Tracéologie fonctionnelle des matières osseuses : une méthode

Abstract

Use-wear analysis of prehistoric bone assemblages has increased considerably during the last 10 years. Despite an existing consensus regarding the methods used to date, they are still at an exploratory stage and their results the subject of debate. Several are still being tested and are based on different observational criteria and different preliminary theories. We will expound upon one of these different methods here; it was created when researching bone, antler and ivory industries of the Neolithic period, and has already been echoed in work carried out on shell ornaments (Bonnardin, 2004). This method stems from the synthesis of 40 years of research and has two complementary levels: 1) an analysis of volumes combined with a preliminary analysis of the surfaces, known as macroscopic, 2) a thorough analysis of surfaces, known as microscopic. We are, nowadays, facing a similar situation to the one prevailing in the 1980s regarding use-wear analysis of flint which underwent a process of restudy and discussion. Consequently, it is urgent to expound upon methodologies in order to broaden debate and pool knowledge.