Theme:
5. Theories and methods in archaeology: interactions between disciplines
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
Interpreting Archaeological Finds of Enigmatic Tubular Bones as Sound Instruments: Possibilities and Pitfalls
Content:
Those tubular bones from prehistoric times that possess a neatly arranged row of finger holes are easily recognized as flutes by our modern eyes, even when, being incomplete, they lack an element like a window or an edge that can be blown to produce sound. Sometimes one manufactured hole is interpreted as an acoustical element too, but if in our eyes incongruously arranged holes, no holes or no obvious sounding elements are present, these bone tubes are mostly put aside from further investigation as "non-flutes", called "enigmatic" or assigned other functions, such as beads, needle cases or drinking tubes. However, when keeping in mind the diversity of wind instrument types and elements developed through the ages, scrutinizing enigmatic bone tubes can yield previously unthought-of sounding possibilities that would be a pity to miss. Hypotheses pertaining to this type of potential sound instruments are an incentive for further investigation, valuable even if proven unfruitful, and can enrich our image of the soundscapes of cultures long gone.
With this session we would like to bring together archaeologists, ethnomusicologists and instrument makers working on enigmatic bone tubes or bone flutes, whistles, pipes and calls from all time periods and all parts of the world. Our aim is to provide a platform for interdisciplinary encounters and collegial discussion of how to investigate, interpret and bring to life these intriguing but challenging archaeological artefacts.
Keywords:
bone artefacts, enigmatic tubular bone objects, sound instruments, music archaeology
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
Main organiser:
Annemies Tamboer (Netherlands) 1
Co-organisers:
Riitta Rainio (Finland) 2
Kristiina Mannermaa (Estonia) 3
Affiliations:
1. Independent researcher
2. Academy of Finland research fellow, Department of Cultures, University of Helsinki
3. Visiting professor Archaeology Department Institute of History and Archaeology University of Tartu
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