Antler working by the last European Pleistocene hunter-gatherers of Santimamiñe cave (Northern Iberian Peninsula): technological implications of osseous equipment during the Magdalenian

Abstract

This paper assesses the exploitation of osseous raw materials, namely antler, used by hunter-gatherer populations in the Late Upper Palaeolithic of Santimamiñe cave. The different categories of products (waste products, blanks, and finished objects) are analysed from a technological perspective to identify the fabrication methods employed by Magdalenian groups. A predominant operational scheme is identified, extraction by the double grooving procedure, related to the production of highly standardised rods. This study will allow us to explore possible cultural variations in the application of this procedure. It also addresses other aspects in relation to the circulation of osseous implements, the mobility of hunter-gatherer groups, and the useful life of the weapons, as regard maintenance and discard behaviour.