[Bonetools] General question about dot and circle motif

[Katherine M. Moore]

Dear bone tool group colleagues:

My eye was caught by the dot/circle motifs on that hair pin, and I  
address the list with a few basic questions about this motif, based on  
their occasional appearance on "fancy" pieces in Formative (neolithic)  
Bolivia.

What tools and techniques are necessary to produce this effect? It is  
a one-step or two-step procedure to produce the dot and the circle  
together?

I have seen reference to producing the circle with a fine, stiff reed  
or plant stem and abrasive. Does this seem reasonable?

Does decoration with dot-and-circle seem like a more demanding process  
than free-hand engraving or less demanding of skill and training?

There is spectacular free-hand engraving on bone for thousands of  
years in the New World, but dot-and-circle also appears. I don't have  
the experience to judge the implications for the production of the  
craft, much less what the social implications might be in choosing a  
dot-and-circle decoration over a hatched band or a little monkey or  
jaguar.

Thanks for your insights,

best,

Kate Moore



Quoting Marloes Rijkelijkhuizen <marloesrijkelijkhuizen at hotmail.com>:

>
> Dear all,
>
> A question from a German colleague.
> This object is 6,6 cm long, diameter of the shaft is 0,4 cm. The  
> dice are circa 0,6 x 0,7 cm.
>
> Has anyone of you seen such a piece before, or has any other information?
>
> With best wishes,
> Marloes



Zooarchaeology Laboratory
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
3260 South Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA