The Mechanical Properties of Marine and Terrestrial Skeletal Materials. Implications for the Organization of Forager Technologies
Author(s): Amy V Margaris
Year: 2009
Summary
The innate, mechanical properties of tool raw materials place ultimate limits on how the materials can be worked and used, thus affecting most facets of tool use-lives. Prehistoric forager groups such as the Alutiiq of Alaska's Kodiak archipelago constructed tools not only from stone, but also from a range of skeletal materials whose mechanical properties are not well understood. Laboratory tests were carried out to determine the material stiffness, strength, and toughness (fracture resistance) of sea lion and cervid limb bone as they relate to better-studied antler. Sea lions are a semi-marine adapted species but their limb bone properties overlap those of elk and white-tailed deer. Elk bone is particularly strong and stiff; while antler's remarkable degree of toughness makes it the ideal choice for tools that require maximum fracture resistance, a pattern that is evident in protohistoric Alutiiq toolkits. Further tests are needed to refine our understanding of how the mechanical properties of osseous tissues vary within and between taxa and skeletal elements.
Cite this Record
The Mechanical Properties of Marine and Terrestrial Skeletal Materials. Implications for the Organization of Forager Technologies. Amy V Margaris. Ethnoarchaeology. Journal of Archaeological, Ethnographic, and Experimental Studies. 1 (2): 163-184. 2009 ( tDAR id: 423191)
URL: http://lcoastpress.metapress.com/content/m13055217h316067/?p=a48b3c3345654c86...
Keywords
Temporal Keywords
Mesolithic
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Newer Era
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Newest Era
Spatial Coverage
min long: -129.199; min lat: 24.495 ; max long: -66.973; max lat: 49.359 ;
Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): EXARC Experimental Archaeology Collection Manager
Record Identifiers
ExArc Id(s): 9981
Notes
Rights & Attribution: The information in this record was originally compiled by Dr. Roeland Paardekooper, EXARC Director.