The museum known as a large conch shell is now thought to be the oldest known warming instrument, and can still play a tune
WASHINGTON – A giant conch shell that has been observed in a museum for decades is now thought to be the oldest known warming instrument – and it still works, producing a deep bleat, plaintive, as a subpoena from the past.
The shell was discovered when a cave was excavated in 1931 with prehistoric wall paintings in the Pyrenees of France and is thought to have been a ceremonial drinking cup. Archaeologists from the University of Toulouse recently took a fresh look and concluded that it was transformed thousands of years ago into a windmill. They invited a French horn player to play.
“Hearing it for the first time was a great feeling – and a huge burden, for me,” said archaeologist Carole Fritz.
She feared that playing the 12-inch (31-centimeter) shell could harm her, but she did not. The horn made clear C, sharp C and D notes.
Researchers believe it is around 18,000 years old. Their findings were published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances.
Conch shells have been widely used in musical and ceremonial traditions, including in ancient Greece, Japan, India and Peru. The shell instrument found in the cave of Marsoulas is now the oldest known example. Earlier, a conch shell instrument found in Syria was taken around 6,000 years old, said another Toulouse archaeologist Gilles Tosello.
The latest discovery was made following a recent inventory at the Toulouse Museum of Natural History. The researchers noticed some unusual holes in the shell. Crucially, the top of the shell was broken, creating a hole large enough to blow through. Microscopic examination showed that the opening was the result of deliberate craftsmanship, not accidental wear, according to Tosello.
By inserting a tiny medical camera, they discovered that another hole had been carefully drilled in the inner chamber of the shell. They also found traces of red color on the conch’s mouth, matching a decorative pattern found on Marsoulas cave wall.
“This is truly classical archeology,” said Margaret Conkey, an archaeologist at the University of California, Berkeley, who was not involved in the research. “This discovery reminds us that life was much richer and more complex than just stone tools and large games. ”
Marsoulas cave is not located near an ocean, so the prehistoric people must have moved around extensively or used trade networks to find the shell, Conkey and the researchers said.
“What makes conch shells so interesting is that the spiral gut created by nature is very capable of taking over musically,” said Rasoul Morteza, a composer in Montreal who studied the acoustics of conch shells, and were not involved in the paper.
Using a 3D replica, archaeologists plan to continue examining the range of horn notes. Tosello said he hopes to hear the old instrument played inside the cave where it was found.
“It’s amazing when something is forgotten somewhere, and suddenly it comes back to light,” he said.
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