6 16 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , FEBRUARY 9, 1903. III. NOTICE OF A COLLECTION 01 PERFORATED STONE OBJECTS, FROM THE GARIOCH, ABERDEENSHIRE. BY J. GRAHAM CALLANDER, F.S.A. SOOT. Many perforated article f stono s f greateo e r leso r s antiquity have been found, the use of which we have no difficulty in defining. Among such article e stonar s e axes, stone hammers, whorls, beads d sinkan , - stones for nets or lines; but this collection of perforated stones from Central Aberdeenshire seems to be quite different from any of the recog- nised types. Localities.—The collection, which consist f sixty-fivo s e specimenss ha , been gathered during the last five years in the Garioch district of Aber- deenshire from eight different localitie n fivi s e parishes :—Elevee ar n from Newbigging, parish of Culsalmond ; one is from the Kirkyard of Culsalmond; five are from the adjoining farms of Jericho and Colpy, Culsalmond e froar m o Johnstonetw ; , paris f Leslio hs froi e me ;on Cushieston, parish of Rayne; one is from Lochend, Barra, parish of Bourtie; thre froe ear m Harlaw, paris f Chapeho f Garioco l fortyd an h; - one are from Logie-Elphinstone estate, also in Chapel of Garioch. e specimenth l Al s have bee e ploughnth turney b , p nonu d e having been found associated with burials or dwelling sites; at the same time many flint implements have been foun e localitiemosn th di f o t s named, especiall firste th , n yi third last-mentioned an , d ones, these I believe, , having been more thoroughly searched. The Logie-Elphinstone district, whic s producehha d about two-third e collectionth f so s beeha , n founo dt be very rich indeed in prehistoric remains, many urns, stone axes, hammer stones, arrowheads othed an , r flint implements having been recovered. Description.—The material f whico t hou s they have been made ar e usuall commoe yth slatd ean n "heathen " stone, whic founs hi d scattered all ove .fieldse th r . Slat plentifuls i e e Eoudlanth , de N.W th Hill 1 .s01 boundary of the Garioch being composed of this material. Very few of e specimenth s have been made from water-worn stonese smalleTh . r PERFORATED STONE OBJECTS FROM GARIOCH, ABERDEENSHIRE. 167 ones, which are usually made of slate, have been dressed flat on both sides and ground round the periphery, and the larger ones, which are mad f variouo e s kind f stoneo s , have been chipped inte requisitth o e shape. e latterSomth f eo , however e naturallar , y fractured stonese th , only artificial wor whicn perforatione ko th s hi . With the exception of four of the specimens, which are bored near the end r neaperforatione o e e centrobjects. th ,th th t ra f l o eal - e ar sTh e holes, which are generally bored in the smaller specimens, and are picked out in the larger ones, have been made from both faces. In the majority of cases the perforation goes through the object at an angle, the- centre of the bore on one side not being exactly opposite the centre on the other side. Several of the specimens show the perforation begun and not finished. In fifty-three specimens the making of the hole has been completed, twenty-seven having been bored and twenty-six having been picked out, while in eleven specimens the hole has been commenced but not finished. In four of these eleven cases the process has been by boringn sevei pickind y nb an , ge specimen outOn . s bee,ha Non, 12 . neatly brough requiree th o t d thicknes ground san d roun circumfere dth - ence to an almost circular shape, but there is no sign of the perforation having been begun. This one, along with JSTo. 13, which has been brought to the required shape, and in which the boring of the hole has been com- menced, seem to show that the making of the hole had usually been left e laste specimenth on o ;t ,e perforatio however, whicth 15 s . ha h No , n complete and which is rather irregular in shape, seems to have a circular- markin projectine th g f acroso beee d gsha on n t angles i intende f i s a , d to reduce it to a circular shape, in which case the making of the hole was apparently the first and the shaping of the article the last process. The specimens wit unfinishee hth d perforations show that whe perforate nth - ing was commenced by boring it was finished by boring, and when it was commenced by picking it was finished by picking. The two processes were therefor t employeeno makinn di e samth g impossibles i hole t I . e e groups whicth y f sa o o h,t o intproces tw e oldero th n whicI s si . e hw have divided the collection, and which are composed of the smaller and 168 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, FEBRUARY 9, 1908. more finely finished articles horine th , g process alon s beee ha vogue n ni , while in the third group, in which the articles are much larger and more roughly finished, bote borin th hd pickin an g g processe e seenb n . ca s From thi t appearsi processeo e stw th tha have y t a th t esma e beeus n ni .same time. The object ) arrang65 s o (figs.t e 1 themselve s into three distinct .groups e firs f th which,o t , numbering four specimens, Noss o 4i t , 1 . •compose f thosdo e articles which hav e perforatioth e n nea e endd th r an , which all have the holes bored. The holes are countersunk from both faces of the object, and taper towards the centre from both sides. These four specimens are all more or less water-worn, the largest and the •smallest being flattened oval pebbles. Nos. 1, 2 and 4 are from Logie- Elphinstone district, and No. 3 is from Newbigging. e secon Th d thiran d d group e composear s f thoso d e articles which hav perforatioe eth near o centree t th r na thed an ,y form practicalle th y wholcollectione th f eo . They number sixty-one specimens seed an o ,m t be composed of objects which have not been put on record before, so far •as Scotlan s concerneddi . Thes o grouptw e s togetherseeo g f mi o t d an , •one grou founs p i distric a expectede n di b e othe y th tt leastma rA . 1 , hav ethren i foun o s e t differendi t localities. The second group is composed of the smaller and more finely finished articles, and numbers seventeen specimens, Nos. 5 to 21, of which eight e froar m Logie-Elphinstone s froi e m on ,Colp y s froFarmi e e mth on , Kirkyard of Culsalmond, one is from Lochend, Barra, three are from Harlaw d thre e an fro, ar em Newbigging. Mos f theo te carefullmar y manufacture desiree th o dt d thickness wele ar l d dresse almosan ,n a o dt t circular shape. They vary in size from | of an inch to lj|- inches in •diameter froincn d a thicknessincn mn i han ,f a \ o o t hf -£% e o Th . holes ,l countersunwhichal e ar , d wit 16 e exceptioan k . th h No f o n tape fron i r m both sides, vary from abou inc n incn a h\a f to ht o f - ^o narrowese th t a smalleso t tw part e th ,t holese beinon , 6 g . founNo n di of the smallest, and in No. 21, the largest specimen of this group. No. 16, from Newbigging, differs from all the others in having its hole drilled 170 PROCEEDING E SOCIETYTH F O S , FEBRUAR , 19039 Y . straight through the stone with no tapering, and also in having the top ! and hottom sides bevelled all round for ahout f T of an inch from the outer edge. No. 12 hefore mentioned, from Colpy Farm, which belongs to this group, and which has been carefully dressed to the desired thick- ness and ground round the circumference, shows no trace of the hole having been commenced. , !Nofro14 m. Harlaw, show seconsa d holo et have been begun on one side, but apparently after it had been com- e trutth meeo hf t hole o th n t teo ou r fa o to mencee founs b wa o t dt d i e otheth r sided beinan , g discontinued another e s holboreth wa en i d right place. Another specimen, No. 13, from Newbigging, shows the borin havo gt e been started from bot t hcompleted sideno t sbu . Type I. Type II. Type III. Perfora- Perfora- Perfora- Perforation Perforation Localities. tion Com- tion Com- tion In- Complete. Incomplete. Total. plete. plete. complete. Bored. Bored. Bored. Bored . Picked Bored. Picked. Newbigging, 1 ',> 1 1 3 1 2 11 Kir f o Ctilsalk - 1 1 Jericho and Colpy Farm, I1 4 5 Johnstone, . 2 2 Cushieston, 1 1 1 1 Harlaw, 3 3 Logie- Elphin- stone, 3 8 / 16 2 5 41 Total, . 4 15 2 8 26 3 7 65 The third group is composed of the larger and more roughly formed articles, and numbers forty-four specimens, Nos. 22 to 65, of which thirt e froar y m Logie-Elphinstone, foue froar rm Jerich d Colpan o y 1 In this specimen the perforation has not been commenced.