Amulets of time. Traces of a proto-writing on deer canines

di Alessandra de Nardis ed Elvira Visciola

In 2020, a short article was published on the pages of Preistoria in Italia, “A 16.000 year old deer tooth necklace”, on a particular object found in a burial discovered in 1934 in south-western France, in Saint-Germain-La-Rivière, dated to the Middle Magdalenian, i.e. 15.780 ± 200 years ago.
The burial in question stood out for the richness of the funerary objects associated with the skeleton of a woman in her thirties and among the various objects found, a necklace made up of 72 red deer canines stood out, belonging to an estimated number of approximately 66 distinct specimens in a number minimum of 58 males and 8 females; the research also made it possible to ascertain that they were teeth of young specimens, therefore they had certainly been selected among the best canines (see point 20 M. Vanhaeren and F. D'Errico, 2003).

The rich funerary objects described in detail in a study by Marian Vanhaeren and Francesco d'Errico and published in Paleo in 2003 were brought forward as proof of the origin of social inequalities as early as the Paleolithic and with more than one motivation. The two scholars report: “… The archaeozoological and technological analysis of the funerary objects associated with the burial of Saint-Germain-la-Rivière (15.570 ± 200 BP) and their comparison with ornaments and faunal assemblages from contemporary Magdalenian sites and burials reveal the exceptional character of this inhumation. The large number of perforated canines of red deer and the preference for young deer teeth contrast with the virtual absence of red deer in faunal assemblages from southwestern France dated to the same period as the burial. The rarity and probable exotic origin of these teeth, the small number of paired canines and the technological and morphological homogeneity of the collection suggest that the teeth were obtained through long-distance trade and represented objects of prestige. As observed in numerous hunter-gatherer populations and contrary to the presumed egalitarian character of Upper Paleolithic societies, these elements may have materialized the integration of this individual (sic! female individual) into a privileged social group... The results suggest that the application of the integrated approach followed in this study to the rest of the Upper Paleolithic burials could be useful to identify other societies in which objects of prestige represented the tangible expression of social inequality…” (in M. Vanhaeren and F. d'Errico – 2003). Focusing on the deer canines which are well described in their study, it is easy to notice that some of them present signs that leave no doubt about the fact that they were made on purpose and with a specific function. The teeth, drilled to be used as beads, in fact present 32 different graphemes (the term grapheme here refers to the elementary and not further subdivided sign which constitutes the minimum unit of a writing system) with traces of red ocher in the scratching; we often find these decorated objects in many tombs also present in Italian territory and all belonging to the same period.

The signs were made with an incision caused by the linear movement of a sharp object, a technique that left evident accidental incisions due to the difficulty of starting the groove. The position of the decorations on the tooth also attracts attention: these decorations are visible only if the mesial surface (the surface directed towards the ideal line that passes between the central incisors) or vestibular (the surface facing the cheek and lips) is oriented towards the observer.

What did these signs mean? And why choose deer teeth to make them?

Recent studies attest that in the Magdalenian, due to the dry and cold steppe environment, deer were rare or even absent in southwestern France. The teeth, acquired through trade or during long journeys, would then be carriers of great value.
The use of red deer canines used as personal ornaments within burials is well documented in Europe during all phases of the Gravettian; To date, 82 burials are known scattered across 22 sites (caves, shelters or outdoors) in 7 countries. These are remains of women and men of all ages, next to which various objects were placed; combined with the care given to the burial, these objects, which belonged to the deceased or offered to him by his companions, highlight habits and customs linked to the same well-rooted culture that extended over a large Eurasian territory that goes from Spain to France, up to southern Italy (V. Gazzoni – 2010).

Italy sees the discovery of 16 burials located in 8 sites for a total of 20 individuals, all chronologically placed in the Gravettian period. In each of these burials there is continuity in the use of atrophic deer canines as ornamental objects referable to headdresses, necklaces, bracelets and anklets; Let's see them in detail.

PUGLIA - Paglicci Cave near Rignano Garganico (FG)
The first burial (PA15) relates to a young man of approximately 12-13 years dated to 24720 ± 420 BP; his body, lying on his back, was covered in red ocher. A stone rested on the shins, and the feet and head were supported by stones. There are numerous ornamental objects including a headdress made up of around thirty atrophic deer canine teeth pierced at the root and a necklace with two cowries as pendants around the neck; other jewelery composed of pierced deer canines used as bracelets and anklets. Furthermore, it was accompanied by a rich kit consisting of various flint tools of excellent workmanship.

The second burial is slightly more recent, relating to a young woman of around 18-20 years old, dated to 23470 ± 370 BP, placed in a supine position inside an elliptical pit with her hands gathered at pubic level; her body was covered in ocher, particularly concentrated on her head, pelvis and feet. She carried a kit of various flint tools for daily use. Her personal ornaments included a sort of diadem on her forehead consisting of at least seven atrophic deer canines pierced at the roots and a probable neck pendant made of a shell; furthermore a deer canine was recovered at the height of the right knee.

It is interesting to know that the two burials were found near the wall where two horses are painted, one in a vertical position as if emerging from the ground and the other coming from its left horizontally, therefore we find the woman-horse association.

PUGLIA - Santa Maria di Agnano near Ostuni (BR)
The burial called Ostuni 1 refers to a woman of about 20 years old, who died in the terminal stage of pregnancy, with the remains of the fetus found at the height of the pelvis, a find dating back to 24.410 ± 320 BP. The excavation, carried out with modern technologies, made it possible to ascertain the sequence of operations for the deposition of the burial, testifying to a complex and very accurate ritual. The woman was placed in a pit that took advantage of the natural conformation of the ground, in a fetal position on her left side with her right hand placed on her belly and her head resting on the palm of her left hand. On his right wrist he wore a bracelet made up of perforated shells and an atrophic deer canine while on his head was placed a cap sprinkled with red ocher and made up of more than 600 sea shells interspersed with 8 atrophic deer canines of which only one was found in vertical arrangement between two contiguous shells of Cyclope neritea. The burial also contained numerous lithic tools, faunal remains intentionally placed around the body and medium-sized clasts to protect the skeleton.

PUGLIA – Cave of the Venuses near Parabita (LE)
Inside the Cave of the Venuses of Parabita, two burials have been identified in an ellipsoidal pit, unfortunately heavily damaged by a Neolithic hole which caused the dispersion of the skulls, upper limbs and probably part of the grave goods. The two burials were placed opposite each other, referable to a man (Par1) and a woman (Par2) dated to 24489 ± 100 BP. Near the skeletons, an oblong pebble was found near the woman's pelvis, a flint scraper and, near the point where the skulls probably rested, a double row made up of 26 pierced atrophic deer canines, perhaps part of a headdress or a necklace, all generously sprinkled with red ocher. The canines formed two semicircles, with the concavity facing the body of the burial, as if they were sewn onto a headdress or retina and which, following the disintegration of the body, slipped onto the grave.

PUGLIA - Uluzzo Cave near Nardò (LE)
Inside the cave in 1963, after numerous clandestine excavations which had disturbed the walking surface to a depth of approximately 2 metres, an excavation campaign began by Edoardo Borzatti von Lowenstern who recovered layer "G" dated to the Romanellian ( recent Upper Paleolithic), composed of a clay layer mixed with dark red sand, an atrophic deer canine pierced at the root with incisions on the enamel and on the root, together with 2 pieces of red ocher, a limestone slab dyed with red ocher , some bone splinters and several specimens of lithic industry. The investigations that took place in the cave led to the definition of the Uluzzian culture, from the eponymous site, with an important stratigraphic sequence that embraces the transition between the Middle and Upper Paleolithic and therefore crucial for understanding the biological and cultural processes that led to the transition between Neanderthals and Sapiens.

LIGURIA – Arene Candide Cave near Finale Ligure (SV)
Around 42 burials have been identified inside the Arene Candide Cave, but what has aroused the greatest interest is that of the so-called young Prince of around 15 years old, dated to 23.440 ± 190 BP, buried after a violent death probably caused by aggression of a bear. The young man had been buried on a bed of red ocher with rich funerary objects: his head was covered by a sort of cap made with hundreds of shells of Cyclops neritea and pendant in mammoth ivory decorated with engraved lines; a necklace made of cowrie shells and some atrophic deer canines, all pierced; pierced shells and mammoth ivory pendant decorated with engraved lines probably forming a bracelet; the right arm was flexed and the hand held a flint blade, the only element in which there is no trace of red ochre; near the chest and hips, some pierced sticks made from deer antlers and pointed at one end were found.

LIGURIA – Balzi Rossi Caves near Ventimiglia (IM)
In the Caviglione Cave at Balzi Rossi a burial was found, first attributed to an adult Paleolithic man called "Menton man" and only following in-depth investigations attributed to a woman from the Gravettian era, the "lady of Caviglione", who died at the age of approximately 37 and dated to approximately 24.000 years ago. Her body was placed in a fetal position on the right side and her head was covered with a headdress with more than 300 shells of Cyclops neritea decorated on the edges with a fringe made up of 35 pierced atrophic deer canines; two flint blades were positioned behind the skull while a pointed deer bone was positioned near the forehead believed to be a sort of hair clip; near the leg there were other perforated shells similar to those on the skull, probably forming a further ornament.

Always at Balzi Rossi, exactly in the Barma Grande A triple burial dating back to around 22.000-26.000 years ago was discovered, of an adult male and two girls, all placed side by side in the same pit sprinkled with red ocher and with rich grave goods. In particular, the man had on his head an ornament made with some atrophic deer canines decorated with streaks, Cyclope neritea shells and trout vertebrae, while on his neck there were another 14 canines together with fish vertebrae which formed a necklace; one of the girls presented a necklace with two rows of fish vertebrae and a third with shells Cyclops neritea and deer canines.

In the Cave of Tower Leap at Balzi Rossi three burials dated between 23.440 ± 90 and 24.800 ± 800 BP were recovered, including Burial 1 with a bracelet on the right elbow made up of an atrophic deer canine and 32 pierced shells, a bracelet on the right wrist made up of 15 Cyclope neretea and some atrophic deer canines as well as numerous other jewels made with shells; Burial 2 had a headdress made with 89 perforated shells and 5 atrophic deer canines while two other canines were present on the individual's chest.
Finally in the Cave of the Children, again at Balzi Rossi, 5 burials were identified, among which the one called Burial 4 had a headdress with shells of Cyclops neritea and atrophic canines of deer.

VENETO – Sharp Shelter at Stallavena di Grezzana (VR)
In Sharp Shelter, in the numerous levels of the anthropized deposit, important traces of the intense occupation of the shelter were found such as the lighting of hearths, the making of tools in chipped stone and animal matter, the preparation of tools for hunting and the carrying out of related activities to symbolic behavior such as the presence of over a thousand sea shells and around twelve atrophic deer canines, mostly punctured; five of these were still intact but showed traces of hole preparation on both faces of the root at different levels, such as scraping and rotating elements to produce the holes, thus providing exceptional evidence of the drilling operation chain. Abundant traces of red ocher were present almost everywhere.

CALABRIA – Romito Cave near Papasidero (CS)
Inside the Romito cave, an important stratigraphic series was brought to light which documents phases of occupation from the Upper Paleolithic to the Neolithic; in the Epigravettian layers some small underground ditches have come to light where artefacts and objects were deposited, the question of whether they had a utilitarian or symbolic function was currently being discussed. In particular, in the C1 layer dated to 11.000-11250 BP, several objects were found that demonstrate the intentionality of their deposition, including macrofauna, lithic industry, numerous perforated shells of Cyclope neritea and Columbella rustica, a bone awl as well as a atrophic pierced deer canine used as a pendant. On the margins of the canine hole, traces attributable to rotational drilling with a pointed lithic instrument are visible and both faces of the tooth are decorated with small notches engraved parallel to each other. In layer D19, dated between 12350-12470 BP, a fragmentary webbed deer antler, a deer cap and an atrophic deer canine with suspension hole were recovered.

Also within the Grotta del Romito, burial 9, dated to around 14000 years ago, is of particular importance and refers to a young male of around 11-12 years old placed on a bed of red ocher and with a rich funerary object consisting of perforated shells. and atrophic deer canines with engraved decorations, the latter forming two bracelets that adorned the left forearm and the right wrist.

SICILY - Cave of San Teodoro near Acquedolci (ME)
Inside the cave the remains of 7 individuals were found, among which the most important find is that of a woman of about 30 years old, dated to 14000-11000 years ago, who was given the name Thea in homage to the name of the cave; her body was placed on a bed of red ocher with twelve perforated atrophic deer canines that probably belonged to a necklace.

ABRUZZO – Continenza Cave near Trasacco (AQ)
The cave provided an important stratigraphic series, approximately 48 levels, between the final Epigravettian and the Neolithic, testifying to its use for both residential and sepulchral purposes. In particular, the layers that interest us are between 29 and 43 where 16 examples of perforated atrophic deer canines have been identified (only one is not) and approximately 244 perforated mollusc shells, as funerary objects from some burials; all the material was found laterally to the bones, probably moved due to the activity of some rodents who dug their burrows in the levels of the site. Calibrated bone dating was performed on a cut 33 burial and corresponds to approximately 9957-10065 BP.

With this brief excursus on Italian burials it is possible to see that jewelery certainly had an important role for Paleolithic men and women and in particular the use of deer canines to create different sets was very widespread, despite their finding it wasn't simple at all; they were often exotic pieces, coming from places very distant from where they were found, probably accumulated over the years to then be placed in the burial.
While on the one hand the bone and stone objects found next to the skeletons, such as blades, chisels, scrapers can be considered as part of the equipment for practical use in daily life and placed next to the deceased to accompany him in his afterlife, others, such as jewelry and engraved and pierced deer canines raise questions about their meaning and use.
If we consider that even today cultural differences crystallize around funeral rituals we can perhaps hypothesize that these objects, which were certainly part of a personal ornament, may also and above all have a symbolic and ceremonial value.
We do not know if they were made to be used during life or if specifically prepared as funeral objects but the certainty remains that these precisely and intentionally traced signs were symbolic expressions recognized by the same culture which communicate to us today the idea of ​​a society cohesive and related to the natural world.
We cannot know what the deer represented for these populations, providing food, clothing and numerous tools essential to their life, as well as a mystical expression of their reality. For us, who will never intimately know either the animal or the symbol, it remains distant despite having been alongside us for thousands of years in the myths and legends that all historical cultures have always narrated; only he remains as the totem animal with which we adorned ourselves since mammoths and aurochs no longer exist. All we have to do is measure, date, weigh and hypothesize which is very little compared to what it must have represented then.
The hypotheses on their meaning can be included in different fields which are not necessarily mutually exclusive:

• Symbols of status and ability – Deer canines, obtained from animals that were hunted, could represent a symbol of social status as suggested by Marian Vanhaeren and Francesco d'Errico's study on the burial of Saint-Germain-la-Riviere or of hunting skill. The buried woman may have been an expert hunter or come from a high social group or represent an exclusive social status (elder, healer, shaman).
• Identification symbols – Deer canines were used to recognize oneself as belonging to one group rather than another, perhaps even representing the name of a clan or an area of ​​territory. In this regard, the results of studies by archaeologists at the University of Bordeaux are very recent, who have built a database of personal ornaments worn by Europeans in the period between 34.000 and 24.000 years ago (the so-called Gravettian technological complex) and combining the positions in which were found with the genetic data, nine distinct cultures emerged, each faithful to their own ornamental traditions. In this regard the authors write “… the variability of Gravettian ornaments cannot be explained only by isolation by distance; … (over time) personal adornments have become a communication technology used to convey privileged information about group membership and social status…”. (J. Baker et al., 2024).

• Objects of religious or spiritual value – Decorated canines and animal horns could have had a religious or spiritual meaning. The engravings could be linked to propitious meanings or to the connection with the otherworldly world; the deer and the doe, which have always been bearers of magical and propitiatory meanings in all cultures, are used as protective divinities and believed to be supernatural animals, as if the animal could accelerate the path of the spirits of the dead.

• Protective amulets – In some prehistoric cultures, animals such as deer were associated with protective powers. The canines worn as a necklace or inserted in the headdress or among the clothing may have had the function of an amulet to accompany the wearer both in life and in the afterlife. With regard to this last hypothesis we have already mentioned “… the importance and symbolic value of the atrophic deer canines which occur in all Gravettian burials, even in subsequent ones, and which is perpetuated over time into historical eras. The myth of the deer remained in fact throughout the Middle Ages and beyond in the legends of symbolic or witch hunts..." (from Renata Grifoni Cremonesi – “The Gravettian double burial and the Paleolithic funerary ritual” – in The cave of the Venuses of Parabita (Lecce) – edited by Elettra Ingravallo and Renata Grifoni Cremonesi – Edipuglia, 2020 – page. 79).

• A calendar – A way to measure time or represent particular moments useful for their activities.

To conclude our range of hypotheses, deer teeth could have provided a perfect support for engraving a written language that could be interpreted by the members of the group, mnemonic ideographic symbols to represent a limited number of concepts and this is the most exciting hypothesis that we can do because it would bring us very close in a flash to a culture that was able to tell its story. A possible confirmation is the analogy between the graphemes present on the canines and the signs found tattooed on the skin remains of the Similaun mummy (5200 BP) as proof of a hypothetical magical and propitiatory meaning of healing. The body of Otzi, as his mummy found in a glacier in the Ötztal Alps was named, was covered in 61 tattoos, carbon pigment marks that appear on the lower part of the back, the abdomen, the left wrist and the lower part of the legs; the researchers found that the areas in which the tattoos were made coincide with the acupuncture points and therefore hypothesized that they were therapeutic, performed on particular points of the body as a cure for pain.

Returning to the engraved deer canines, we can hypothesize that they have a value that goes beyond ornamentation, becoming true talismans capable of protecting the wearer and giving the ability to connect with the positive energies of the animal, which is perhaps the reason which is why they are found in such large numbers. But what meaning can the engravings present on some have? We await future studies and more specific data in this regard; For now, there remain questions that can only be answered with conjectures

Alessandra de Nardis and Elvira Visciola – August 2024

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REFERENCES

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