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Items placed with the dead in a chambered tomb

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From Unstan, Orkney

Items placed with the dead in a chambered tomb
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These objects are among a number of offerings placed with the dead in a chambered tomb at Unstan in Orkney. They were buried between 3400 and 2900 BC.

Pictured here are a rim fragment of a pot, flint arrowheads, a flint scraper, a flint knife, a flint flake, a pebble and a dog's tooth. A few dog bones were also found in this tomb, but it is unclear whether the dogs were pets, food or totemic creatures.

Many of Scotland's early farming communities buried their dead in communal tombs. Various offerings for the afterlife were included, such as food, in pots or as joints of meat, and everyday possessions such as flint arrowheads and tools.

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