu>
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
To: "Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the study of object and waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn." <bonetools at listserv.niif.hu>
Date: Saturday, March 5, 2011, 6:02 PM
So - are we back at the mechnanism idea or what? Sonia - do you have any ideas? Or Marloes with your strange 16th-17th centruy objects?
Alice
On Sat, Mar 5, 2011 at 5:38 PM, Etan Ayalon <etana at eretzmuseum.org.il> wrote:
I think metal threads would have left deep scratches in the soft antler, which the photo doesn't show.
Etan Ayalon
________________________________
From: bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu on behalf of Alice Choyke
Sent: Sat 3/5/2011 2:51 AM
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the study ofobject and waste of bone,antler. ivory and horn.
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
But to return to poor Michael's original object - I really wonder whether this could be a draw plate for metal threads given how soft antler is. It is really a puzzle.
Alice
On Fri, Mar 4, 2011 at 5:42 PM, S O'Connor <S.Oconnor at bradford.ac.uk> wrote:
The name for this is a draw plate.
Sonia
Dr Sonia O'Connor PhD FSA FIIC ACR Honorary Visiting Fellow, University of York
Post-doctoral Research Fellow
Archaeological Sciences
Division of AGES,
University of Bradford
Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD7 1DP, UK
tel 01274 23 6498 (office) 5210 (lab)
fax 01274 23 5210
From: bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of Gun-Britt
Sent: 04 March 2011 12:09
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for thestudy of object and waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn.
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
Hi and sorry for delayed answer.
I try to attach the drawing I made, and I hope you understand how I think-this would mean (I guess) that perhaps a "top" to this tool is missing, or if not, that they - like Etan suggested - used it for thongs or something softer and just used their finger to "top" it...i.e. to stop the what-ever-they-were-using to slip out of the groove. Sorry about the size, and hope it works,
**Gun-Britt, Sweden
<http://62.90.210.236:801/exchange/etana/Drafts/image001.jpg>
----- Original Message -----
From: Etan Ayalon <mailto:etana at eretzmuseum.org.il>
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for thestudy ofobjectand waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn. <mailto:bonetools at listserv.niif.hu>
Sent: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 7:12 AM
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
Dear all,
In the Levant, at least, such metal threads were traditionally made by goldsmiths with a different tool - a piece of metal with many small holes of various diameters. This piece was mounted on a wooden base equipped with a small pulley on each side. The thread was tied to one pulley, passed through the largest hole and pulled through it using the other pulley. Then it was transferred to the next, smaller hole etc. etc.
I was thinking about a tool used to straighten or strech strings and thongs, made for instance of leather, by holding one of them in one of the tool's slices, locking it in place with the finger and then pulling the tool along the string.
Etan Ayalon
________________________________
From: bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of Alice Choyke
Sent: Tuesday, March 01, 2011 11:07 PM
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the study ofobject and waste of bone,antler. ivory and horn.
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
Dear Gun-Britt,
Could you send us a picture of this tool and explain how it works? I have never heard about such things and am now very curious indeed.
Cheers!
Alice
On Tue, Mar 1, 2011 at 9:02 PM, Gun-Britt <lazy-b at algonet.se> wrote:
Hello all,
I am a lurking list-member, just enjoying reading all your inputs. I think too toward a metalworking tool, in making threads of metal of different thicknesses. It sure looks like a sort of "key" or mechanism, but hey, I have done some goldsmithing, and we used a similar tool to pull the metal into thinner and thinner threads. Hard work, but tin - as suggested earlier - is a very soft metal.
Just a thought,
Please continue,
Love and blessings,
**Gun-Britt Blomdahl
5th year, thesis-writing at Linnaeus University, Kalmar, Sweden
----- Original Message -----
From: Christian Küchelmann <mailto:info at knochenarbeit.de>
To: BONETOOLS of bone <mailto:bonetools at listserv.niif.hu>
Cc: Michael Olausson <mailto:michael.olausson673 at gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, March 01, 2011 6:12 PM
Subject: [Bonetools] Fwd: A strange antler tool
Dear all,
following up a request by Michael Olausson that has already been sent to the list by Alice last week (see below) I would like to add that the tool is now permanently visible for further discussion on the Mystery bone tool page of the WBRG website at
http://www.wbrg.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=33&Itemid=20
Best
Christian
--------
Dear All,
I am forwarding a letter and photo from a Swedish colleague. Another strange tool. It looks like some part of a mechanism - a locking mechanism? However Michael Olausson also says it has some resemblances to a tool used by the Sami for producing tin thread! If you reply to Michael could you also please CC the list so we can all read about it?
Alice
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Michael Olausson <michael.olausson673 at gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Feb 23, 2011 at 8:55 AM
Subject: A strange antler tool
To: h13017cho at helka.iif.hu
Dear Dr. Alice Choyke,
Dr Kordula Gostencnik suggested that I should contact You in this
matter. I will send You my letter to her as well with the picture of
the item. Dr Gostencnik dod?t regard the toll as one conected to
textil handcraft. She suggestes that it might be a toy, I do not agree
with her, if it should look like a "bear" then it should be made as a
bear! Since there are three differnt kinds of "measurements" of the
teeth, I radaer would thinkt that it has been used to make threads ore
to measure threads. We have a little discussion in Stockholm if it
could be used for metal, silver and gold.
The tool wich has many similarties with a Roman antler key, was found
in mixed layers on a house terrace on the hilltop site,
"H?hensiedlung" Runsa frpm the 5th & 6th centuries.
It would be nice if You could have some ideas, references.
Yours Sincerely
Michael Olausson
ass.prof
<http://62.90.210.236:801/exchange/etana/Drafts/image002.jpg>
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