Your thoughts on these artifacts most appreciated

[Niner]

I "inherited" these Indian artifacts from a client of mine. An old pioneer farmer, he had them all piled up in the back corner of his yard. I asked him about those rocks when I was working there one day and a big chunk of black obsidian caught my eye, and upon further investigation it was a huge pile of mortars and pestles. One day, Archie told me that he knew I appreciated his collection of artifacts and wanted me to have them. See, he was dying and he knew it and insisted I take them.

I've given several of samples away, but thought you folks would like to see them.

 

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[Niner]

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[el padron]

Hi Niner Very cool stuff, I've heard of museums paying LOTS of money for mortar and pestle type artifacts such as yours. The indentations can be found in huge rocks along the South western river systems. These places were used for many centuries by the kumyayay (spelling) to grind acorns into flower in close proximity to the water source....The indentations can sometimes be found far from modern water and often mark the old active beds of rivers from hundreds or thousands of years ago. All the portable ones like the ones you have presented are long gone, and for the most part completely lost to time.

 

[Red Earth]

This one is extra impressive

 

[Red Earth]

And I'd like to see better pics of this

 

[Red Earth]

Did he give you any flint pieces or pottery?

 

[NCPeaches]

That was so sweet of him to give them to you, bless his heart.

 

[painterx7]

Those are super !!

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Great looking Mortars and Pestles. Are they from California?

 

[rock]

Very nice examples and I am glad they went to a good home. They are worth a good bit of money just so you know, rock

 

[monsterrack]

That is real good of him to pass on a collection, and if I were you I would keep it all together . Thanks for posting

 

[Niner]

Archie was one of the first tomato farmers in the Sacramento Valley. Many years ago he was the first to plow up some virgin bottomland that had historically flooded for centuries, I have to hand it to him, he got off his plow and chucked these artifacts off to the side of his work and kept them. You can see the plow disc marks on many of the rocks, and he said he broke more that he brought home.

As he plowed up that virgin river bottom land he'd occasionally kick up a rock that shouldn't be there. Granite and obsidian have no business being in that valley, buried in dirt. They weren't indigenous to the area at all.

 

[yakker]

Wow! what an impressive collection! Ya might think about marking them w/ place of origin, and finder's name before giving them away. At least that way, someone down the road will know where they were found- which is not necessarily the origin of the rock itself. Just a thought... Those long boys are so often broken- it's great to see them whole! Yakker

 

[old digger]

Quite a nice collection you have there, and also a quite fortunate gift.