53 I STONE AGE IN NORTHERN EUROPE: CHANGES IN LANDSCAPE, TECHNOLOGIES AND BELIEFS ARCHAEOLOGIA BALTICA 25 Introduction Many thousands of osseous objects lie in museum col- lections, and many new objects are found every year. However, all too often these objects, especially those found either during older excavations without modern methodology and recording, or as stray fnds, languish under-utilised, under-researched and often undisplayed in museum storerooms. Such stray or orphaned objects often have an intrinsic aesthetic value, but are com- monly under-studied, or not studied at all. At best, minimal information is inferred from casual typologi- cal comparison. The under-researched nature of these objects can be attributed to a lack of funding, a lack of knowledge regarding applicable methods, and the idea that these objects, especially those from older excava- tions and stray fnds, have had their research potential stripped by the passing of time since they were recov- ered, partly due to a lack of records or known fnd con- texts (Voss 2012). In the light of recent methodological developments, we see this disregard of orphaned osseous objects as unwarranted. The focus of this paper, therefore, is to illustrate the signifcant research potential of such os- seous tools, even those lacking any detailed informa- tion regarding fnd context, and to outline a number of both conventional and rapidly developing scientifc methods that can be used to study recently excavated fnds, as well as objects lacking any contextual infor- mation. This will be illustrated by a series of analyses of four osseous points from Lithuania. The specifc objects studied as part of this research were chosen be- cause they also represent Mesolithic osseous objects with little information on the fnd circumstances, and inconsistent interpretations regarding their cultural and chronological associations. Thus, the results of our analyses contribute signifcantly to the clarifcation of previously ambiguous interpretations. They also con- tribute important new knowledge to our understanding of Mesolithic bone technology in Lithuania vis-à-vis contemporaneous osseous tool technologies in north- ern Europe. MAKING SILENT BONES SPEAK: THE ANALYSIS OF ORPHANED OSSEOUS TOOLS ILLUSTRATED WITH MESOLITHIC STRAY FINDS LIVIJA IVANOVAITĖ, 1 MATHIAS BJØRNEVAD, 1 * BENTE PHILIPPSEN, 2 CHRISTIAN HOGGARD, 1 JAN J. ENGHILD, 3 CARSTEN SCAVENIUS, 3 ASTA VASILIAUSKAITĖ, 4 GERARDA DRUČKUVIENĖ, 4 PETER JENSEN, 1 RIKKE MARING, 1 JAMES DODD, 1 KAMIL SERWATKA, 5 FELIX RIEDE 1 Abstract Orphaned osseous tools are very often perceived as having a high aesthetic value, but are usually under-examined. This article illustrates the research potential of these artefacts, with a case study of Mesolithic stray fnds from Lithuania. Four bone points from the River Šventoji, Vaikantonys, Obšrūtai and Kamšai were subjected to AMS dating, tandem mass spectrometry for animal species identifcation, and technological and use-wear analysis. The results revealed that all four bone points could be dated to the Boreal period, and imply an Early to Middle Mesolithic date. Harpoons from the River Šventoji and Kamšai were most likely made of aurochs bones. All of the bone points were produced from long sections of tubular long bones, and three of the points show signs of reuse. Overall, the analysis revealed similarities with contemporaneous material in northern Europe. Within the context of the present research, the paper briefy describes other scientifc methods which could be applied to orphaned bone and antler tools, including biomolecular and stable isotope analysis. Digital recording methods can be use- ful for bone artefact recording. This is relevant today, as the demand for good-quality digital representations is increasing, in order to apply software for further analysis, such as geometric morphometrics. As a result, more widespread and systematic applications of these new methods to orphaned osseous fnds would lead to a signifcant activation of these fnds in a scientifc and outreach context. Key words: Mesolithic, osseous tools, AMS dates, protein-based analysis, use-wear. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15181/ab.v25i0.1830