Eleven obsidian points discovered at the Neolithic village of Tepecik-Çiftlik in central Anatolia bear distinctive incised designs, prompting researchers to investigate how the markings were made and what they may have represented.
The village lies between two major sources of volcanic glass. Across the region, markings have been identified on only 54 of the thousands of obsidian arrowheads recovered. Alice Vinet of Aix-Marseille University and Denis Guilbeau of France’s Ministry of Culture examined the incised points under microscopes and attempted to reproduce their markings.
Their experiments indicated that making the crossed and other designs required repeated strokes with a piece of flint. The process, they concluded, makes accidental damage an unlikely explanation for the markings on the smooth obsidian surfaces.
The researchers also compared the marked points with unmarked examples. The two groups were similar in size and shape, while the incised points did not appear to have been placed in special contexts such as graves. Wear on the marked points was also comparable to wear observed on unmarked arrowheads, providing no clear indication that the etched objects had been used differently.
A possible clue came from other incised arrowheads found at the same sites. These objects displayed similar motifs, suggesting that some designs may have been part of a broader marking practice. Even so, the researchers concluded that the markings may not all have served the same purpose.
The findings, reported by Archaeology Magazine from an IFL Science report, distinguish between the physical evidence for deliberate engraving and the more uncertain question of why the points were marked. The study was published in PLOS One.
