File:The American Museum journal (c1900-(1918)) (17972654908).jpg

Title: The American Museum journal
Identifier: americanmuseumjo14amer (find matches)
Year: c1900-(1918) (c190s)
Authors: American Museum of Natural History
Subjects: Natural history
Publisher: New York : American Museum of Natural History
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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PALEOLITHIC ART IN THE AMERICAN MUSEUM 233 epoch of the evolution of the bladeUke flint flake, with its diversity of marginal retouches. In the lower levels the blades are large and thick with marginal notchings. Large, rude carenate scrap- ers appear, likewise the lateral type of graver, and the so-called pointe de Chdtelperron. Bone industry develops, the bone point with or without cleft base being the best known (page 226). Sculpture is developed to a considerable extent, the female figurines from Bras- sempouy being examples. In the middle horizons the carenate scrapers multiply, diversify and become less bulky (page 225); the scars left by the lamellar chip- ping are long and parallel. Gravers of many types are numerous (page 227). The upper Aurignacian is charac- terized by the pointe de la Gravette (page 228), the ordi- nary graver (page 229), and a microlithic industry in which use is made of the splinters produced in the manufacture of gravers. Pedunculate points fore- shadowing the arrow head are also met with. The human figurines from Grim- aldi and \Yillendorf and the bas-reliefs from Laussel be- long to this stage. The American Museum possesses a series of records kept by Aurignacian hunt- ers, the so-called marques de chasse. Bone was gen- erally used for this purpose (page 230). The collection also bears evidence to the love of ornament so typical of the Aurignacians' in the perforated teeth of the cave bear, cave lion and rein- deer (page 231) as well as in perforated shells (page 232). One curious fragment of limestone in the collection is perforated, for what purpose it would be difficult to say (page 233). The hole is pierced near the margin and was driven in at an angle from both sides to a meeting point. The Ijlock which is heavy might well have served as a weight. Or if the hole was made before the block became detached from the overhanging rock it must be con- sidered as a point of suspension. Didon found a number of such perforated blocks of stone. The principal piece in the New York collection is an engraved figure of a horse on a limestone slab, that was found in a deposit of upper Aurignacian age at rock-shelter No. 2 des Roches-de- Sergeac (page 236). This figure, about
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Large fragment of limestone from Abri Blanchard (Dordogne). The artificial perforation is driven in at an angle from both sides to a meeting point, and the purpose is difficult to guess. The stone is heavy enough to have served as a weight

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