Room of Invention

This is a tactile object. You may touch it.

Here you can feel a replica of a spear. The original is displayed in the glass case to your left. This spearhead is made of antler bone. You may touch it. Spears were used by people in the Middle Stone Age for hunting and fishing. Depending on the intended use of the spear, they chose which material to make the head from: flint, animal bone, or in this case, antler.

This is a so-called bearded or barbed spear, named after the serrations it has on one side: tiny lateral cut-away nicks that make sure that the spear gets firmly stuck in the prey. Imagine you wanted to catch a fish with it: you thrust the spear into the fish and then lift it up by the spear. Without the serrations, the fish could easily slide off again and escape. 

Life during the Middle Stone Age was on the move all the time. People travelled from place to place to hunt, fish, and gather plants. Much of that life took place near water, as that is where most food could be found. The spears in the display case on the left behind you were found in the North Sea. 

 

This is a core object. You can listen to information here. Unfortunately, you’re not allowed to touch this object.

In this display case lies a canoe that's at least 10,000 years old. It was found near the village of Pesse in Drenthe and is therefore called the ‘Pesse Canoe’. It’s three metres long and 44 centimetres wide and is made from the trunk of a Scots pine tree. The trunk has been hollowed out with an axe. Its top and bottom are rounded, but it’s not clear whether this must be ascribed to the influence of time or that the curves were made deliberately. The canoe has withstood the test of time rather well, but seeing its weathered overall condition there is no doubt that pieces of wood have broken off at the edges.

Finding a suitable tree to make a canoe must have been quite a job. There are plenty of trees, you would think, but you need to find the perfect tree: straight as an arrow, with only a few branches, and thick and sturdy enough to carry a person. Then the hard work begins: with axes made of flint and antler bone the tree must be cut down and then hauled out of the forest to the waterfront. There, the bark is removed after which the chopping can begin – hours and hours of chopping, until the tree is hollowed out sufficiently. 
 
The Pesse canoe is the oldest vessel in the world. It hardly looks like more than just a hollowed-out tree. The grain in the wood, the knots and broken pieces have not been smoothed away or repaired. There have been doubts as to whether it was a vessel at all. That is why an experiment was carried out with a replica in 2001: the canoe proved to be stable in the water and could function as a boat perfectly well!