num_pages: 272
description: Beads, bracelets, necklaces, pendants and many other ornaments are familiar objects that play a fundamental role in personal expression and communication. This book considers how and why the human relationship with ornaments developed and continued over tens of thousands of years, from hunter-gatherer life in the cave to urban elites, from expedient use of natural resources to complex technologies.Using evidence from archaeological sites across Turkey, the Near East and the Balkans, it explores the history of personal ornaments from their appearance in the Palaeolithic until the rise of urban centers in the Early Bronze Age and encompassing technologies ranging from stone cutting to early glazing, metallurgy and the roots of glass manufacture. The development of theoretical and practical approaches to ornaments and the current state of research are illustrated with a wide variety of examples.This book shows that far from being objects of display, of little value in archaeological interpretation and often overlooked, these artifacts are key to understanding trade, relationships, values, beliefs and the construction of personal identity in the past. Indeed, more than any other group of artifacts, their variety in material, form, use and distribution opens doors to both wide ranging scientific exploration and consideration of what it is to be human.Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsChapter 1: IntroductionWhat is a personal ornament?Personal ornaments as an academic subjectOrnaments in prehistory, a very long storyWhat is in this book?Chapter 2: Personal ornaments, why are they important in prehistory?Excavating and interpreting personal a processPersonal issues – identity, memory and material entanglementsPractical issues – procurement, technology and useEconomic issues – value and specializationChapter 3: Geography, temporality and interpretationGeographic variation – landscape, materials and ornamentsContinuity and change – the long view of ornament usePersonal ornaments and the archaeological narrativeChapter 4: Starting at the beginning – the Palaeolithic and EpipalaeolithicShells, the sea and faraway placesBead technologies at the beginningMore materials, and the beginning of a long storyArtefact Shell beads from Direkli Cave, TurkeyChapter 5: Changing times? The Early NeolithicMemories of times pastNew practices in settled lifeAn introduction to stone technologyThe value of ornaments and recyclingArtefact Recycled stone pendant from Boncuklu Höyük, central TurkeyChapter 6: Settled life and identity – the Later NeolithicStill looking back to times pastChanging technologies and new materialsThe technology of changing colourProduction areas and the beginning of specializationBody ornamentsIdentity in burial?Artefact A blue bead from the site of Barcın Höyük.Chapter 7: New technologies and interactions – the ChalcolithicTrade networks and adventures at seaComplex technologies and making thingsA bolder, aesthetic and the question of meaningLooking back, the long storyArtefact A shell pendant from Canhasan IChapter 8: Ornaments and the coming of civilization? - the Early Bronze AgeMore new materials, value and tradeThe seal and beads in ownershipHow many, who and how? Established specializationLooking forward, history built on strong foundationsArtefact Lapis lazuli bead, Başur HöyükChapter 9: Summary - dependencies, interactions and long-term changeEconomy - ornaments and specializationSociety – ornaments, connections and communicationsIdentity - ornaments in the long termIs it change yet? Envisioning a narrative approachWhat next?Bibliography
language: English
title: Personal Ornaments in Prehistory: An exploration of body augmentation from the Palaeolithic to the Early Bronze Age
publisher: Oxbow Books