Technological Analysis of the World's Earliest Shamanic Costume: A Multi-Scalar, Experimental Study of a Red Deer Headdress from the Early Holocene Site of Star Carr, North Yorkshire, UK.
Aimée Little, Benjamin Elliott, Chantal Conneller, Diederik Pomstra, Adrian A Evans, Laura C Fitton, Andrew Holland, Robert E. Davis, Rachel Kershaw, Sonia O'Connor, Terry O'Connor, Thomas Sparrow, Andrew S Wilson, Peter Jordan, Matthew J Collins, André Carlo Colonese, Oliver E Craig, Rebecca Knight, Alexandre J A Lucquin, Barry Taylor, Nicky Milner
PLoS One April 13, 2016 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152136 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Archaeological artefact analysis with experimental replication Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Modified red deer crania from the Early Holocene site of Star Carr, Britain, dated to about 11,000 years ago |
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Keywords | Animals Deer Humans Archaeology History, ancient United kingdom |
| Key findings | The authors argue that modified red deer crania from Star Carr, dated to about 11,000 years ago, are the earliest known shamanic costume, with over 90% of such finds from prehistoric Europe coming from this one site, indicating it held exceptional shamanistic and cosmological significance. Their experimental and trace analyses suggest the headdresses were not carefully crafted objects but were made in part through expedient production methods. |
Abstract
Shamanic belief systems represent the first form of religious practice visible within the global archaeological record. Here we report on the earliest known evidence of shamanic costume: modified red deer crania headdresses from the Early Holocene site of Star Carr (c. 11 kya). More than 90% of the examples from prehistoric Europe come from this one site, establishing it as a place of outstanding shamanistic/cosmological significance. Our work, involving a programme of experimental replication, analysis of macroscopic traces, organic residue analysis and 3D image acquisition, metrology and visualisation, represents the first attempt to understand the manufacturing processes used to create these artefacts. The results produced were unexpected--rather than being carefully crafted objects, elements of their production can only be described as expedient.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on shamanism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The globalization of traditional medicine in northern peru: from shamanism to molecules. Healers, collectors, and sellers of medicinal plants in northern Peru | 2013 | Qualitative and experimental study | |
| Exploring shamanic journeying: repetitive drumming with shamanic instructions induces specific subjective experiences but no larger cortisol decrease than instrumental meditation music. Adults inexperienced in shamanic journeying (24 females) | 2014 | Experimental study | n = 39 |