Bone Disk with a Figurative Decoration
Personal ornament
Magdalenian
21 000 to 14 000 years
Thin, flat circular or semi-circular object cut from a hard animal material with a blade.
C. Bellier, S. Bott, P. Cattelain, Fiches typologiques de l'industrie osseuse préhistorique, C.N.R.S, Paris. 1991
Commentary :
The large number of personal ornaments found in Magdalenian habitations, reflect the importance of these objects in the daily lives.
Most are decorated with an abstract or geometric motif, accompanied by a few examples, bearing an animal figure.
The representation of a doe on a thin disk cut from the scapula of this animal, reveals the close symbolic connection between animals, and hunter-gatherer groups. As reflected in the diverse forms and manners in which appear, as food, clothing, personal ornaments, etc., animals were ubiquitous in the material culture, and spiritual lives of humans, nourishing their body, thoughts and dreams.