Combining experiment and ethnoarchaeology to differentiate the surface conditions of animal hides

There is a wide range of technical processes involved in working animal skins, depending on the environment, the size of the skins and the purpose of the work (clothing, tent covers, etc.). The archaeological tools and their shape, weight, and use-wear are often the only evidence of these technical processes. Their understanding requires an experimental approach combined with ethnoarchaeological data to establish protocols allowing processes compatible with the type of skin to be treated and carry out the correct gestures at each stage of the process. This study, dedicated to the processing of very large hides, presents the experimental replication of the production process of moose hides observed in Canada (B.C.) in an Athaspakan group. The functional analysis of the experimental tools allows identifying different wear patterns corresponding to different surface conditions of animal hides; each of them having particular implications for the interpretation of the archaeological record.