North Africa, Sahara Desert, Late Stone Age, ca. 50,000 to 10,000 years ago. A pair of hand carved quartz ear plugs, long and thin with flared ends for securing in the earlobe. The glassy stone presents slight pink tones on the surface, and the larger has swirls of light brown mineral deposits. These were crafted by ancient hunter- gatherers who inhabited the Sahara when it was a hospitable savannah climate. Evidence suggests these humans even developed small mines to quarry stones for tools. These ear plugs were fashioned using stone and demonstrate what skill it took to shape these impressive ear plugs! Size of larger: 2.31" L x .25" W (5.9 cm x 0.6 cm); smaller: 1.75" L x .25" W (4.4 cm x 0.6 cm)
Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection, ex- German collection
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#159631
Condition
Nicks and surface wear as expected with age. Smaller one has large chip to the top. The larger one shows nice mineral striations.