This stone tool was recovered from a late Neolithic (3200-2400 BC) building (Str. 14) on the Ness of Brodgar excavations, Stenness, Orkney, Scotland. The name ‘pillow stone’ derives from the artefacts form, as they are typically rectangular with domed faces. These artefacts are typically made from volcanic or metamorphic rock; this example is manufactured from gneiss. This stone has been roughly ground to shape and polished. The fine marks on the faces result from using this stone as an anvil. The ends exhibit damage from use as a hammerstone.
This model was produced for a Leverhulme Trust funded project ‘Working stone, making communities: technology and identity on prehistoric Orkney’. This model will feature on a web resource about Orcadian stone tools, which is currently under development.
SF 15037. Excavations directed by Nick Card, ORCA. For more info see: http://www.orkneyjar.com/archaeology/nessofbrodgar/
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