Bird bone artefact from the Late Eneolithic / Early Bronze Age site of Zók (Hungary)

Abstract

Bird bones were rarely used for production of artefacts, due to various reasons – they were much smaller and thinner than mammal bones; they also have specific shapes and fine structure, inadequate for majority of common artefact types. However, they were ocasionally used for some specific objects, such as flutes, pipes, needle cases, amulets, etc. When it concerns Eneolithic and Early Bronze Age periods in the south-eastern Europe, bird bone artefacts are rare; only few were discovered thus far. The multi-layer prehistoric site of Zók is situated in present-day Hungary, in vicinity of Pécs. Major parts of its stratigraphic sequence belong to the Late Eneolithic / Early Bronze Age Vučedol culture, but there are also certain remains that may be attributed to the early and middle Eneolithic. The site was extensively excavated in 1920 by National museum in Belgrade. These excavations also unearthed large quantities of worked bone, mainly from Late Vučedol layers, including one artefact produced from bird bone, that will be presented here. The item in question was produced from right radius from Cygnus sp. The object in question is in the shape of an elongated tube; carefully cut at both ends. The function of this item is uncertain – it may have served as some sound-producing instrument (flute), or it was some sort of handle or needle case. It is interesting to note that bird representations, in particular ornitomorphic vessels, are one of the specific tratis of the Vučedol culture; therefore, the choice of bird bone for production of this artefact may have had a certain symbolic significance as well.