ABSTRACT
The element of objectivity gained by examination of each of the raw materials considered here is a necessary prerequisite for the proper study of the artefacts which were made from them. The archaeologist with an interest in bones is already well served by a number of publications, among which those of Brothwell, Chaplin and Schmid deserve particular mention. In each of these works, however, particular emphasis is placed on the morphology of bones, the problems of identifying them and their distribution and function within the living skeleton. Paired antlers, like horns, are restricted to the Artiodactyla, or even-toed ungulates. The similarity ends there, however, for unlike horn antlers are outgrowths of bone. They are carried by most members of the deer family and with the exception of reindeer and caribou. Mammalian teeth are formed in the soft tissues of the jaw, an enamel crown being laid down initially, followed by the body of the tooth in the form of dentine.
