In the Cerny culture, the crucial place held by hunting is archaeologicallyperceptible through the types of artefacts found in the graves: osseous toolsand personal ornaments are made from bones of wild animals, and theartefacts most frequently associated with the dead are arrowheads. Thepresence of these latter objects leads us to consider the hunting equipmentoriginally deposited in the graves: several arrows, a bow and possibly aquiver. The 《Balloy typed graves are characterized by the presence of abody in the extended position inside a mobile container in a 《vault》. About100 of these graves are known today, 20 of which yielded flint arrowheads.Several modes of deposit could be identified for these arrowheads: unhaftedarrowheads included in a container placed in the grave; several arrowsplaced next to each other beside the body; or a quiver full of arrows placedon the dead body. These varied situations might have had different mea-nings. Arrowheads are directly linked to hunting, and imply the use of abow and arrows. However other artefacts might also be less directly rela-ted to hunting equipment. This is the case of the enigmatic《Eiffel towers》,bone objects that might have been used as spear tips. It is not possible to ascertain whether the equipment deposited in the grave was the personalbelonging of the deceased. Indeed, in several cases – graves of very youngchildren, a person handicapped by an elbow malformation – the individualcould not have made use of a bow. The arrows themselves are often too fewto constitute a real hunting kit, and sometimes too《precious》to be usedas mundane ammunition. The association between arrows and certain in-dividuals is above all a matter of display: one must not jump to the conclu-sion that hunting was the main activity of all individuals whose graveyielded arrowheads. The status (or function) of hunter was first and foremosta status (or function) that these individuals held in death.
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