On Saturday Feb. 6, 1999 Brent Handley wrote:
 
 
>Greetings,
>
>Pardon the cross posting.
>
>I am conducting research on the use of bone in manufacturing during the mid
to
>late ninetieth century.  The assemblage I am working with has buttons,
combs,
>and game pieces made out of a large mammal's long bone.  Along with these
>artifacts, scraps and seconds were also identified.  What I'm looking into
is
>how they were manufactured (techniques and tools), and what animal(s)/body
>parts were used.  The assemblage comes from features associated with a
prison
>workshop, a comparison with other assemblages should make for an
interesting
>report on the archaeology of work.
>
>If anyone knows of any research pertaining to this topic I would appreciate
>the reference.
 
 
Brent,
 
You might want to look at assemblages from Civil War prisons or even camp
sites. (by the way, Is your prison site military or civilian?)  I manage an
archaeological park that has a Civil War Prison for Union Soldiers on it.
While we have not found similar items in our excavations,. . .  yet, we have
done a lot of work with descendants of the soldiers that were imprisoned
here (Cahaba, Alabama).  In their personal collections, we often seen
brooches that were supposedly carved out of bone or shell during their
ancestors time in the prison.  I do have at least one photograph of such an
item carved out of shell.
 
When discussing the "manufacture" of these items, you should probably
consider the possibility that some  were result of a home spun craft that
was popular during the mid to late 19th century.   ---- Something, young men
did for their "sweethearts" during idle hours.  Check out this quote from a
woman who was a young Confederate girl  living in the town outside the
Cahaba Military prison:
"For heavy knitting, such as nubias and scarfs for the soldiers, we used
large needles of cedar or white oak, fifteen or twenty inches long, made and
polished by the soldier boys in their hours of idleness, when at home on
furlough, or convalescing at the hospitals.  They also made beautiful rings
from gutta-percha buttons, inlaid with silver and gold when they could be
had.  Every girl was proud to wear one of these simple rings." [from
Confederate Veteran , January 1916 no. 1 page 219]
 
Something to consider, anyway.  same assemblage somewhere else might NOT be
an "archaeology of work," just an "archaeology of idleness!"
 
Linda Derry ([log in to unmask])
Old Cahawba Archaeological Park
Alabama Historical Commission