Museum complex

Composite tool

Upper Paleolithic
Malta-Buret’ Culture
Mammoth tusk; flint (stone)
21 cm
Receipt: excavations under the supervision of M. M. Gerasimov
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Further sophistication and development of hunting and gathering influenced not only improvement of the old, but also development of new forms of tools. Man has learned how to use different types of raw stones: from the hardest (obsidian, flint) to quite soft ones (limestone and sandstone). Making of composite tools had become a huge step forward.

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A variety of stone objects could have been attached to a handle made of bone, horn or wood with the help of resin or glue: incisors, scrapers, plates resembling a knife in shape. Such tool could be used to plan, scrape and cut bone, mammoth tusk, wood, tendons and meat. A unique "tool with a plate" inserted in a horn handle, was found on the Malta camp site in the Irkutsk Region. The handle allowed to making much smaller stone inserts, which in turn made the process of manufacturing and repair a whole lot easier. Fully preserved composite tools are very rare finds, since handles and bonding matters are very fragile. However, the finds of numerous small stone tools at sites of the Upper Paleolithic are evidence of their widespread existence during this period.
Functional purpose: presumably, this tool was used as a chisel for processing wood or other solid organic materials. It is also possible to use it in processing of skins.
Notice of uniqueness: a composite tool made of organic material is an extremely rare find, because they were poorly preserved due to natural conditions or were thrown away when they were already damaged.

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