🥇 BANNER Discoil kind of day.

[GaRebel1861]

I went back out to the historic Native American site today that I've been metal detecting after finding the tomahawk or trade axe yesterday. (I posted the axe on "Today's Finds yesterday) Today, was shotgun shell and beer can day and I wasn't really finding too much of what I was looking for. Close to the end of the hunt, I was walking along in the field and spotted what I thought at first was a 4" PVC pipe cap laying about 75 feet away. Thinking that it was odd for a pipe cap to be out in the middle of no where, I walked closer and found this discoal laying out in the sun in plain view. I'm sure glad that I checked it! It's going to clean up well and has itself a new home in the display cabinet.

 

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[IMAUDIGGER]

It's my understanding that the game of chunky involved rolling a shaped stone on the ground each participant shoots at the rolling stone. Arrow closest to the final resting place of the stone won.
Apparently the game was taken very seriously with wives being used as wager...losers sometimes killed themselves...serious disagreements were settled.

I'm sure there were other rules involved.

Sounds like a very fun game to watch.

 

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[Argentium]

Please educate me as to what the artifact was used for ..don't think I've ever seen or heard of it .

 

[choo]

That is a sweet discoidal! Congrats!

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

So the depictions I could find show spears being used, not arrows. Some show the stone being rolled away from the player, while others show it rolled towards the player. Like all games there were probably many different rules.

 

[Tnmountains]

Imagine this Native American game hundreds if not thousands of years ago being played

 

[tnmudman]

Thats a beauty! Congrats

 

[sandchip]

Congrats on banner, Jim on that whopper aspirin! It sure cleaned up well. I always figured they were used in a game or just trials which served to perfect a hunter's skills at hitting running game like rabbits, and just like bannerstones, some were made for utility, others for presentation.

 

[sandchip]

I think it’s quartz. Too heavy and sturdy to be limestone in my opinion.

I agree. When I zoomed in on that baby, there's no doubt that it's quartzite.

 

[discoidal roller]

Love it! Must have been a valuable and cherished object in it's day. And now it is again.

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

Imagine this Native American game hundreds if not thousands of years ago being played

Based on the pictures I uploaded, that may only be part of the game. The other challenge involved the stone being rolled
the other direction. Has to have been described in a book somewhere. I have one book that might describe the game in detail that was written by a story teller in 1900. I'll check it out tomorrow.

Edit: my book didn't mention Chunky.

 

[Tnmountains]

Based on the pictures I uploaded, that may only be part of the game. The other challenge involved the stone being rolled
the other direction. Has to have been described in a book somewhere. I have one book that might describe the game in detail that was written by a story teller in 1900. I'll check it out tomorrow.

Edit: my book didn't mention Chunky.

I think the name comes from where you live or maybe the people who mentored you. I have seen some highly polished ones that look as if they were never rolled. Most were of quartz.

 

[dognose]

that is one fine find!

 

[welsbury]

Congrats on Banner find,she's a beaut. I never could read where you had dimensions, but I do know it's a big fat one. How about taping it out. I'm gonna guess 4-1'4wide by2-1/2 thick

 

[GaRebel1861]

Congrats on Banner find,she's a beaut. I never could read where you had dimensions, but I do know it's a big fat one. How about taping it out. I'm gonna guess 4-1'4wide by2-1/2 thick

Pretty good guess!

3 1/2” W X 2” H

 

[ghp95134]

I just logged on at liveauctioneers.com and what do I see??
Estimate $1,000 - $1,200
Current bid: $130 (6 bids)

2 1/3" Cahokia Discoidal. Madison Co, IL. Cream Quartz. Finely made, symmetrical. G10. Ex-Richard Austin, Bob Jenkins. Pictured in WW#11, p28

Good for comparison.

--Guy

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

I think the name comes from where you live or maybe the people who mentored you. I have seen some highly polished ones that look as if they were never rolled. Most were of quartz.

As serious as they took these games, I suspect the playing field was immaculately prepared and the disc polished. Before use. Native Americans took games and gambling VERY seriously as far as I have read.

It was a way to show dominance over neighboring tribes.
I.e. our men are bigger, stronger, more accurate, and more clever.
We are richer.
I'm sure the game was practiced casually, but the annual events were probably a big deal that people looked forward to.

 

[Tnmountains]

As serious as they took these games, I suspect the playing field was immaculately prepared and the disc polished. Before use. Native Americans took games and gambling VERY seriously as far as I have read.

It was a way to show dominance over neighboring tribes.
I.e. our men are bigger, stronger, more accurate, and more clever.
We are richer. I'm sure the game was practiced casually, but the annual events were probably a big deal that people looked forward to.

And between games the stone was probably polished each time helping to form the cup.

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

My suspicion based on the pictures of the disc being rolled towards two men with spears is that there was a "heads" and "tails" side. Whichever side was facing up when it came to rest?
There has to be a significance.

 

[PullTabPete]

Very cool find, never heard of the discoidal until now, had to look it up online.

Great to see it up on the banner where it should be.

Pete

 

[GaRebel1861]

Very cool find, never heard of the discoidal until now, had to look it up online.

Great to see it up on the banner where it should be.

Pete

Thank you sir!