Ornaments and Other Ambiguous Artifacts from Franchthi

Catherine Perlès

Description

The famous Franchthi Cave excavations in Greece brought to light an exceptionally long sequence of ornaments, spanning from the earliest Upper Palaeolithic to the end of the Neolithic. This volume focuses on the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic ornaments and ornamental species, which constitute one of the largest collections in Europe for these periods combined. Franchthi is one of the few identified production centers for ornaments, which are overwhelmingly dominated by marine molluscs. The detailed publication of these collections (Cyclope neritea, Antalis sp. and Columbella rustica) will be useful to all malacologists and specialists in ornaments working around the Mediterranean. These reference collections, coupled with the examination of manufacturing and wear traces on the archaeological specimens, allow a detailed reconstruction of the whole production cycle from procurement to discard. The systematic association of unworked, freshly worked and very worn shells suggests that the ornaments mostly served for the production or rejuvenation of embroidered garments. Despite the richness of the assemblages and varied local resources, the range of ornament types is surprisingly narrow and fundamentally stable through time. The ornaments from Franchthi Cave therefore paint a different portrait of the European Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic, one based on regional cultural continuity.

Prologue
Preface
1. Goals and Methods

Ornaments and Ornamental Species of the Paleolithic

2. Environmental Data: Past Shorelines and Potential Resources
3. The Exploitation of Cyclope neritea and Cyclope pellucida
4. A Problematic Ornament Type: Antalis sp., the Tusk Shell
5. Columbella rustica, Rare but Heavily Worn Dove Shell Beads
6. Rare Paleolithic Ornament Type
7. Diachronic Variations
8. Franchthi Paleolithic Ornaments: A Uniquely Restricted and Stable Range?

Ornaments and Ornamental Shells of the Mesolithic

9. Continuity in a Changing Environment
10. A Massively Predominant Species: Cyclope neritea
11. Abundant Mesolithic Columbella rustica
12. Mesolithic Antalis sp.: A Homogeneous Assemblage
13. Rare Mesolithic Ornament Types
14. Abundance and Restriction: An Overview of the Franchthi Mesolithic Ornament Assemblages

Epilogue
Appendices
References
Index

Sujets

• Social Science
• Histoire
• Archaeology
• Franchthi Cave
• Archaeological science

Informations

• Publié par: Indiana University Press
• Date de parution: 10 janvier 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 2
• EAN13: 9780253031853
• Langue: English

Extrait

Ornaments and Other Ambiguous Artifacts from Franchthi
Excavations at Franchthi Cave, Greece
F ASCICLE 15
Ornaments and Other Ambiguous Artifacts from Franchthi
VOLUME I
The Palaeolithic and the Mesolithic
CATHERINE PERL S
With an Appendix by Andr C. Colonese
INDIANA UNIVERSITY PRESS
This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press
Office of Scholarly Publishing
Herman B Wells Library 350
1320 East 10th Street
Bloomington, Indiana 47405 USA
iupress.indiana.edu
2018 by Catherine Perl s
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1992.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Cataloging information is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-0-253-03184-6 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-253-03185-3 (web PDF)
ISBN 978-0-253-03488-5 (print PDF)
1 2 3 4 5 23 22 21 20 19 18
CONTENTS
PROLOGUE
PREFACE
Chapter One
Goals and Methods
What Do We Study? An Ambiguous and Probably Heterogeneous Set of Artifacts
A Resolutely Diachronic Perspective
The Multiple Facets of Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Shells Ornaments
Ornamental Shells as Natural Species
Ornaments as Artifacts
Ornaments as Symbolic Units
Sampling Strategies: Storage Conditions and Recovery Procedures
Evolving Sieving Procedures
A Contrasted Chronostratigraphic Precision
Methods of Study
Identification of Species and Definition of Ornament Types
Observations and Recording
Phasing the Ornament Assemblages
ORNAMENTS AND ORNAMENTAL SPECIES OF THE PALAEOLITHIC
Chapter Two
Environmental Data: Past Shorelines and Potential Resources
Chapter Three
The Exploitation of Cyclope neritea and Cyclope pellucida
Taphonomic Issues and Representativeness of the Sample
Agent of Accumulation
Cyclope sp.: An Exclusively Ornamental Taxon
Characterisation and Taxonomic Identification
Collecting Dead or Live Cyclopes?
Selection of Specimens and Production of Ornaments
Heavily Worn Beads in a Production Centre?
Chapter Four
A Problematic Ornament Type: Antalis sp., the Tusk Shell
Taxonomy
The Palaeolithic Antalis sp.: A Partial Recovery
From Large to Tiny: Dimensional Variation
One or More Agents of Deposition?
Tusk Shells as Beads
Chapter Five
Columbella rustica, Rare but Heavily Worn Dove Shell Beads
A Fair Representativeness of the Sample
A Collection on Beaches from Thanatocoenoses
A Selection of Large Specimens
The Production of the Dove Shell Beads
Chapter Six
Rare Palaeolithic Ornament Types
Homalopoma sanguineum: An Early Upper Palaeolithic Ornament
Glycymeris sp.: Pendants or Ochre Recipients?
A Single Bone Bead
and a Unique Perforated Ibex Tooth
Stone Beads: Probable Intrusions
A Note on Some Species that We Did Not Considered as Ornamental .
Chapter Seven
Diachronic Variations
Variations in the Intensity of Manufacturing, Use and Discard of Ornaments
Ornaments and Sediment: Independent Variations
Mammal Bones and Ornaments: Again, Independent Variations
Collecting Ornamental Shells and Shellfish: Independent Activities
Ornaments and Chipped Stone Artifacts: Still Independent Variations
Fluctuating Rates of Deposition of Ornaments and Unexpected Similarities
Diachronic Variation in the Composition of Ornament Assemblages and Characterisation of Ornament Phases
Franchthi Ornament Phase 1
Franchthi Ornament Phase 2
Franchthi Ornament Phase 3
Chapter Eight
Franchthi Palaeolithic Ornaments: A Uniquely Restricted and Stable Range?
The Predominance of Marine Shells
The Predominance of Small, Basket-Shaped Beads and Carnivorous Gastropods
Highly Selective Assemblages
Stable Choices throughout Many Millennia
Where Local Preferences Come into Play: Choice of Species and Significant Absences
ORNAMENTS AND ORNAMENTAL SHELLS OF THE MESOLITHIC
Chapter Nine
Continuity in a Changing Environment
The Same Shell Ornaments
Despite a Transformed Coastal Environment
Chapter Ten
A Massively Predominant Species: Cyclope neritea
Variations in Dimensions and Species Represented
A Blind Collection of Adults and Juveniles
From Snail to Ornament
A Mix of Shells with Very Different States of Use
Chapter Eleven
Abundant Mesolithic Columbella rustica
A Collection in Thanatocoenoses, and Variable States of Preservation
A Double Process of Selection: On the Beach and in the Cave
Were Columbella rustica Heat-Treated?
Perforating the Dove Shells
Dove Shell Beads: Heavily Used Ornaments
Chapter Twelve
Mesolithic Antalis sp.: A Homogeneous Assemblage
Beads of Variable Length
The Species Represented
Representativeness of the Sample
A Collection on Gravelly Beaches
Manufacturing the Beads
Changing the Colour: Potential Heat-Treatment and Deposits of Ochre
Chapter Thirteen
Rare Mesolithic Ornament Types
Perforated Pebbles (M. Miller and C. Perl s)
A Problematic Group: Bird Bone Beads or Tusk Shells?
A Single Perforated Conus mediterraneus: Mistake or Fancy?
A Lonely Fragment of Glycymeris sp .
A Note on Shells Species that We Did Not Considered to Be Ornamental
Chapter Fourteen
Abundance and Restriction: An Overview of the Franchthi Mesolithic Ornament Assemblages
Why So Many Ornaments?
Variations in the Density of Ornaments to the Volume of Sediment
Ornaments and Humans Burials
A Shift in Use between the Palaeolithic and the Mesolithic?
Variation behind Homogeneity
Franchthi, a Typical Mediterranean Site for Ornaments
EPILOGUE
Lessons from a Monotonous Sequence
Franchthi, a Rare Example of a Coastal Production Centre
But a Singularly Monotonous Sequence
Basket-Shaped Beads, Yes, but Not Just Any Basket!
Cultural Continuity or Discontinuity: Which Proxy?
Revisiting the Franchthi Occupational Sequence
Lithics and Ornaments: Similar Discrepancies from a Synchronic Viewpoint
APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1
Lists of Ornaments and Ornamental Shells per Trench and Unit
APPENDIX 2
Molluscan Remains from a Subsample of 5 mm Residues by A. C. Colonese
APPENDIX 3
Introduction : Modern Shell Reference Collections
APPENDIX 3.1
Cyclope neritea and Cyclope pellucida
Habitat and Conditions of Collection of Cyclope neritea
Reference Collections
Analyses of the Reference Collections
Rates of Collection
State of Preservation
Ratio of Juveniles to Adults
Variation in the Size Distribution of Adult C. neritea
Experiments in Perforation
Heat Treatment
APPENDIX 3.2
Columbella rustica
Collecting Columbella rustica
Collecting in Thanatocoenoses along Beaches
Collecting by Sight under Water
Collecting by Touch in Waist-Deep Water
Dimensional Variation
Height Distribution on Beach Samples (Thanatocoenoses )
Height Distribution in Underwater Samples Collected by Sight
Height Distribution in Underwater Nests
State of Preservation
Rates of Collection
From Reference Collections to Archaeological Inference
Experiments in the Production of Dove Shell Beads
APPENDIX 3.3
Antalis sp .
Reference Collections
Dimensions
State of Preservation
Experiments
APPENDIX 3.4
Conus mediterraneus
Reference Collections
Experiments
REFERENCES
INDEX
TABLES
In the Text
1.1
General phasing of Franchthi Cave Palaeolithic and Mesolithic occupations .
1.2
Distribution of Palaeolithic and Mesolithic ornament types according to the Franchthi General Phasing .
3.1
Altered and non-altered Cyclope sp. by phase .
3.2
Mean maximum diameter of measured adult Upper Palaeolithic Cyclope sp .
3.3
Proportion of adults and juvenile Cyclope sp. per phase .
3.4
Proportion of burnt adults and juveniles Cyclope sp. by phase .
3.5
Mean and standard deviation of maximum diameter for measurable perforated and non-perforated adult Cyclope sp. by phase .
3.6
Intact perforated Cyclope sp. and perforated specimens with a broken lip .
4.1
Number of Antalis sp. found in residues from the 5 mm sieves and 5 mm sieves .
4.2
Distribution by class of maximum diameter of Antalis sp. segments .
4.3
Pearson s coefficients of correlation between Antalis sp. segments, Bittium sp., Boraginaceae seeds and microflakes from the 5 mm residues .
5.1
State of preservation of the Palaeolithic C. rustica .
7.1
Synthetic list of Palaeolithic ornaments and ornamental shells by phase in H1A, H1B and FAS .
7.2
Detailed counts of ornaments and Palaeolithic ornamental species in H1A, H1B and FAS .
7.3
Abundance of ornaments and ornamental shells re