[OJFord]

The onus isn't really on me, it's not my device, I'm not even the organisation/article author claiming it is functional. You claim it can't work, have you tried it and seen? (Although admittedly you can't really show by practical experiment that it can't possibly be done.)

I do think it's more likely it was for use as a rope, with gourd weights to ease throwing.

[WalterBright]

The burden of proof should be on the people writing academic papers asserting it is a telephone.

Just like if someone claims they found a way to use water as an automobile fuel. I don't need to prove it doesn't work. They need to prove it does.