Experimental analysis of the manufacture and use of bone and antler tools among the Mackenzie Inuit

Abstract

Use wear analysis of bone and antler tools has lagged behind studies of stone tools. In this dissertation I have tried to advance the study of microscopic wear on bone and antler. This study had three main goals. The first was to demonstrate, using theoretical concepts from tribology, that microscopic patterns on bone and antler can be differentiated. To that end, a series of experiments, involving both the manufacture and use of bone and antler tools, was carried out. The second goal was to apply the results of the experimental programme to an archaeological sample. Bone and antler tools from Mackenzie Inuit sites were selected as an appropriate case study. It was found that many of the different patterns defined experimentally could be identified on archaeological tools, but that tools with many possible uses, or which had been used for multiple tasks, are much more difficult to categorize. Finally, the data concerning manufacture and use of bone and antler tools among the Mackenzie Inuit generated by this analysis were used to reconstruct the design system used in making these tools. It is suggested that all the Mackenzie Inuit subgroups included in this study shared the same design system. Based on models from cognitive anthropology, this is taken to indicate a high degree of interaction between the groups. These results show great promise for future studies of bone and antler technology.