The Quartz Factory

[Charl]

If you're not crazy about quartz, southern New England is not the place for you Our most productive field yields ~90% quartz Wading River and Squibnocket Stemmed points. These simple points were products of a quartz pebble industry--no cores, no quarrying, just pick up a quartz pebble and bang out a point. The Mrs. and I have been walking this field for 25 years.
She was spreading them out for a look see last week and I took some photos. As I was telling yakker recently, it's only human to get a wee bit tired of quartz and more quartz, and it's a hard lithic to work, which can result in crude points, but plenty of decent points as well. Hunting southeastern New England means quartz and more quartz. Minority material from this field includes argillite Late Archaic stemmed and Brewertons.

 

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[Charl]

Some in-situs from a couple weeks ago, and the only chert point from the field in 25 years. Oddly, I went c. 20 years without finding a triangle in this field, then found 2 in one day. And of course they were quartz.

 

[NCPeaches]

There's a lot of quartz where I'm at too. Your collection is awesome though! Sometimes I wonder if I'm missing the other non-quartz stuff because the eye has a way of looking at the bright white stuff first...I'm trying to fix that though and trying to sift the small pebble bars for the other colors.

 

[ptsofnc]

I don't care what stone NAs used. Finding any artifact is a thrill. And you have a lot of beauties!

 

[Charl]

There's a lot of quartz where I'm at too. Your collection is awesome though! Sometimes I wonder if I'm missing the other non-quartz stuff because the eye has a way of looking at the bright white stuff first...I'm trying to fix that though and trying to sift the small pebble bars for the other colors.

I know exactly how you feel, Peaches. As many years as I've surface hunted, I never have confidence that I'm good enough. When I introduced my wife to the hobby, she only had to see a lithic material once; then she could go in a field and find every flake of that material. Me, I'm constantly trying to get "into a zone", and some days I'm in that zone real good, and sometimes not. I will never trust myself to be "good enough", yet I can spot the tiniest flake in a carpet of pebbles, so I'm not a bad surface hunter at all, and I am good enough My wife tells me you just need to trust your unconscious mind to stop you in your tracks. She daydreams while she walks and is a hundred yards ahead of me in no time at all. From day one, she was a natural at this hobby. Making me a very lucky guy of course!

 

[Charl]

A few of the quartz points are semi-crystalline. Besides points and scrapers, the field has yielded two pestles, one broken gouge, several hardly used hammerstones, and a very crude pendant made of shale. Maybe it was made arrowhead shaped, not sure, but pretty it's not.....

 

[southfork]

Very nice collection I can see a lot of hours and dedication to a great hobby .

 

[Charl]

Very nice collection I can see a lot of hours and dedication to a great hobby .

Thanks. One thing we collectors all invest is many hours of our life's. Probably come close to walking around the world at least once as well

 

[yakker]

Thank you Charl- for all that. I can identify with everything both you and NCPeaches are saying! And that is an amazing collection! Interestingly, that 1 single chert piece looks hauntingly like the stone I was trying to figure out- and had such a poor picture of- to show and get opinions. Your pic captured the color and texture nearly to a 'T'. Perhaps the geology of your area and my area are similar for one reason or another. I'll have to look that up and see what I can find. I do know that some truly amazing pieces have been inexplicably worked out of the most tricky quartz, and I'm always amazed to find those, rare as they are.

It is indeed hard to train one's eye to see things other than the bright and shiny- and most obvious- things. I struggle with that and feel lucky to have found what I have- that wasn't quartz.

I think I've posted some pics of my quartz collection. Many similar styles to yours. I'll see if I can find them and re-post, just for comparison's sake. But thank you again. HH! Yakker

 

[old digger]

That's an amazing collection of quartz points! I don't find the fractured quartz here, I guess they were particular in their choice of material. That point you posted (first picture) in post #6 sure is a nice one. If it's okay, here are a few that I have previously shown.




Out here there were quite a few different types of material to choose from. They had to make use with what materials that were available. And I am sure that if better quality material was available through trading with other clans would have been more highly prized.

 

[yakker]

These are from a post long ago. The difficulty in making good workable/useful points from such a stubborn rock proves their worth, I think. They make some of the most beautiful and the most ugly all at once! Hope you don't mind my jumping in w/ these older pics, but I think it's important to say that regardless of finding quartz nearly exclusively right now, I'm always amazed and grateful for the things I find. I'm a very lucky duck to find anything at all. Yakker

 

[mainejman]

What a nice collection of quartz charl.Here in Maine I always find signs of quartz usage.I have one broken quartz point in about ten years of hunting.I do have a couple of tiny thumb scrapers.I've heard they do find more towards the coast.But I'm pretty locked into my local spots and have never did any beach hunting.When surface hunting my eyes are naturally drawn to the shine stuff.What takes a little experience is spotting the flaked stuff in a sea of rocks.With a little experience soon your eyes will spot anything that is to round or to straight... MJM

 

[rock]

Nice collection of quartz Charlie. 2nd photo the grey stones what were they used for? I found one like it not long ago.

 

[Charl]

Old Digger and yakker, thank you for posting those super quartz points! That's a beautiful grade, Digger, and a nice variety of styles, yakker.

 

[Charl]

Nice collection of quartz Charlie. 2nd photo the grey stones what were they used for? I found one like it not long ago.

i think you're talking about the pestles. I posted about the broken one recently; still waiting for the rest of it to show up some day. We hope!

 

[Tony in SC]

Wow! If that is what you've found, think about what is still lower in the ground. That place must have a real history. Tony

 

[Charl]

Since my mind was on quartz anyway, I pulled these out. From a different site then the others, but two of my favorite quartz pieces. A Squibnocket Stemmed and a Brewerton Side Notch.

 

[DigIron2]

Very nice collection Charl.Looks like you have been hunting in quartz heaven.Like mentioned above, each one is a thrill to find.

 

[pickaway]

Nice collection of quartz artifacts, thanks for the look.

 

[larson1951]

If you're not crazy about quartz, southern New England is not the place for you Our most productive field yields ~90% quartz Wading River and Squibnocket Stemmed points. These simple points were products of a quartz pebble industry--no cores, no quarrying, just pick up a quartz pebble and bang out a point. The Mrs. and I have been walking this field for 25 years.
She was spreading them out for a look see last week and I took some photos. As I was telling yakker recently, it's only human to get a wee bit tired of quartz and more quartz, and it's a hard lithic to work, which can result in crude points, but plenty of decent points as well. Hunting southeastern New England means quartz and more quartz. Minority material from this field includes argillite Late Archaic stemmed and Brewertons.

Some in-situs from a couple weeks ago, and the only chert point from the field in 25 years. Oddly, I went c. 20 years without finding a triangle in this field, then found 2 in one day. And of course they were quartz.

charlie-----------you have a nice thread here ....very informative

we don't have that sort of thing here and i am sure many areas don't..........that's why this is such a great forum for learning



dunka shein from all