Got an hour? Have wordy request for help identifying possible stone tools~

mollyk927

Jr. Member
Apr 23, 2015
30
39
eastern shore of virginia
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All Treasure Hunting
I’ll try to be brief...back in the 1980s I lived and worked on a horse farm in central NJ. The horses liked to congregate in a particular corner of the pasture...after heavy rains it would become very muddy and they’d slosh around in it. Remarkably, the ground would become quite level again, once dry. It was then that I’d find on the surface (on different occasions years apart) odd stones, stones that bore no resemblance to others in the area. It finally occurred to me that they might be artifacts (and tried to convince my friends and family of this, unsuccessfully--no doubt they thought: there she goes again...). Nonetheless, I remained confident, and over the years amassed quite a collection. Fast forward a few years and I am married and living in Virginia (and yes, my rocks came too). We joined the local archaeology club, where, one evening, we were fortunate to have as guest speaker an authority on mid-Atlantic archaeology. In advance of his visit, we were told we may bring things in for him to identify. I thought: here is my chance to be vindicated! So, out of 15 or so artifacts, I chose the 2 that I thought were just too uncannily alike to be anything but artifacts. Finally, it’s my turn, and I’m beside myself with anticipation. I hand him the rocks and fully expect him to stand up and shout that I had discovered the archaeological find of the century...but, no. In retrospect, I admire his restraint--he did not roll his eyes or heave a heavy sigh as he said for the umpteenth time: these are just natural rocks. Went home dejected. But. It was not long before I convinced myself that they ARE tools, no matter what ANYone said. MY tools. So my tools sat on a shelf undisturbed for years, while I went about raising my children. Fast forward to now...not long ago, I set about trying to figure out what, exactly, is in my collection. Surprised and delighted to find (I think, anyway--this is where you guys come in) that some do indeed appear to be tools, archaic (?) tools. The first pics are of the 2 rocks I showed to that long-suffering, patient gentleman (of course I defer to his expertise, but I still just have...this, this feeling). The others (all of these were found in close proximity, even the 2 non-tools) all appear to me to be stone-ground/pecked tools of various sorts. I am fully prepared to have my hopes dashed once again (in the name of science!)--and promise to stop all this toolishness for once and for all. For a while, anyway :) What’s T-net’s verdict?
 

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Treasure_Hunter

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Jul 27, 2006
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Nothing in pictures says artifacts, all look to be natural stones.
 

Treasure_Hunter

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Jul 27, 2006
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Sorry Molly, keep looking, we learn from our mistakes. What was it about them that made you think they were artifacts?
 

unclemac

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Oct 12, 2011
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you may be confusing "archaic" with "primitive"...archaic tools are pretty far removed from primitive, your rocks would serve no purpose as tools and show no wear on the surfaces. Stone tools have modern day counterparts that are easily recognizable...a hammer is a hammer, a pestle is a pestle, a point is a point, a chisel is a chisel etc. Another give away is the common shape that some of your stones have indicating they were not all that unusual for where you found them. This helps an archaeologist separate "rocks" from "artifacts".
 

mainejman

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Sep 2, 2012
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Sorry but at least now they can be retired to the flower garden.I have found many pecked tools and they are always very obvious...find some waterways and shorelines and you will eventually find artifacts...good luck!
 

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mollyk927

Jr. Member
Apr 23, 2015
30
39
eastern shore of virginia
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Thank you all for your responses! I’m not really a stubborn sort, and readily admit when I am wrong (which is often)...I accept the verdict; however, I have been lugging these natural rocks around with me for nearly 40 years--no way will I relegate them to the back garden! They shall remain on their shelf, and I will most likely continue to think of them as my tools--which is why I plan to start using them to hammer nails. Treasure Hunter, you asked what made me think they were tools. I came across this site: This Week In Pennsylvania Archaeology: Washington County in my search. If you scroll down you can see a pic of a few hematite celts that look very similar to one of my natural rocks. That’s when I became aware of tools that were formed by being pecked or ground into shape, as opposed to being flaked...that sent me on a search for pecked tools images...of course I was certain mine looked exactly like that. Silly me. I hope y’all don’t think I’m too much of a fool! 40 years, sheesh...
 

NCPeaches

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Mar 24, 2013
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I don't think you are a total fool mollyk and I keep rocks like that too. It really is hard to tell from pics. I couldn't get a good enough look but you may have plant fossils in them, I know I do in the ones I find. Here's a thought, the really smooth polished ones may have been gastroliths and that's pretty cool in itself.
 

olroy70

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Feb 3, 2011
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I don't think you are a total fool mollyk and I keep rocks like that too. It really is hard to tell from pics. I couldn't get a good enough look but you may have plant fossils in them, I know I do in the ones I find. Here's a thought, the really smooth polished ones may have been gastroliths and that's pretty cool in itself.
I think it depends on where they were found...........I was raised in West Texas...........there are NO rivers close to where I find my rocks like that, and I pick them up from where I find arrowheads and other tools........

keep em!
 

sandchip

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Oct 29, 2010
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I agree with the others that all are naturally formed rocks, however, I see a few that look like they may have been picked up and used (expedient) to hammer or peck something, but not necessarily kept in their "toolbox". In other words, they weren't made for a specific purpose, but nonetheless used for a specific purpose simply because they were handy at the moment. I've done this (and I'm sure others have as well) when off in the woods without a shop or pickup full of tools.
 

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