6 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Stone Age Loved to Dance to the Rhythm of the Elk Tooth Rattles

Thousands of years ago, people danced frequently and to the rhythm. This is the conclusion of the discovery of elk teeth at the Yuzhniy Oleniy Ostrov burial site in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, whose wear markings and placement in the tombs indicate that the artifacts were employed as rattlers.

A total of 177 graves of women, men and children have been found in the Yuzhniy Oleniy Ostrov burial site, of which more than half contain several elk tooth ornaments, some of them composed of as many as over 300 individual teeth.
“Ornaments composed of elk teeth suspended from or sown on to clothing emit a loud rattling noise when moving,” says auditory archaeologist and Academy of Finland Research Fellow Riitta Rainio from the University of Helsinki. “Wearing such rattlers while dancing makes it easier to immerse yourself in the soundscape, eventually letting the sound and rhythm take control of your movements. It is as if the dancer is led in the dance by someone.”

Rainio is well-versed in the subject, having danced for six hours in a row for study reasons while wearing Stone Age-style elk tooth decorations.  Rainio and artist Juha Valkeapää put on a performance to see what type of wear marks teeth get as they slam against one other and move in different directions.

Depending on the quantity and quality of the teeth, as well as the intensity of movement, a tooth rattler’s sound might be clear and brilliant or loud and pounding.

Video showing a hypothetical reconstruction of tooth ornaments found in the Late Mesolithic 
graves of Yuzhniy Oleniy Ostrov, NW Russia [Julia Shpinitskaya]

The teeth that had been worn down by dancing were examined for microscopic signs before and after the dance. These signs were then compared to those discovered in the Yuzhniy Oleniy Ostrov burials by Evgeny Girya, a Russian Academy of Sciences archaeologist specializing in micro-marks.

Girya documented and analyzed the wear marks in the elk teeth recovered in the four experiment burials. When he compared the chips, hollows, cuts, and smoothened surfaces of the teeth, he saw a striking similarity between dancing teeth and Stone Age teeth. The imprints on Stone Age teeth, on the other hand, were deeper and wider. According to Girya, the results show that the marks are the result of similar activity.

“As the Stone Age teeth were worn for years or even decades, it’s no surprise that their marks are so distinctive,” Girya says.

Kristiina Mannermaa, Associate Professor of Archaeology at the University of Helsinki, is excited by the research findings.


“Elk tooth rattlers are fascinating, since they transport modern people to a soundscape that is thousands of years old and to its emotional rhythms that guide the body. You can close your eyes, listen to the sound of the rattlers and drift on the soundwaves to a lakeside campfire in the world of Stone Age hunter-gatherers.”

The study is published in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal.

Cover Photo: [Artist Tom Bjorklund]

Source: University of Helsinki

Related Articles

During the demolition work, a 2,500-year-old bull heads alto relievo was discovered in Sinop

20 April 2022

20 April 2022

During the demolition work of the buildings in front of the historical city walls for the City Square National Garden...

2000-year-old passage found after Latrina at Smyrna Theater

28 January 2022

28 January 2022

Archaeologists discovered a 2,000-year-old passage that was 26 meters long and constructed in an “L” form in the theater part...

God Vishnumurthy Statue Found in a Well in Karnataka

28 February 2021

28 February 2021

A statue of the god Vishnumurthy dumped into a well was found near a destroyed Udupi temple in the state...

A woman was buried in a canoe on her way to the ‘destination of souls’ 800 years ago

25 August 2022

25 August 2022

According to new research, Up to 800 years ago, mourners buried a young woman in a ceremonial canoe to represent...

Ancient ceremonial chariot found in Pompeii

27 February 2021

27 February 2021

The Archaeological Park announced that a gorgeous Roman chariot was found “almost intact” near Pompeii, where it was buried, calling...

8,500-year-old marble statuette found in Çatalhöyük

28 December 2021

28 December 2021

In the 29th season of the excavations in Çatalhöyük, one of the first urbanization models in Anatolia, in the Çumra...

Hidden Roman Passage Unearthed Beneath Split: A Secret Gateway into Diocletian’s Palace Revealed

23 June 2025

23 June 2025

A groundbreaking discovery beneath Hrvojeva Street, near Diocletian’s Palace, is reshaping our understanding of Roman life and architecture in the...

Secrets of the Galloway Hoard Revealed

27 May 2021

27 May 2021

Experts have uncovered fascinating secrets of a Viking Age hoard discovered by a metal detector to be presented to the...

1500-year-old Stunning Pendant Amulet Depicting the Prophet Solomon Spearing the Devil on Horseback Found in Türkiye

15 November 2024

15 November 2024

During the excavations in the ancient city of Hadrianopolis in Eskipazar district of Karabük, Türkiye, an amulet from the 5th...

A 4000-year-old Fabric Found in a Cave of Skulls in the Judean Desert is the Oldest Dyed with Insect Dye

15 July 2024

15 July 2024

Researchers discovered an ancient textile dyed with kermes (Kermes vermilio) in Israel’s Cave of Skulls that dates back to the...

The Longest Greek Papyrus from the Judean Desert Sheds Light on a Pivotal Roman Court Case

31 January 2025

31 January 2025

New research by a group of Austrian and Israeli scholars has finally deciphered a 1,900-year-old scroll describing a tense court...

Bronze Age Petroglyphs discovered in Kazakhstan

1 May 2024

1 May 2024

Volunteers in Kazakhstan have discovered new petroglyphs from the Bronze Age. The rock carvings were found by volunteers of the...

New Study: Middle Paleolithic Human Diet was More Diverse than Previously Thought

30 November 2023

30 November 2023

In a newly published study, archaeologists from the Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment at the University of Tübingen...

According to new research, medieval warhorses were shockingly diminutive in height

12 January 2022

12 January 2022

Medieval warhorses are often depicted as massive and powerful beasts, but in reality, many were no more than pony-sized by...

Evidence of a Roman shrine dating back was discovered during dig at Leicester Cathedral

7 March 2023

7 March 2023

Excavations by the University of Leicester archaeologists for have uncovered evidence that the site of Leicester Cathedral has been used...