On the Technique of Making Apretures with Large Diameters in Stone Articles of the Neolithic and Bronze Age of the Urals

The paper considers the technique of making apertures with a large diameter of not less than 1.5 cm at the example of stone articles of the Neolithic and Bronze Age discovered in the Urals. It is a group of non-practical implements: figured hammers, maces, ornamented disks, as well as battle and working axes-hammers, a drill hammer and a pickaxe. The apertures were made using various techniques. The length of apertures in figured hammers was up to 10 cm. Hollow drills were used for their manufacture. Almost all the figured hammers and axes-hammers were drilled from two sides. Drilling started from the underside of the article. Maces were generally drilled with the use of hollow bone drills. Drilling was more frequently carried out from two sides, whereas the apertures were not adjusted to cylindrical shape. Most of the discs are drilled using the counter-drilling method. Both bone and stone drills were applied. This was facilitated by the small thickness of the discs and the soft mineral raw materials. In certain discs, the apertures were made with the use of the picketage technique. Precise alignment of the apertures during counter-drilling suggests the availability of simple measuring instruments at the disposal of the ancient masters. Experimental studies revealed details allowing to determine the drilling method and drill material (stone or bone). This was facilitated by the conducted trace evidence analysis of stone drills with a large diameter. The complexity of the manufacture of articles featuring apertures with a large diameter clearly indicates the high social status of their owners.