Resumen de Tribulum Inserts in Ethnographic and Archaeological Perspective: case Studies from Bulgaria and Israel
This paper discusses in a comparative perspective the problem of a particular type of prehistoric instrument � the tribulum or threshing sledge � within the southeastern Balkans and the southern Levant. Evidence of ethnographic tribula (and particularly their inserts) from Bulgaria is presented as well as a series of archaeological tribulum inserts identified by the author from a Late Chalcolithic site in Bulgarian Thrace. In this cognitive approach the meticulous study of the morpho-metrical, typological and use-wear parameters of the ethnographic implements serves as a reliable dataset for recognizing tribulum inserts from stratified archaeological contexts. The tribulum is one of the most long-lasting agricultural implements from the area of the Mediterranean koiné � from the Near East to the Iberian Peninsula. In spite of the remarkable consistency of tribulum design and use, there are (according to the latest scientific reconstructions) differences between the prehistoric tribula and their use in the Mediterranean area and those from northern Mesopotamia. In experimental work by P. Anderson's research team, a particular type of threshing sledge was used; this was reconstructed based on an interpretation of the Sumerian Farmer's Almanac text and various cuneiform administrative archives and showed significant differences from the large known corpus of ethnographic evidence of the tribulum in the Mediterranean area. The novelty in Anderson's research was the interpretation of Canaanean blades as tribulum inserts, contrary to their conventional interpretation as sickle inserts. A use-wear study by the present author of Canaanean blades from four Bronze Age sites in Israel revealed differences between Canaanean blades that were used as sickles and those used for other functions; but no tribulum inserts were identified, either morphologically or in terms of microwear traces. The present article offers a spectrum of microphotographs of the implements analyzed, and some additional reasoning on the crucial problem of cereal polish. The discussion section reviews issues associated with the reliable verification of the threshing theory of Canaanean blades
