Blanks, Preforms or the dreaded...... rock?

[Airborne80]

Ok... i admit that I am still not 100% sure about the differences between blanks and preforms. i think that preforms are slightly worked and blanks are rocks that are ready to be worked. Am I close? Now..... today I found what I am certain is a site that was used for knapping. It's on high ground that overlooks the waters of a Indian fishing camp. There are a number of old fire pits on the bluff and tons of flakes. These are some of the items that I found there this morning. i believe that they are preforms. Some of the lower quartz pieces have very clear flaking marks and are probably the tips of broken points. The larger one on top looks like it may have been on the way to becoming a Morrow Mountain. What do you think?

 

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[Jonnyreb]

They all looked worked on. On the bottem row, looks like they may be broken point. Actualy a preform is in a lot of instances fairly well worked. Blanks are generaly very crudly worked. What you are thinking of is the blade like slivers that are struck off a core, called core blades. These were in a lot of cases what was transported to distant areas for trade.
Looks like most of what you got there was chipped on though.

 

[Cannonman17]

The four pieces on the right look as though they could've been worked or be something, can't tell from the pic, the one on the bottom almost looks like a point tip. The rest on the left are just rocks.

 

[Kneedeep]

Top pic top row 2nd from the left, looks like it could have been used for grinding, may have been diamond shaped originally then used the points for grinding. You may be able to see scoring or other marks on the flat ends to confirm it. 8)