Bone Flute
Musical instrument
Abri Blanchard type, Dordogne
Aurignacian
42 000 to 34 000 years ago
These instruments were made from long bones, usually from birds, in order to exploit the hollow diaphyseal canal along which the holes were pierced.
R. White, Préhistoire, Editions Sud-Ouest, Bordeaux. 1993
Commentary :
The apparent simplicity of bone flutes, and the ease with which they are made, can mask their exceptional interest.
The number and arrangement of holes, which allow multiple harmonic combinations, could only result from a long history of musical practice with this instrument.
While only bone examples are preserved, flutes of diverse forms, materials and tones, likely coexisted during this period.
Along with art and body ornaments, musical instruments, such as flutes, are part of the unique materials that allow a real, expressive image of prehistoric societies to be reconstructed. At the dawn of the Upper Palaeolithic, around 35 000 years ago, artistic representation already formed an important element of human life.