Techno-functional study of ornaments
Goal of the study
The purpose of use-wear analysis is to highlight macro or microscopic traces on the artefacts. The observation of traces makes it possible to deduce chains of operation and/or use.
The technical or usual character is defined by comparison with experimental referentials or by the deduction of wear chain.
Nagadian finery from Adaïma (Egypt)
As part of my thesis, I studied a corpus of 250 ornaments found in the Nagadian burials of Adaïma. These objects, made up of one to several hundred beads, are placed in graves at various times during funeral rituals. The study made it possible to determine a wide variety of raw materials, divided into hard animal materials, lithic materials and artificial materials (such as copper alloys or earthenware). The operating chains and the chains of wear have been restored according to pre-existing studies and an experimental corpus. A study of aesthetic representations has been undertaken thanks to the very good preservation of the objects and the knowledge of their function (headband, necklace, bracelet, anklet).
This work will be published in the form of articles and a monograph at the IFAO.
Neolithic ornaments from Kharga (Egypt)
Elements of ornaments were found during the excavation of two final Neolithic settlement sites in Kharga. The study demonstrates two distinct origins of these elements. One is a local production of small annular beads made from ostrich eggs, and the other consists of the importation of finished products from materials of exogenous origin (marine shell).
This work is in the process of being published (IFAO)
Epipalaeolithic ornaments from Kharga (Egypt)
From the study of the surface sites a reflection around the taphonomic data will be undertaken.
