[Bonetools] Any idea about this function of this artifact ?

[Petar Zidarov]

Dear Chris, thank you for bringing this piece to our attention!You just gave me an idea what to talk about during the WBRG meeting in Iasi in May.Please, let us know from which site is it, just  for the record.
Dear colleagues,I believe what is puzzling Chris is one of the classical mystery bone tools known from the nomenclature of the French Upper Paleolithic as bâton percé (cf. attachment), only in the Balkan Copper Age these are a bit heavier.This kind of objects appear for relatively short time in the third quarter of the 5th mill BC (4500-4250calBC, conventional 14-C age, the AMS dates seem to start a bit earlier).To my knowledge their spatial distribution is restricted to the Eastern Balkans between the northern Aegean coast, across Eastern Bulgaria to the Lower Danube. - Chris, you will find other examples from the Northern Aegean in Rozalia Christidou's paper from the WBRG Talinn meeting, may be in Sitagroi publication as well).- Selena, I would be surprized if you came across similar pieces from Serbia, because I haven't encountered them in Western Bulgaria, but it's not too far anyways.
They are found exclusively in settlement contexts often as single pieces or fragments from such.Since the antler is 3d-worked and they are rather assymetric a reconstruction from a piece is indeed tricky.
I had the chance to encounter quite some of them in the National museum in Bucharest, on my way back from the Targoviste meeting in 2013 (cf. attachment). They are from tell Pietrele, on the left bank of Danube, where the excavations are directed by Svend Hansen, DAI-Eurasien Abt.
There and at other sites from Bulgaria, I have documented various stages of making and breaking these objects, which I intend to show and discuss in detail in Iasi.The only consistent kind of use-wear I noticed so far is the break across the shafting hole, whereas the rest of the object is completely smooth and even polished.I hope you find this useful.

Best regards,Petar -- 
Petar Zidarov Lab of Archaeometry & Experimental Archaeology Department of Archaeology, New Bulgarian University 21 Montevideo Str., Building 2, office 219 BG-1618 Sofia, BULGARIA cell phones: +359 898 347 252, +359 886 749 458
https://newbulgarian.academia.edu/PetarZidarov
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Petar_Zidarov2


      From: Selena Vitezović <selenavitezovic at gmail.com>
 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> 
 Sent: Thursday, March 17, 2016 12:28 AM
 Subject: Re: [Bonetools] Any idea about this function of this artifact ?
   
Hello everyone, Chris, 

This pendant from Divostin is quite small, but my first guess is that you have the basal end of some perforated tool, correct me if I am wrong, but I guess this could have extended quite a lot at the broken part, and just the form looks very much to the butt ends of stone tools, almost as if it is a copy in antler. Other guess is that it is a handle - I've seen cylindrical handles made from antler both in Serbia and Bulgaria, partially or completelly hollowed cancellous tissue on a beam segment. 
However, I've never seen anything quite like this before - hope you'll come to some good hypothesis! 

best, Selena

On 16 March 2016 at 16:47, Christopher Arabatzis <christ.arabatzis at gmail.com> wrote:

Fotis, 
There are only 1-2 antler rings as far as I remember.
Yes, i think that it's intact object as well.

Ariel, 
Thank you for your image.



2016-03-16 17:44 GMT+02:00 <fotisif at gmail.com>:

Hi Chris
any antler finger rings in your material (similar to the Dispilio ones)? Still this seems to be an intact object and not necessarily debris...
Best
Fotis


Sent from my iPad

16 Μαρ 2016, 15:57, ο/η Christopher Arabatzis <christ.arabatzis at gmail.com> έγραψε:

> Dear all,
>
> I hope you are fine.
>
> I'm attaching a photo of an artifact from a neolithic settlement in Greece that dates back to the second half of the 5th millennium B.C.
>
> Any ideas about its' use are very welcomed.
>
> Best Regards,
> Chris
> <832a.jpg>
> _______________________________________________
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> Bonetools at listserv.niif.hu
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-- 
Selena Vitezović 
Arheološki institut 
www.ai.ac.rs

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