Rectangular Beads from the Final Gravettian Level of the Abri Pataud: Raw Material Identification and its Archaeological Implications

Informative Potential of Multiscale Observations in Archaeological Biominerals Down to Nanoscale

“…Similar rectangular beads as those found at Abri Pataud (Vercoutère et al 2011;Chiotti et al 2014;) have been discovered in two additional French sites known for the Final Gravettian period: at the rock shelter of Les Peyrugues (Allard et al 1997;Rodière 2011) and at the site of Le Blot (Chauvière and Fontana 2005). A closer look at these ornaments explains the difficulty of raw material identification and of the study of their use.…”

“…Given the fact that mammoth ivory is rare in level 2 of Abri Pataud, whereas bones and reindeer antler are very abundant, this study demonstrates the exceptional status of this type of beads not only because of their archaeological context, but also due to the choice of raw material for their manufacture (Vercoutère et al 2011). …”

Vivianite and Its Oxidation Products in Mammoth Ivory and Their Implications to the Burial Process

“… 1 − 8 Based on the symbolic ancient mammoth ivory tools and artifacts, the origin and evolution of ancient technologies and cultural differences of different communities were identified. 9 − 14 The woolly mammoth is an extinct species of the Elephantidae with its tusks mostly buried in ice sheets or frozen soil in the northern hemisphere. 15 The curved mammoth tusks generally present a light yellow to white color with a yellowish-brown surface darkened by burial.…”

“…In paleontology and archeology, researchers have observed the chemical composition and physical characteristics of mammoth ivory to obtain information about environmental evolution in the Upper Paleolithic. − Based on the symbolic ancient mammoth ivory tools and artifacts, the origin and evolution of ancient technologies and cultural differences of different communities were identified. − The woolly mammoth is an extinct species of the Elephantidae with its tusks mostly buried in ice sheets or frozen soil in the northern hemisphere . The curved mammoth tusks generally present a light yellow to white color with a yellowish-brown surface darkened by burial. , With the wide application of mammoth ivory in gemology, its mineral composition is gradually understood by researchers.…”