06/16/2024 – 18:11
Toys? Drums? Nose ornaments? Projectiles? Throughout history, certain artifacts have perplexed archaeologists. Elaborate shapes and intricate ornamentations provide fascinating but incomplete clues. In the vast field of archaeology, discoveries persist that leave open questions, even for the greatest experts: despite all the advances, certain objects continue to challenge the contemporary understanding of certain ancient customs.
In an article for the website The Conversation, researcher Natasha Harlow, from the Department of Archeology at the University of Nottingham, examined five of these enigmatic artefacts.
Neolithic balls from Scotland
The elaborately carved stone spheres found mainly in Scotland, in graves and settlements, date back to the Neolithic (Stone Age), between 3200 and 2500 BC. With decorations ranging from spirals to concentric shapes, they are rarely identical or part of a set.
Despite their antiquity and the fact that they were manipulated, their original use remains completely opaque. Harlow speculates: “Were they missiles to deter predators and pests? War weapons? Toys? Or perhaps measuring weights, household ornaments, mnemotechnical devices, bearings for moving megaliths, supports for loom threads?”
Roman dodecahedrons
Another mystery are the dodecahedrons dated between the years 43 and 410, in Great Britain occupied by the Romans. Found in the northwestern provinces of the ancient empire, they are manufactured in various sizes from copper alloy. Fascinating in form, they almost never show signs of wear that might suggest a specific use, and the absence of mentions in ancient art or literature seals their mystery.
Neolithic chalk drums
In 1889, three carved chalk cylinders were discovered in a child’s tomb in Folkton, North Yorkshire, England. The geometric decoration suggests what appear to be eyes, noses and eyebrows.
In 1993 and 2015, two other objects were found in other areas of England, one simple, the other highly decorated. One of the chalk drums has been dated to between 3005 and 2890 BC. Despite their nickname, they are unlikely to have been used as percussion instruments, and they show no signs of mechanical wear.
There were those who tried to associate his recordings with astronomical observations. However, the fact that they are found next to carefully buried children seems to require a more sensitive explanation.
Bronze Age “lock rings”
The Bronze Age (1000 – 800 BC) stands out for masterful goldsmithing. Some of the small “lock rings” found, usually in pairs, in Ireland, the United Kingdom and parts of France are smooth, others bear delicate geometric engravings.
It has been suggested that these are earrings or nasal or hair ornaments. According to Natasha Harlow, the explanation is unsatisfactory, as “several elements of their design would make them difficult or uncomfortable to use”.
Romano-British cosmetic mortars
Composed of an oblong mortar and a rod-shaped or curved pestle, like a seesaw, the copper alloy cosmetic mortars of Great Britain date from 100 BC to 200 AD, during Roman rule.
The shapes of some suggest waterfowl and cattle, while the phallic motifs of others evoke associations with fertility. They were probably used to prepare medicines, aphrodisiacs, cosmetics or narcotics: here the mystery is not their function, but the content, which has not yet been possible to identify.
A reminder to amateur archaeologists who find objects of this kind to resist the temptation to clean them and take them directly to an expert.
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