On the Mousterian origin of bone-tipped hunting weapons in Europe: Evidence from Mezmaiskaya Cave, North Caucasus

Abstract

This paper presents a detailed analysis of a unique pointy bone artefact produced by Neanderthals, which was found in 2003 in a Middle Paleolithic layer dated c. 80–70 ka at Mezmaiskaya Cave in the Caucasus. The definition and interpretation of anthropic traces related to technological modifications and functional use of the bone tool were analyzed using stereoscopic and metallographic microscopes, high-resolution digital microscopy, and microfocus computed tomography. Research of a bitumen residue preserved on the specimen was done using Fourier-transform infrared microscopy and spectroscopy, and crystal-optical microscopy. Based on the totality of analytical and comparative data we interpret the artefact as the tip of a hunting weapon that was likely mounted on a shaft made from wood. Several lines of evidence suggest its short use as a bone-tipped hunting projectile. The results suggest an independent invention of bone-tipped hunting weapons by Neanderthals in Europe long before the arrival of Upper Paleolithic modern humans to the continent, and also show that the production technology of bone-tipped hunting weapons used by Neanderthals was in the nascent level in comparison to those used and introduced to Eurasia by modern humans.