Pointed bone tools from the Hamangia culture on the Lower Danube: Manufacture and function

Abstract

This study focuses on the pointed bone tools from the Hamangia culture (Chalcolithic period, late 6th millennium BC - early 5th millennium BC), obtained from the long bones of caprines by quadri-partition with double grooving. The pointed bone tool assemblage from the Hamangia settlement at Cheia-Vatra Satului (Romania) was selected as a case study for analysing technological manufacturing sequences of these specific typological tools. Our study was two-fold: 1. identifying the sequence of the procedures in the chaîne opératoire from the original bone to the finished pointed tool; 2. determining the functionality of these tools (as multipurpose items or designed for a single activity only). For the purposes of this research, we focused on the diagnostic pieces such as preforms, blanks, and manufacturing waste, rather than the finished pieces, in an attempt to reconstruct the entire sequence of the manufacturing procedures, to visualize their transformation from the bone to the finished object. This experimental approach resulted in detailed records of the raw material used, the time necessary for each type of procedure, the tools used, and the results obtained during each operation. Next, the experimental tools were tested in various scenarios, such as hide perforation, bone breaking, shell perforation, wood processing, vegetable fiber production, etc. The active ends of these items were then observed, with variables such as frequency and distribution of polish, micro-topography, pattern of functional striations, presence of microfractures, and use-wear areas. The observations made on the archaeological specimens were compared to those on the experimental replicas in order to test the hypotheses regarding the ways the pointed tools were manufactured and used by the prehistoric communities.