NATURAL OPEN IMPRESSION IN THE JASPER INCORPORATED BY NEANDERTHAL

INGENUITY AND DESIGN TO BE USED AS A FINGER GRIP AS SEEN ABOVE AND BELOW

END SCRAPER WELL FORMED, WITH USE WEAR AND EVIDENCE OF NEANDERTHAL RESHARPENING

RARE LARGE NEANDERTHAL MOUSTERIAN COMBINATION JASPER KNIFE / END SCRAPER FROM RARE SITE

Fontmaure, West Central France

MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC PERIOD (MOUSTERIAN):  80,000 - 40,000 years ago

This rare stone tool was fashioned by Neanderthals over 40,000 years ago out of gem-grade jasper known to occur ONLY from Fontmaure located in West Central France.  The site this specimen was excavated from is only approximately 1 acre in size and is now closed and protected by the government.  This rare artifact was legally collected with the landowner's permission decades ago before the area was sealed.  Fontmaure is one of Europe's most famous Neanderthal sites and the fact that this tiny primitive settlement is off-limits to any collecting, makes this wonderful stone tool artifact exceedingly rare and desirable!  We personally theorize that the Neanderthals highly valued the spectacular glowing, colored gem jasper that is uniquely found at Fontmaure.  It is possible that material like this was traded, considered prestigious to own and even fought over.  Because of this, it is easy to suppose that the jasper was rationed and smaller tools were fashioned to get as much possible out of each tool core.  Large tools are rare from this site and could have easily been considered a possession of great prestige as well as a functional tool. 

This tool is VERY RARE in that the vast majority of tools found at this site are SMALLER than usually found in other Mousterian sites of the same period.  This is an exceptionally large (for this site) combination BACKED KNIFE / END SCRAPER.  Its highly intelligent Neanderthal creator cleverly oriented the design of this tool around the large natural impression in the flake so that it is used as a finger grip for the index finger when held.  The knife blade is substantial and with excellent retouching and use wear.  The broad end scraper is textbook perfect in design and shows a well formed curved end and flaking.  The way the tool is gripped is shown above.  This large tool, made on such a beautiful and richly colored piece of jasper, could have easily been an item of great prestige as well as function.  This RARE artifact must be held to be fully appreciated.  It was made from a very beautiful multi-colored gold jasper and possesses the final soil sheen found only on Paleolithic tools subjected to millennia of burial.  Unlike inferior surface-collected specimens that occasionally are offered from this site, this tool was dug from the actual subterranean level that was once a Neanderthal occupation layer.  What this means is that it was not weathered and damaged by exposure to the elements or plow.  This entire specimen is in perfect, 'AS MADE' condition.  A beautiful, as well as very rare Neanderthal artifact.  Workmanship and form are superb.  NO RESTORATION, REPAIR OR MODERN DAMAGE.

Out of the many archaeological sites in France containing Paleolithic objects, Fontmaure is one of the "Crown Jewels" of the period of the Neanderthals.  This site is very small, spanning only approximately one acre.  It gets its name from the neighboring farm where it is located, situated in the Vienne region of North Poitou.  Artifacts from Fontmaure have been dated to at least 40,000 years old and are classified as from the Chatelperronian and Mousterian era, having been fashioned by the Neanderthal people.  One of the unique published finds of Fontmaure is the very beautiful and unique jasper which is only found here and is primarily red and yellow.  Many of the objects found in Fontmaure are made of this stone with other objects made of sandstone, flint and light gray quartz.  This light gray quartz originates from a place that is situated about hundred kilometers from Fontmaure.  Another unusual feature is that, to date, it is one of a few known open-air settlements.  Even more interesting is the fact that along with the stone tools found, human and animal figures have also been excavated.  There are also stones used in some type of ritual, such as triangular stones, round discs and stone balls (bolas) that have been discovered in Fontmaure.  These art objects of the Neanderthals make up some of the oldest art known from Europe!

The MOUSTERIAN tool tradition gets its name from artifacts discovered at a primitive rock shelter named Le Moustier located in southwestern France.  Compared to the bulkier tools of the Acheulian produced by the Levallois technique, Mousterian tools are comprised of smaller flakes from an exhaustively worked core which are then retouched on the edges to make a large variety of tools.  These tools are not only smaller than Acheulian specimens, but they are more specialized for their various tasks.  Mousterian tools can be broadly put into four classes: 1) SAWS (Denticulate Tools) and KNIVES,  2) SCRAPERS  3) BORERS  4) HANDAXES, CHOPPERS and CLEAVERS.

Mousterian tool-makers were the primitive humans knows as the NEANDERTHALS.  Neanderthals had massive skeletons and teeth, flat foreheads and heavy brow ridges.  Their skulls were larger than a modern man and contained an average brain capacity of 1500 cc, averaging slightly larger than humans of today. 

RARE LARGE INVESTMENT EXAMPLE - MASTERFUL DESIGN WITH DEEP FINGER GRIP AND EVIDENCE OF USE!

A MOUSTERIAN TOOL FROM SUCH A RARE (AND NOW CLOSED AND PROTECTED) SITE AND WITH SUCH LARGE PROPORTIONS AND DESIGN FEATURES IS EVERY MUCH AS RARE AS A FINE HAND AXE

3.4" in length

$895     M191     INCLUDES DISPLAY BOX     Actual Item - One Only

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