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Description: | Bone point made from the proximal half of the right metatarsal (hind leg bone) of an adult bovid (i.e. a cow, bull etc). The bone has been split about halfway down the shaft (diaphysis) and shaped into a point. There are clear signs of cutting and scraping of the bone to shape it on all sides, and the front has been cut at a sharper angle to form the point. The pointed end has acquired a gloss, probably through a combination of handling and use. The tip has a facet cut across at a slight angle; the facet is smooth, and was possibly caused by impact and then subsequent handling/use. The front (anterior) of the bone has three cut transverse grooves about halfway down the object, just where the hollow interior emerges. The left side (medial) has 12 similar grooves and the right side (lateral) has 14. The grooves are about 1 mm wide and the same deep; the spacing varies from 3 mm to 11 mm. There are also some smaller oblique cuts. The articular end has been perforated and the interior of the bone hollowed out, presumably to take a wooden shaft or handle. The implement could have been used as a spear point, but could also have been used for digging. The grooves on the side are probably decorative, but could also have aided the tying on of thongs or cord for a binding. Similar items are known from Early or Middle Bronze Age contexts, and it is likely that this piece is of a similar date (approximately 2000-1500 BC). Length 133 mm. | Format: | text/html | License: | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ | Publisher: | The Portable Antiquities Scheme | Rights holder: | The Portable Antiquities Scheme | Subjects: | archaeology | Temporal: | -2000
-1500 | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://www.finds.org.uk/database/artefac... | Language: | en-GB | Format: | text/html | Go to resource |
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