Hammer or pecking stone?

[autographcollector11]

Found on a friends property-small native site at one point. Looks like a pecking or hammer stone. The hairline cracks are interesting. Is it a hammer or pecking stone?

 

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[jamey]

stones are hard to call,you almost have to pick it up right next to a point.i have many that i keep because i just know it was used by them,but others would just say no way.they did take advantage of natural rocks im sure,but it is really hard to tell for sure.looks like some force was used to break that one though.any source of flint near your find,limestone with flint in it that had to be busted out?one way to tell

 

[autographcollector11]

Jamey
yes-the place is littered w/flint chips and debitage. 6 points were found within 100 feet of the stone so id say there is a good chance it was used as a pecking/hammer stone. Thoughts?

 

[rock]

Pecking is used as a light finishing item and hammers are usually busted like yours if it is a hammer. Most hammers here have a divot on each face. I find plenty of them in my area. The broken ones I toss unless the damage is minor. I find some the length of a finger and have about 5 total made from different lithics but most are flint.

 

[autographcollector11]

Any idea what type of stone this is? (Granite, etc) I know....pictures only show so much.
Thanks

 

[rock]

Most are quartzite in my area

 

[autographcollector11]

As far as what these were used for-being that it is so beat up, were these used for percussion flaking or something a bit more forceful? The hairline cracks imply that this is when the tool stopped being used....thoughts?

 

[autographcollector11]

Follow up question-here are some side images-I wanted to get your thoughts on whether this is what they call polish. It is very smooth-and reflects light a bit. The front and back are dull and rough. It is on both sides-but more on one then the other. If so-what causes that?

 

[quito]

The wear on that piece does not look like any use wear I have ever seen on a pecking or hammer stone. Are you in freeze thaw country?

I think there used to be a crack just like the others there, and it's just broken. IMHO it is neither hammer or pecker, just another busted rock.

 

[Mark Todd]

I agree with "quito" in that it is a natural stone. Freeze-thaw might have caused one of the fractures to separate (your rough end). The fractures however appear to be as old as the formation of the rock itself. Hard stone axes and celts, hammer stones and pecking stones do not look like the broken surface that you have pictured here when then they break.

 

[rock]

I have sent some cobbles of flint to another member that said the reason my points are so small is that the flint is freeze cracked. So it happens more than we think even though the cobbles didnt show on the outside that I sent.

 

[Get-the-point]

Almost all hammerstones will show evidence of pecking.....

 

[Mark Todd]

I have sent some cobbles of flint to another member that said the reason my points are so small is that the flint is freeze cracked. So it happens more than we think even though the cobbles didnt show on the outside that I sent.

Hey rock, I have a hard time believing that members theory, here's why; I live in central Illinois, it freezes and thaws here dozens of times every winter and that's the way it's been for many thousands of years. Large knives and spears ( some very thinly napped) not to mention cobbles (which are nowhere near as delicate) are present in fields and creeks and are not subject to freeze/thaw effects. In my opinion the freeze/thaw theory is way overstated except in unusual circumstances, common experience tells me so. If a rock has natural fractures in it due to it's geological formation then water can can get in the fracture and may cause it to break in freezing conditions. The frost line goes two feet deep here most winters and often deeper, in Canada it runs much deeper and yet lots of large delicate artifacts are found there as well, the theory just doesn't seem to hold water to me.

 

[rock]

Hey rock, I have a hard time believing that members theory, here's why; I live in central Illinois, it freezes and thaws here dozens of times every winter and that's the way it's been for many thousands of years. Large knives and spears ( some very thinly napped) not to mention cobbles (which are nowhere near as delicate) are present in fields and creeks and are not subject to freeze/thaw effects. In my opinion the freeze/thaw theory is way overstated except in unusual circumstances, common experience tells me so. If a rock has natural fractures in it due to it's geological formation then water can can get in the fracture and may cause it to break in freezing conditions. The frost line goes two feet deep here most winters and often deeper, in Canada it runs much deeper and yet lots of large delicate artifacts are found there as well, the theory just doesn't seem to hold water to me.

The creeks here flow cold all year long and even colder in the winter but I dont understand the freeze thing on the flint just going by what I was told. I have actually sent cobbles to 2 different people in the past that have said the same thing that the flint here simply falls apart when they try to knap it.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

No sign of any use or wear by man, just a broken rock...