[Bonetools] bonze age ivory comb

[corina.liesau at uam.es]

Dear all,
I would like to ask the experts about the bone technology in a Bronze  
Age comb (1750-1650a.C) from the southeast of the Iberian Península.  
This is not a unique case, but rare. The INCENTIVS studies made in  
Mainz reveal that it was made from Loxodonta africana africana.

Size: 50 mm long and 4mm thick. Spaces between the teeth are 0,2 mm  
and when they got broken, the comb continued to be used exhaustively,  
so it seems to be a functional comb.

I'm specially interested in the technology of the comb. Copper saws  
are known in Iberia from that time but it is not possible to get so  
narrow teeth and the awls are made with copper and some arsenic and  
I'm not sure if they would be able to make these teeth.

My hypothesis is that this comb could be a lice-comb. I do not discard  
that the holes are to have a better grip of it, especially to avoid  
slithering if any oily product was applied on the hair to capture  
lice. Small distances allow in modern lice combs to “capture” adult  
lice and also nits.

Some Aegean combs have similar shapes, but not these big holes. Does  
anybody have any suggestions about the technology and use of this comb?

Thanks in advance

In the next mail I send a pdf about another ivory pieces from iberian  
Bellbeaker inhumations.

**********************************
Corina Liesau von Lettow-Vorbeck

Dpto. De Prehistoria y Arqueología
Facultad de Filosofía y Letras
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
C/Francisco Tomás y Valiente 1
28049 Madrid
Tel:  00 34 91 4972012
Fax: 00 34 91 4974435


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