A Unique Engraved Shale Pendant from the Site of Star Carr: the oldest Mesolithic art in Britain

Nicola Milner; Michael  Bamforth; Gareth Beale; Julian Carty; Konstantinos  Chatzipanagis; Shannon Charmaine Klassen Croft; Cantal  Conneller; Benjamin Joseph Elliott; Laura Catherine Fitton; Becky Knight; Roland Kröger; Aimee Patrice Little; Andrew Needham; Harry Kenneth Robson; Charlotte Catherine Aneliese Rowley; Barry Taylor

doi:10.11141/ia.40.8

A Unique Engraved Shale Pendant from the Site of Star Carr: the oldest Mesolithic art in Britain

Nicola Milner, Michael Bamforth, Gareth Beale, Julian Carty, Konstantinos Chatzipanagis, Shannon Charmaine Klassen Croft, Cantal Conneller, Benjamin Joseph Elliott, Laura Catherine Fitton, Becky Knight, Roland Kröger, Aimee Patrice Little, Andrew Needham, Harry Kenneth Robson, Charlotte Catherine Aneliese Rowley, Barry Taylor

Research output: Other contribution

Abstract

In 2015 an engraved shale pendant was found during excavations at the Early Mesolithic site of Star Carr, UK. Engraved motifs on Mesolithic pendants are extremely rare, with the exception of amber pendants from southern Scandinavia. The artwork on the pendant is the earliest known Mesolithic art in Britain; the 'barbed line' motif is comparable to styles on the Continent, particularly in Denmark. When it was first uncovered the lines were barely visible but using a range of digital imaging techniques it has been possible to examine them in detail and determine the style of engraving as well as the order in which the lines might have been made. In addition, microwear and residue analyses were applied to examine whether the pendant showed signs that it had been strung or worn, and whether the lines had been made more visible through the application of pigments, as has been suggested for some Danish amber pendants. This approach of using multiple scientific and analytical techniques has not been used previously and provides a methodology for the examination of similar artefacts in the future.

Original language	English
Publisher	University of York
Volume	40
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.11141/ia.40.8
Publication status	Published - 26 Feb 2016

Publication series

Name	Internet Archaeology
Publisher	University of York
ISSN (Print)	1363-5387

Bibliographical note

This content is made available by the publisher under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence. This means that a user may copy, distribute and display the resource providing that they give credit. Users must adhere to the terms of the licence.

Keywords

Star Carr
yorkshire
Mesolithic Art

Access to Document

10.11141/ia.40.8Licence: CC BY

Internet Arch Pendant paper Milneretal.revisedmanuscriptAccepted author manuscript, 14.4 MB

Nicky Milner
- nicky.milneryork.acuk
- Archaeology - Head Of Department - Archaeology
Person: Academic

Cite this

Milner, N., Bamforth, M., Beale, G., Carty, J., Chatzipanagis, K., Croft, S. C. K., Conneller, C., Elliott, B. J., Fitton, L. C., Knight, B., Kröger, R., Little, A. P., Needham, A., Robson, H. K., Rowley, C. C. A., & Taylor, B. (2016, Feb 26). A Unique Engraved Shale Pendant from the Site of Star Carr: the oldest Mesolithic art in Britain. University of York. https://doi.org/10.11141/ia.40.8

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abstract = "In 2015 an engraved shale pendant was found during excavations at the Early Mesolithic site of Star Carr, UK. Engraved motifs on Mesolithic pendants are extremely rare, with the exception of amber pendants from southern Scandinavia. The artwork on the pendant is the earliest known Mesolithic art in Britain; the 'barbed line' motif is comparable to styles on the Continent, particularly in Denmark. When it was first uncovered the lines were barely visible but using a range of digital imaging techniques it has been possible to examine them in detail and determine the style of engraving as well as the order in which the lines might have been made. In addition, microwear and residue analyses were applied to examine whether the pendant showed signs that it had been strung or worn, and whether the lines had been made more visible through the application of pigments, as has been suggested for some Danish amber pendants. This approach of using multiple scientific and analytical techniques has not been used previously and provides a methodology for the examination of similar artefacts in the future.",

keywords = "Star Carr, yorkshire, Mesolithic Art",

author = "Nicola Milner and Michael Bamforth and Gareth Beale and Julian Carty and Konstantinos Chatzipanagis and Croft, {Shannon Charmaine Klassen} and Cantal Conneller and Elliott, {Benjamin Joseph} and Fitton, {Laura Catherine} and Becky Knight and Roland Kr{\"o}ger and Little, {Aimee Patrice} and Andrew Needham and Robson, {Harry Kenneth} and Rowley, {Charlotte Catherine Aneliese} and Barry Taylor",

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AU - Chatzipanagis, Konstantinos

AU - Croft, Shannon Charmaine Klassen

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AU - Robson, Harry Kenneth

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N2 - In 2015 an engraved shale pendant was found during excavations at the Early Mesolithic site of Star Carr, UK. Engraved motifs on Mesolithic pendants are extremely rare, with the exception of amber pendants from southern Scandinavia. The artwork on the pendant is the earliest known Mesolithic art in Britain; the 'barbed line' motif is comparable to styles on the Continent, particularly in Denmark. When it was first uncovered the lines were barely visible but using a range of digital imaging techniques it has been possible to examine them in detail and determine the style of engraving as well as the order in which the lines might have been made. In addition, microwear and residue analyses were applied to examine whether the pendant showed signs that it had been strung or worn, and whether the lines had been made more visible through the application of pigments, as has been suggested for some Danish amber pendants. This approach of using multiple scientific and analytical techniques has not been used previously and provides a methodology for the examination of similar artefacts in the future.

AB - In 2015 an engraved shale pendant was found during excavations at the Early Mesolithic site of Star Carr, UK. Engraved motifs on Mesolithic pendants are extremely rare, with the exception of amber pendants from southern Scandinavia. The artwork on the pendant is the earliest known Mesolithic art in Britain; the 'barbed line' motif is comparable to styles on the Continent, particularly in Denmark. When it was first uncovered the lines were barely visible but using a range of digital imaging techniques it has been possible to examine them in detail and determine the style of engraving as well as the order in which the lines might have been made. In addition, microwear and residue analyses were applied to examine whether the pendant showed signs that it had been strung or worn, and whether the lines had been made more visible through the application of pigments, as has been suggested for some Danish amber pendants. This approach of using multiple scientific and analytical techniques has not been used previously and provides a methodology for the examination of similar artefacts in the future.

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M3 - Other contribution

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ER -

A Unique Engraved Shale Pendant from the Site of Star Carr: the oldest Mesolithic art in Britain

Abstract

Publication series

Bibliographical note

Keywords

Access to Document

Profiles

Nicky Milner

Cite this