Gifts from the Grandfathers

Yesterday was a gift of a day. Went catfishing in the Ohio, and caught a few. Got home in time to see Jr. end his 76 race losing streak. After we dropped the grandson off, we decided to swing through the bottoms, and check out one of our favorite artifact hunting grounds. It was about 7 p.m. when we parked the truck. It was hot and muggy and not a breath of wind stirring. The moon was already up, even though it wasn't close to getting dark. The deep thrumming of a tow making it's way upriver was the only man-made noise to be heard. We set out for a spot about a third of the way down the huge field, and intended to turn around and search back to the truck more slowly. On the way there, though, I found a perfect thumb scraper. Made it worth it to me right off. My companion told me I was going too slow. I told him to turn around and look back my way. The field was covered with lithic scatter, glinting in the slanting sunlight. He was not to be deterred, so we proceeded down the field. We turned back and began hunting slowly. Believe it or not, it is more difficult to hunt in a field with a lot of scatter, because you can't possibly turn up every piece. In a bit, a pic of the day's best finds. But first a report of my companion's uncanny luck when artifact hunting. We had made our way back to the area I wanted to hunt in the first place. I told him to look, that there was scatter in a wide spot of this part of the field. As soon as he headed off, he found the dark point in the photo, with just the tip gone. As he was walking toward me to show me the large scraper, I found the light gray point, with only about a third of the side of it exposed. Turned a good day into a great day.



We both feel honored when the grandfathers allow us to connect with them through things they left behind. We separate again, and in a couple of minutes I hear him say, "I don't know, this must be somethin modern..." and he heads over to me. I am the walkin, talkin, field guide on artifacts. He is the one who is shit-house lucky, and finds these things, and comes to me for the answers. He was holdin it up, but I could only see part of it. From the color and shape at a distance, I asked if it was plastic. By that time he had reached me and I could hear the unmistakable sound when he ran it across his teeth. He handed it to me, and I immediately recognized what it is. After a few good-natured comments on his aforementioned shit-house luck, I tell him what he has found. It is what remains of a bannerstone, made from blood quartz. It's called a butterfly bannerstone, rare for the shape, and rarer for the material from which it is made. Here is a close-up:



The bannerstone is translucent.



Often stones made from this material were completely finished, except for the drilling. Quartz and quartzite are extremely hard to drill. Especially considerin they did it with hollow river cane and grains of sand. On the inside of the hole you can see the lines left from the drilling. This pic is as good as I could get with the digital.



To think that we were the first folks to hold and admire this in 5000 years or so is truly a reverential feeling. It is a spiritual experience that is hard to describe. To think that the damage may have been done by modern day farming machinery, by uncaring folks is a whole nother kinda feeling, but I won't go into that. This was made by what I would consider a master craftsman, for someone of special status. There are various theories of the purpose of these artifacts and you can find them on the web. I just hope the Grandfathers are happy that is now in a place where it will be revered and honored, as I revere and honor them.

Knock On Wood...

Well, not really. It would not be a wise thing to do until you are sure this is not set. And for a rat, it would never be advisable. My last two posts have had subjects of stone, then metal. I decided to look for something made of wood, and here it is. I acquired this last year, when disassembling an 1870's farmhouse. Before we started with the tear-down, I poked through every nook and cranny, and even got down on my hands and knees to search up under the eaves in the attic, which is where this was discovered. It was not set, just shoved up under the eaves, where the roof met the attic floorboards. Doesn't appear to have ever dispatched a rat. That's not surprising, as we found no evidence of rodents taking up residence even though the house had not been lived in since the early 1970's. It has a kind of macabre attractiveness, does it not?



The manufacturer, Lovell Manufacturing Co. is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's period of significance runs from 1850-1924. The site consists of 40 acres and 9 buildings. They manufactured a wide variety of household items over the years. I'm a bit perverse, so I proudly display this instrument of death standing upright, on top of my punched tin piesafe in the kitchen. You can go to the Patent Office page and search by patent number 1,726,195 and view the patent drawings, specifications, and more info than you ever wanted to know about this particular trap. The date on this version of the trap is August 27, 1929. Here is the link to the image file. If you can't view the images, click "help" and install alternatiff viewer. The internet is a marvelous thing.

The Rest Of The Story

Last night I went in search of an ashtray. I was looking for a small one to set on the foot of the bed, where I was sitting cross-legged half reading, half watching Corner Gas. I went into the dark kitchen, pulled out the storage (junk) drawer, and proceeded to dig to the bottom. I heard metal on metal, located the source, and drew this outta the drawer. So that's where this has been hiding! I knew it was here somewhere. This is yet another in my long line of favorite metal things. Don't know where I acquired this affinity for anything old and made of metal. Things made outta brass are probably my favorite category. There are no makers marks on this piece to help identify it or date it. Doesn't matter to me, I love it just the way it is. At first glance, it appears to be a well-done depiction of a soldier and a peasant lass out for a stroll. My guess would be German origin, because of the soldier's attire and mustache. The young lady's hair is gathered up on top of her head, her bodice has short, puffed sleeves, and she has her market basket on her arm. She has her hand up to her lips and is tilting her head in what appears to be maidenly modesty or shyness. A sentimental moment captured for all time. Ah, for the days of such innocence...



And now, for the rest of the story...



PRICELESS!

What A Tool

Here’s a front and back view of my best find from Sunday’s expedition. Found in a field on the second ridge back from the river. One of my favorite places to hunt. It was hot, and the ground was dry and dusty, which makes the hunt much more challenging. I found several large scrapers and a broken point of another drill, but no arrowheads for me this trip. Truth be told, I enjoy the tools just as much, if not a tad bit more than the projectile points. This piece is called a drill, or perforator. It’s from the Archaic period, which is reckoned to be from 8000 b.c. or so, up to 1000 b.c. Gray to tan flint, well worked and intact. Another fine piece for my collection, and another piece saved from being destroyed by farm machinery.