11 Matching Annotations
  1. Jan 2023
  2. Feb 2018
    1. British archaeologists have uncovered a 10,000-year-old crayon that provides a tantalising glimpse into the lives of Mesolithic settlers.

      This "crayon" represents a time period where ten thousand years ago, someone had something they wished to express to other people. A crayon is a visual aid that adds color and and meaning to a work. The word "ochre" means a brownish red which can mean many things such as blood, or love, or a connection with the earth. Both of these definitions are important to know in this text to see ow this "crayon" "records the shape and imprint of otherwise more abstract, aspects of that culture that they quite literally embody.” (Haltman) According to the passage we are able to take a "tantalising glimpse into the lives of Mesolithic settlers."

  3. Jan 2018
    1. The find, together with another scraped ochre stone, found nearby, also described in the paper, add to a growing understanding of the lives and culture of the hunter-gatherers who spent time on the shores of the ancient lake.

      Haltman explains there are more to an object than what meets the eye. The conclusion that archaeologist have discovered is a 10,000 year crayon or writing tool. Beyond i being a crayon is what the crayon represents. I represents literacy which is used to record or transform information that was 10,000 years ago.

    2. The find, together with another scraped ochre stone, found nearby, also described in the paper, add to a growing understanding of the lives and culture of the hunter-gatherers who spent time on the shores of the ancient lake.

      Haltman applies the same logic agreeing that items pertaining to material culture can give a deeper understanding into how people of that culture behaved and what they hold as their values. Perhaps further studying of this ancient crayon can give insight as to how the Mesolithic people interacted as well as how their society operated daily.

    3. The crayon, or perhaps more accurately “crayon-like object”, is 22-milimetres long and seven-millimetres wide, an elongated structure comprised primarily of haematitite, although with some small hard pieces of other minerals embedded.

      In this article we see Materson displaying those major attributions to a good description that Haltman spoke of in his text. "The key to good description is a rich, nuanced vocabulary". We see him giving readers a description that gives a sense of imagery here. Had there not been a picture, with this description readers would have been able to create an image in their head. We see this "rich, nuanced vocabulary" that Haltman suggested, in this article.

    4. The crayon, or perhaps more accurately “crayon-like object”, is 22-milimetres long and seven-millimetres wide, an elongated structure comprised primarily of haematitite, although with some small hard pieces of other minerals embedded.

      Haltman says "material objects begin in a world of objects but takes place in a world of words." Finding this crayon is congruent to this belief because this object opens a door to a new "world of words." Although primitive in language this crayon would begin a new "nuanced vocabulary" for early man.

    5. Ancient crayon lets archaeologists draw conclusions

      How does the ancient crayon "Let" archaeologists draw conclusions? Haltman said in other words, objects have a meaning behind it even if they just look like a certain thing. If you analyze it more fruitfully then you can learn from the culture in which they come from. The "crayon-like object" has a deeper meaning than it just being a crayon. Being that it is 10,000 years old it helped the archaeologists understand more of the Mesolithic settlers culture and lives after they analyzed it into further detail.

    6. The lack of any obvious artistic or design elements to the grooves, the researchers write, can be taken as evidence that the object was periodically and precisely scraped to obtain red ochre. The pointy bit, they suggest, “might indicate the elongate shaped piece was used as a drawing and colouring tool, perhaps in a similar way to a contemporary pencil or crayon”.

      I wonder what "metaphysical aspects of culture" this object might represent? Perhaps straight lines are gestures towards the "metaphysical," and the stone is the art, not the "tool." Is imagining the object as a "crayon" imposing a contemporary imagination unreasonably upon an ancient object?

    7. Ancient crayon lets archaeologists draw conclusions

      "let's"? That's an interesting verb. Personifies the object. What does "draw conclusions" mean here? Don't all artifacts/things lend to "drawing conclusions"? Strange title.

  4. Mar 2017
    1. In 1990, eight shades — maize, lemon yellow, blue gray, raw umber, green blue, orange red, orange yellow and violet blue — were retired and eight new ones, including the yellow hue known as dandelion, were introduced.

      I remember many of these...

    2. After 27 years, the crayon color dandelion is taking a retirement, making way for an upstart in the blue family

      Seems sad in a way...