SAN-HV08 

worked material

FÍ — Reykjavik Iceland Featured

Worked scapula

Material

whale bone

Object Type

worked material

Period

settlement period, vikingtid

Date

870 CE – 1000 CE

Museum

Fornleifastofnun Íslands

Provenance

Sandvík

Location

Reykjavík

Date of Discovery

2021-06-09

Conservation

Fair

Species

Bowhead whale

Created by

Valerio Punzi

Whale scapula fragment displaying cut and chopping marks associated with butchery, flipper disarticulation, cortical blank extraction, and transverse sectioning. Subsequently reused as a structural element in a wall. Surface cracking reflects post-depositional alteration in waterlogged coastal sediments.

References

View on Sketchfab

This preliminary test model was created for the study of modification traces and anatomical features and does not represent the complete bone.

3D model courtesy of the source museum via Sketchfab.

Bibliography

Lísabet Guðmundsdóttir. 2022 Landnámsminjar í Sandvík: Björgunarrannsókn Framvinduskýrsla. FS86920082. Fornleifastofnun Íslands, Reykjavík.

Find Site Information

Region

West

Municipality

Strandir

Find Category

boplassfunn

Find Year

2021

Period

settlement period, vikingtid

Country

Iceland

Locality ID

SAN21-43-21

Latitude

65.7022220

Longitude

-21.4211110

View on Map

Zooarchaeological Data

Skeletal Element

Scapula

Preservation State

Fair

Material & Technology

Object Type

worked material

Category

Iceland

Raw Material

whale bone

Species Attribution

Bowhead whale

Manufacturing Stage

Primary reduction

Length	25.1 cm
Height	21.9 cm

Manufacturing Stage	Primary reduction
Skeletal Element	Scapula
Conservation Status	Fair
Species	Bowhead whale
Provenance	Sandvík
Notes	Osteobiography suggests a transition from carcass processing to craft production and eventual architectural reuse. Surface alterations are consistent with waterlogged depositional conditions.