Reconsidering Raw Material Selection: Skeletal Technologies and Design for Durability in Subarctic Alaska

Raw material selection is an essential facet of technological decision making. This analysis moves beyond more typical lithic studies, investigating links between raw material selection and practical tool function by integrating data from materials science and ethnohistory with an analysis of bone a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory
Main Author: Margaris, Amy V.
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: Digital Commons at Oberlin 2014
Subjects:
Organization of technology
Raw material
Bone implements
Alaska
Anthropology
Subarctic
Online Access:https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/faculty_schol/40
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-012-9168-x
Description
Summary:Raw material selection is an essential facet of technological decision making. This analysis moves beyond more typical lithic studies, investigating links between raw material selection and practical tool function by integrating data from materials science and ethnohistory with an analysis of bone and antler tools. A case study of skeletal technologies from the Alaskan subarctic offers a fresh perspective on technological strategies, especially the selection of highly durable (fracture resistant) skeletal materials to create reliable tools for use in high-risk foraging contexts.

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