A series in eight essays

Is This a Bullroarer?

Many pierced blades look ready to roar. Some of them may: the world’s oldest worked jade includes thin slats, and Jōmon stone spatulas are worn at the hole where a whirled cord wears. Others turn out to belong to a Roman writing kit or a Bronze Age shaving set. These illustrated studies compare whole families of objects by form, wear and find context, and say which way each one points.