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111 9 Miscellaneous Objects This section documents other small objects recovered from the excavations. Primary categorization has been accomplished by function, where intimated, and/or material type, which is somewhat arbitrary and less than satisfactory. For example, a polished-stone pendant , included here, might also be discussed with other polished-stone work; functionally, however, it seemed to fit better in this chapter. All the materials included in this chapter were found in insufficient numbers to address broader questions of temporal or spatial distribution. Small Objects in Bone, Stone, and Shell As was noted by our faunal analyst (Scali 1990), conditions for the preservation of bones in the upper level of the site were not optimal at Capo Alfiere. The clay soil is both very hard and cracks apart when dry, and it is subject to expansion and compression when moist—circumstances that would act destructively on any objects made from bone. Hence arises the fragmentary condition of much of the faunal material. On the other hand, the soil was not destructively acidic, as was the case at Acconia. Thus, while preservation was poor, some material survived. Nonetheless, given the extreme paucity of worked-bone objects recognized so far, it is probably true to say that this class of object is underrepresented for this preindustrial society . As yet we have not received the results of the fauFigure 9.1 Tubular beads. 0 2 cm a [CA 0495] b [CA 0646-15] c [CA 0510] a [CA 0295-02] b [CA 0018] 0 1 cm Figure 9.2 Circular beads. nal analysis for material recovered in 1990, so we do not know whether further examples of worked pieces were noted in the much more copious bone finds from the lower strata. Beads and Pendants To date, three varieties of objects that might be interpreted as beads have been identified, plus two probable pendants. Beads can be divided into two sorts: tubular and circular. The tubular class comes in two varieties. First, there are small tubular fluted shells that have been sawn off at their tip.1 On the nine examples found, either the majority of the shell was used, in which case the length ranged up to 3.2 cm (Fig. 9.1a– b), or a segment was sawn out, generally about 0.8 cm long. Small long bones also appear to have been turned into beads (Fig. 9.1c). There were two probable examples, respectively 1.4 and 1.7 cm long. Of the ten examples of circular beads recovered, nine are of bone or shell and one appears to have been in stone. In the latter case the concept and size appear equivalent. These were between 0.5 and 0.8 cm across and 0.1 to 0.2 cm thick (Fig. 9.2a–b). The hole in the center had been drilled out; various examples seemed to have been drilled from one or both sides. There were three probable pendants found. One was a piece of polished bone, approximately rectangular and pierced at one end (Fig. 9.3a). It was 4.2 cm 1 These appear to be made from dentalium shells, which were often used for this purpose at Neolithic sites. (JR) 112 Miscellaneous Objects long, and had apparently been sawn from a segment of long bone. It was found on the higher floor surface within the hut (IIb). A stone pendant in a sub triangular or teardrop shape came from the upper (possibly disturbed) levels of the lower stratum (Fig. 9.3b). This was 1.8 cm long and seemed to be a piece of polished serpentine. This piece represents the only example of polished-stone work retrieved from the lower levels so far.2 Finally, a shell of a small bivalve pierced near the hinge came from the top of the rubble inside the walls in 1989. It was 2.1 cm across (Fig. 9.3c).3 Given the rarity of these pieces, very little can be concluded. One interesting observation is that one securely stratified example of the tubular shell beads came from Stratum I, while all the other examples were found in the debris above Stratum II and in plough soil. No small circular beads were found in the lower levels, while two were sealed by the modification to Stratum IIa. Both of the tubular bone beads were unstratified. This distributional distinction between the two main classes of bead must be regarded as tentative at present, rather than of any significance. Other Bone Artifacts...

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