Exoticism of portable art and ornaments: a study of social networks around the Last Glacial Maximum.
Date
2011-08-10
Authors
Gravel-Miguel, Claudine
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Abstract
This research aims to test the hypothesis that portable art objects and ornaments were used to create and maintain social networks between groups of hunter-gatherers coping with climatic insecurity. This is tested through the materials used to produce such objects. The results of tests indicate that the movement of objects of portable art and ornaments did not correlate with climatic values such as precise temperature and variance of temperature, which goes against the assumptions of the main hypothesis mentioned above. However, the variation in the production of these objects correlates well with broad climatic changes and with demographic events. This suggests that portable art objects and ornaments might have been used to a certain extent to help facilitate the population movements that were themselves affected by climate change.
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Keywords
Portable art, Ornaments, Social networks, Climate change, Population movements, Materials