Research On The Tool Marks On Animal Bones From Luotuodun Site

Animal bones unearthed from the archaeological sites are important part of cultural relics of ancient human life. Zooarchaeology, which focus on these kinds of remains, originated from Europe in the early 1800’s. The research includes the usage of animals in sustenance, resource utilization, economy, residential model, social behavior and identity, and many other aspects. Some researchers attempt to conduct research over biology. Increasing number of researchers start to advert to the vestige on these bones, especially the tool marks which can reveal important information of butchering by the ancient people.This article selects three most abundant types of bones in Luotuodun Site as research material, which are deer’s, pigs’ and cattle’s. Many marks are found on the surface of the bones, and most of them had already existed before buried. After preliminary observation, we discover that regular and similar tools made most of these marks. Lots of stone tools with broken blade are found alongside the bones. Thus, the author studies traces of human behavior on these bones of this site utilizing the method combining micromorphology and macro mode.This article consists of two main parts. The first part carries out observation, measurement, characterization, and preliminary analysis of the tool marks on these three types of animal bones. The author observes the nasal bone missing from heads of deer and pigs, varying degrees of damage on the top, left, right, and rear sides, and break marks on limb femoral shafts and bone ends, etc.. The shapes of marks are mainly break marks with a straight bottom and flat sidewalls, and in addition, fracture marks, linear marks and a few hole marks and dent marks are also observed. From these observations, we can assume that stone tools with straight and large angle blade hacked out these marks.In the second part, based on cause analysis of tool marks on animal bones described in the first part, the author conducts slaughter, dismemberment, flesh-picking simulation experiments on deer heads and legs, pig heads and legs, and cattle legs, with side loaded stone adzes, stone chisels, stone axes, and stone Yue. All stone tools are modeled on those unearthed relics from Luotuodun site. By comparing the shapes, positions, and micromorphology of marks in experiment and the marks on remains, the author verifies the cause assumption of tool marks on the bones described in the first part, and believes that ancient people used stone adzes to slaughter, dismember, and pick a certain part of flesh or bone, and then left these marks.