Gypsy Heart
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Saugus doorstop is ancient artifact
By Kathryn O’Brien/ [email protected]
Thursday, August 10, 2006 - Updated: 06:05 PM EST
A rock that has been propping open doors in the Zapolski household for decades is actually a 4,000-year-old Native American axe.
"My mother used it as a doorstop," said Kathy (Johnston) Zapolski this week.
Zapolski’s 90-year-old aunt, Adele Colby, recalls that some time in the early 1900s her father (Zapolski’s grandfather) was attempting to plant a garden in his backyard on Willis Street when he came across a slightly-rounded, carved rock that resembled part of an Indian tool, possibly an axe. Willis Street is located off Winter Street, less than a quarter of a mile from the Saugus River.
For all these years, the rock has remained in the family, but they have never bothered to have the rock officially catalogued or appraised for its value.
Last week Kathy’s husband, Charlie, decided to stop by the Saugus Iron Works with the 2.9-pound igneous rock and show it to the curator of the Saugus Iron Works, Carl Salmons-Perez. The Saugus resident then returned a few days later to let the museum’s technician Janet Regan, who has worked on archeological projects in Saugus, have a look-see.
"When I stopped by the Iron Works, the curator’s mouth almost dropped," recalled Charlie Zapolski. "The Iron Works curator ’was beside himself,’" he observed.
Since the location of the "find" is identified as a specific Saugus site, the Zapolskis have been told that the artifact is "more important" in the eyes of the archeological experts.
When the Saugus Iron Works staff this week checked through their catalog database, Regan found a couple of similar stone axes in the Saugus Ironworks collection.
The Zapolski axe "has more defined craftsmanship" than the ones currently contained in the Ironworks collection, said Curator Salmons-Perez.
The curator pronounced that the artifact is between 2,500-5,000 years old.
"It’s from the archaic period," added Salmons-Perez.
He noted that "it’s made in Saugus and has a direct link to what we collect here. We’d love to have it in our collection," added Salmons-Perez.
Although the other axe artifacts at the Iron Works are currently stored away during ongoing construction of the 1917 building those houses the National Park museum, Regan and Salmons-Perez dug them out of storage to make a physical comparison.
One of the axes, which was found on the site of the Ironworks during an archeological dig completed by project archeologist Roland Robbins from 1948-1953, is heavier than Zapolski’s and a lighter shade of grey yet it has the same texture of an igneous rock.
The Native American axe/door stop is roughly six inches long and a few inches thick and it weighs several pounds. It is carved around the middle section where the natives would have lashed a wooden handle onto it with a piece of rawhide, according to Curator Salmons-Perez who confirmed that the Zapolski’s artifact was most likely used as a woodworking tool to cut down trees or build canoes.
The worth of the artifact is "moderately low" said the curator who noted that it has more of a "cultural value" than a monetary one.
"They’re priceless to us," said Salmons-Perez who added, "The artifacts give us a cultural context."
Zapolski, who has checked out similar pieces on E-bay, noted that the axe is probably worth about $100-$200.
Digging in the dirt
It makes sense that the arrowhead was found on Willis Street since that location is only a short distance to the banks of the Saugus River where Native Americans may have set up encampments.
In fact, Zapolski shared a story about a joke he played on visiting archeologists back in the 1980s who had set up a camp at the mouth of the Saugus River where it empties into the ocean at the Saugus/Lynn line on Boston Street.
"They were digging up a stretch of land that runs along the railroad tracks from Saugus Center to Boston Street along the Saugus River. I was out for a run and noticed that they had a very professional system, digging underground in 20-by20 foot grid plots. They told me that for every inch of digging, 50 years of history is revealed," recalled Zapolski who added that the archeologists had come across clamshells that indicated Indian encampments had occurred in Saugus.
"One day I stopped by, having put the arrowhead in my back pocket, and when their backs were turned, I placed the arrowhead into the ground and said ’hey, check this out over here."
"They were dumbfounded. I let the joke go on for only a couple of minutes," laughed Zapolski who said that the historians photographed the arrowhead for their archives and then gave it back to him.
As for the future of the arrowhead, Zapolski said that he might be willing to loan it to the Saugus Iron Works for a future display.
And now that the axe has been identified as an ancient object, Zapolski said that he and his wife will probably store it in a more secure location such as a safety deposit box.
By Kathryn O’Brien/ [email protected]
Thursday, August 10, 2006 - Updated: 06:05 PM EST
A rock that has been propping open doors in the Zapolski household for decades is actually a 4,000-year-old Native American axe.
"My mother used it as a doorstop," said Kathy (Johnston) Zapolski this week.
Zapolski’s 90-year-old aunt, Adele Colby, recalls that some time in the early 1900s her father (Zapolski’s grandfather) was attempting to plant a garden in his backyard on Willis Street when he came across a slightly-rounded, carved rock that resembled part of an Indian tool, possibly an axe. Willis Street is located off Winter Street, less than a quarter of a mile from the Saugus River.
For all these years, the rock has remained in the family, but they have never bothered to have the rock officially catalogued or appraised for its value.
Last week Kathy’s husband, Charlie, decided to stop by the Saugus Iron Works with the 2.9-pound igneous rock and show it to the curator of the Saugus Iron Works, Carl Salmons-Perez. The Saugus resident then returned a few days later to let the museum’s technician Janet Regan, who has worked on archeological projects in Saugus, have a look-see.
"When I stopped by the Iron Works, the curator’s mouth almost dropped," recalled Charlie Zapolski. "The Iron Works curator ’was beside himself,’" he observed.
Since the location of the "find" is identified as a specific Saugus site, the Zapolskis have been told that the artifact is "more important" in the eyes of the archeological experts.
When the Saugus Iron Works staff this week checked through their catalog database, Regan found a couple of similar stone axes in the Saugus Ironworks collection.
The Zapolski axe "has more defined craftsmanship" than the ones currently contained in the Ironworks collection, said Curator Salmons-Perez.
The curator pronounced that the artifact is between 2,500-5,000 years old.
"It’s from the archaic period," added Salmons-Perez.
He noted that "it’s made in Saugus and has a direct link to what we collect here. We’d love to have it in our collection," added Salmons-Perez.
Although the other axe artifacts at the Iron Works are currently stored away during ongoing construction of the 1917 building those houses the National Park museum, Regan and Salmons-Perez dug them out of storage to make a physical comparison.
One of the axes, which was found on the site of the Ironworks during an archeological dig completed by project archeologist Roland Robbins from 1948-1953, is heavier than Zapolski’s and a lighter shade of grey yet it has the same texture of an igneous rock.
The Native American axe/door stop is roughly six inches long and a few inches thick and it weighs several pounds. It is carved around the middle section where the natives would have lashed a wooden handle onto it with a piece of rawhide, according to Curator Salmons-Perez who confirmed that the Zapolski’s artifact was most likely used as a woodworking tool to cut down trees or build canoes.
The worth of the artifact is "moderately low" said the curator who noted that it has more of a "cultural value" than a monetary one.
"They’re priceless to us," said Salmons-Perez who added, "The artifacts give us a cultural context."
Zapolski, who has checked out similar pieces on E-bay, noted that the axe is probably worth about $100-$200.
Digging in the dirt
It makes sense that the arrowhead was found on Willis Street since that location is only a short distance to the banks of the Saugus River where Native Americans may have set up encampments.
In fact, Zapolski shared a story about a joke he played on visiting archeologists back in the 1980s who had set up a camp at the mouth of the Saugus River where it empties into the ocean at the Saugus/Lynn line on Boston Street.
"They were digging up a stretch of land that runs along the railroad tracks from Saugus Center to Boston Street along the Saugus River. I was out for a run and noticed that they had a very professional system, digging underground in 20-by20 foot grid plots. They told me that for every inch of digging, 50 years of history is revealed," recalled Zapolski who added that the archeologists had come across clamshells that indicated Indian encampments had occurred in Saugus.
"One day I stopped by, having put the arrowhead in my back pocket, and when their backs were turned, I placed the arrowhead into the ground and said ’hey, check this out over here."
"They were dumbfounded. I let the joke go on for only a couple of minutes," laughed Zapolski who said that the historians photographed the arrowhead for their archives and then gave it back to him.
As for the future of the arrowhead, Zapolski said that he might be willing to loan it to the Saugus Iron Works for a future display.
And now that the axe has been identified as an ancient object, Zapolski said that he and his wife will probably store it in a more secure location such as a safety deposit box.
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