Hoe

The hoe made of red deer antlers was discovered in an unspecified place and circumstances, probably in the late 19th or early 20th century. Usually, the place of discovery is assumed to be Koszalin or its vicinity. Before 1909, it was in the collection of the Scientific Society (Towarzystwo Naukowe) in Koszalin, then it was given to the Gesellschaft für Pommersche Geschichte und Altertumskunde in Szczecin. The hoe was made from the dropped antler of an adult, healthy male. Considering the size of the rose, the part of the antler closest to the skull, it was probably a huge animal. The opening for the shaft was made by piercing the compacta, the outer layer of the antler, and the spongiosa, i.e., the spongy inner part of the antler, on both sides. The handle was adjusted to the size of the hole by wedging it with a wooden pin. The tool had been repaired several times, resulting in a significant size reduction. The preserved surface marks show that the hoe was used extensively for a variety of jobs. The most obvious is extensive dents and severe damage visible at the blade and hilt, resulting from using the tool as an axe or blow for woodworking, a pickaxe or hoe for digging in the ground, or as a hammer. The versatile use of tools is typical of the hunter-gatherer population of the forest zone in northern Europe during the early Holocene. Based on the remains of organic sediments preserved on the hoe, it can be assumed that it rested in a layer of marl or lacustrine chalk so that it may have survived to our time. In the absence of radiocarbon age determinations, it is dated only generally to the Mesolithic, c. 9600-5400 BC.

Michał Adamczyk