[Bonetools] mesolithic artefact
S O'Connor
S.Oconnor at bradford.ac.uk
Wed Apr 16 14:26:26 CEST 2014
Dear François,
Sadly I cannot answer your question on these laws. However, you are right
to say that these skeletal elements are not strictly bone. I was using the
term loosely to indicate a highly mineralized tissue, like bone. Perhaps it
would have been better to call them a ‘boney’ tissue. The point I wished to
make was that they are more persistent in burial than the collagenous
elements of the internal skeleton because of the bioapatite component.
I think that I read somewhere that the protein in ganoine was most similar
to that in tooth enamel rather than cementum. I’ve done some studies of the
dermal denticles of shark and ray skin (shagreen) but am only just beginning
to look at sturgeon so your comments are most welcome.
By the way, you may know that a sturgeon scute was recently recovered from
pagan Anglo-Saxon deposits at excavations in Lyminge in Kent. If you go the
http://blogs.reading.ac.uk/lyminge/ and search on the word ‘sturgeon’, you
will find a picture of it about half-way through the excavation blog.
All the best,
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 [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of
François Poplin
Sent: 16 April 2014 10:28
To: bonetools at listserv.niif.hu
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] mesolithic artefact
May I take opportunity for another question about sturgeons ?
First, there is no bone in them, but cartilage (they are chondrous as sharks
and rays). The outer skeleton is made of ganoine (excuse my lack of some
adequate terms), wich is more or less as cementum - not very hard and
strong, indeed.
As the scutes are not joining together, there are lacks in the "scale"
cover, so as sturgeons are not pure fishes, rather outlaws for Levitic and
Deutoronomy. Some carps have the seem feature, with some very large scales
and "skin" inbetweeen ; called "carpe miroir", "carpe cuir" in french (which
terms in english ?). That should be in the way/embarrassing for
"Gefieltefisch". Could somebobudy tell what is the position of theese carps
compared with theese laws ?
(In osteaoarcheolopgy, remains of sturgeons are these ganoine covering
pieces.... and otoliths (but I a not sure that theese are that devlopped).
Le 15/04/2014 16:08, S O'Connor a écrit :
Dear Marina and David,
Just a few more thoughts. I would be very cautious about ascribing a use to
these fish bones. They look very rounded and ‘worn’ even in-situ in the fin
where they clearly have not been used as a tool or modified by human agency.
I am also dubious about them being used in the consumption of shell fish
having prepared and consumed quantities of both oysters and mussels in my
time! You need a stout knife or a sharp and robust stone blade for the
oyster and an empty mussel shell makes a perfect pair of ‘tweezers’ with
which to eat the delicate cooked flesh of other mussels. The sturgeon fin
bone would not be useful for either role and is even too blunt for
extracting the cooked flesh from marine gastropods such as cockles and
winkles.
Most likely the pile of bones found in Hamburg is just residue from fileting
sturgeon. The skin is likely to have been removed as a piece with the
characteristic boney scutes for processing into leather. Cutting off the
fins at the fish market would make it easier to stack, roll or fold the skin
for transportation from the fish market to the tanners. If the heads were
left on the skins the fin bones would be one of the few persistent skeletal
elements left behind as the sturgeon has a largely cartilaginous skeleton.
All the best,
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 [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of
marinaevora at sapo.pt
Sent: 15 April 2014 14:11
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the study of
object and waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn.
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] mesolithic artefact
Thank you David and Sonia for your comments, no wonder I couldn't find
parallels, I was not looking in the right place.
David, could you point me to the complete reference of the page and images
you provided?
Best,
Marina
Quoting S O'Connor <S.Oconnor at bradford.ac.uk>:
That looks a pretty close match, for the sturgeon dorsal fin elements
See
http://web.pdx.edu/~virginia/white_sturgeon/images/caudal_fin_dorsal.htm
<http://web.pdx.edu/%7Evirginia/white_sturgeon/images/caudal_fin_dorsal.htm>
part of
http://web.pdx.edu/~virginia/white_sturgeon/white_sturgeon.htm
<http://web.pdx.edu/%7Evirginia/white_sturgeon/white_sturgeon.htm>
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 [mailto:bonetools-bounces at listserv.niif.hu] On Behalf Of
Dave Constantine
Sent: 15 April 2014 11:28
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the study of
object and waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn.
Subject: Re: [Bonetools] mesolithic artefact
Dear Marina,
Is it possibly a fish bone? Attached are a couple of pages discussing the
possible use of Sturgeon bones for eating shellfish and the bones look
rather like yours.
Regards,
David Constantine
From: marinaevora at sapo.pt
Sent: Tuesday, April 15, 2014 11:03 AM
To: Mailing list for archaeologists of the research group for the study of
object and waste of bone, antler. ivory and horn.
<mailto:bonetools at listserv.niif.hu>
Subject: [Bonetools] mesolithic artefact
Dear all,
I'm sending you two pictures of an artefact recovered from a mesolithic
shellmidden site in Portugal. I believe it is made from mammal bone. Do you
have/ know of similar objects? I have been searching for parallels and I
didn't find it.
Thank you.
Best,
Marina Évora
P Please consider the impact on the environment before printing this
message.
_____
_______________________________________________
Bonetools mailing list
Bonetools at listserv.niif.hu
https://listserv.niif.hu/mailman/listinfo/bonetools
Marina Évora
P Please consider the impact on the environment before printing this
message.
_______________________________________________
Bonetools mailing list
Bonetools at listserv.niif.hu
https://listserv.niif.hu/mailman/listinfo/bonetools
--
François POPLIN
Directeur honoraire de l’UMR 7209 Archéozoologie, Archébotanique : sociétés,
pratiques et environnements
Responsable du Séminaire d'Anthropozoologie
Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle
CP 56
Ancien Laboratoire d’Anatomie comparée
55, rue de Buffon
75005 Paris
01 40 79 33 11
fax ------ 33 14
francoispoplin.blogspot.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://listserv.niif.hu/pipermail/bonetools/attachments/20140416/1a941745/attachment-0001.html>
More information about the Bonetools
mailing list