Split-based antler and bone point
Azagaya de hueso o asta de base hendida
- Date
- c. 40 ka · confidence medium
- Place
- Geißenklösterle, Blaubeuren, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- Credited to
- Aurignacian modern humans
- Field
- Tools
What it is
A point of antler or bone with a split base for fitting it firmly to the end of a shaft. It is the hallmark of Aurignacian hunting and one of the first pieces repeated in a standardised design.
They are found at Geißenklösterle, Hohle Fels, Vogelherd and French sites; their appearance coincides with the arrival of Homo sapiens in Europe and is not known in earlier Neanderthal contexts.
What it led to
- hunting weapons with replaceable, repairable points
- spread of antler and bone working across Europe
- a basis for Magdalenian points and spear-throwers