Bone-breaking Taboo: An Ethnoarchaeological Problem Concerning Northern Prehistory

Abstract

Among modern hunter-gatherers of the North animal cults associated with special disposal of the bones of hunted animals are widely distributed. Ethnographic reports give descriptions of the bones for rituals such as what bones of what animals they are and how they are carefully collected after eating the animals in order to be ritually disposed. Nevertheless, only scanty information are available concerning the physical conditions required of the bones, that is, whether the bones could be or actually were crushed for marrow. However, there are some field data indicating bone-breaking taboos: among such peoples as the Sakhalin Ainu and the Tanaina of Alaska, for example, breaking bear-bones or eating bear-marrow was tabooed or protested. From the viewpoint of the wide distribution of the habit of breaking bones for marrow among hunter-gatherers, the taboo of bone-breaking is unusual and, therefore, it may be possible to trace the origin and history of such a supernatural practice archaeologically by careful examination of the nature of animal remains in archaeological sites.A fundamental religious concept widely held by modern hunter-gatherers of the North is the belief in the immortality of game. Those bone rituals and taboos mentioned above areexpressions of it. From this point of view the bone-breaking taboo may be one of few clues to the understanding of the world view of prehistoric hunter-gatherers in the North. To pursue this problem we need more data from modern hunter-gatherers.