A few more salty’s

[MAMucker]

First, a (looks like a grey blue Argillite-Merrimack Stemmed (Possible Squibnocket) Stemmed Point: Late Archaic ATTACH]1714494[/ATTACH]
Second, a beat-up white Quartz -Thick, Spiked, Cape Stemmed (or a lobed Base Type?) Point
And last (but not least), A broken Black (Flint?) Atlantic Stemmed Drill: Late Transitional Archaic

 

[Charl]

I'd go with Squibnocket Stemmed on the argillite point, due to the "minimal" aspect of the stem. The quartz Side Notch really looks like a classic Lamoka to me, fits nicely with the examples Boudreau included in his typology guide. But there are narrow versions of Cape Stemmed, and I can see that as well. JMO, very nice finds....

 

[MAMucker]

Thanks Charl. I think we’re on the same page on these.

 

[arrow86]

Nice finds , seems a lot of the points you find are really worn down from the water ... I mainly hunt rivers and only find a few work smooth like that most of them still are very sharp and the flaking looks fresh on them .... do you hunt a beach with decent sized waves ? Rivers I hunt are very calm no waves unless boat cruises by or really windy

 

[MAMucker]

Thanks arrow86,
I have upland sites that have produced high grade specimens. But, I’m having good success exploring ocean beaches at the moment and, although the points are worn, I’m tracking history right into the water. The Atlantic Ocean has not been kind.
The Jack’s Reef I posted today is not too worn and that’s a beach find. I have a couple others I’ll post soon as well.

 

[Out Of Time]

Love them salties and respect your ability to find them.

Makes me want to go to the beach!

 

[Out Of Time]

Nice finds , seems a lot of the points you find are really worn down from the water ... I mainly hunt rivers and only find a few work smooth like that most of them still are very sharp and the flaking looks fresh on them .... do you hunt a beach with decent sized waves ? Rivers I hunt are very calm no waves unless boat cruises by or really windy

I hunt creeks too but my finds are often extremely worn. I am fairly close (within a few miles) of the source of a seasonal creek.

It rushes and floods in winter but is almost completely dry in summer.

I coming to the conclusion that their condition is a combination of age and water wear.

The ones I find that are not worn I assume to be either a lot newer or recently washed from the banks.

 

[MAMucker]

I hunt creeks too but my finds are often extremely worn. I am fairly close (within a few miles) of the source of a seasonal creek.

It rushes and floods in winter but is almost completely dry in summer.

I coming to the conclusion that their condition is a combination of age and water wear.

The ones I find that are not worn I assume to be either a lot newer or recently washed from the banks.

Thank you for the support. I believe that there’s something to learn from these banged up tools and points we pull out of the sea coast.

I’m a surface collector -period!

Who doesn’t love watching creek hunters/walkers on YouTube? In five minutes, you see them pull a G10. With few exceptions we rarely see the eroded remains of a onetime banner as the center piece of the days cleanup.

But, you and I know that the time put in was a tremendous investment spent walking, searching, making mental notes, reading, mapping and studying artifacts.

I don’t know about you, but my best (highest quality) artifacts were found far away from any known campsites. In my opinion, these were flung far-afield and lost while traveling.

Wow! I’m always long winded!

Every point tells a part of the story. The ‘Salty Points’ I’m finding lately are speaking about a sea coast that was quite different thousands of years ago.

 

[Charl]

Thank you for the support. I believe that there’s something to learn from these banged up tools and points we pull out of the sea coast.

I’m a surface collector -period!

Who doesn’t love watching creek hunters/walkers on YouTube? In five minutes, you see them pull a G10. With few exceptions we rarely see the eroded remains of a onetime banner as the center piece of the days cleanup.

But, you and I know that the time put in was a tremendous investment spent walking, searching, making mental notes, reading, mapping and studying artifacts.

I don’t know about you, but my best (highest quality) artifacts were found far away from any known campsites. In my opinion, these were flung far-afield and lost while traveling.

Wow! I’m always long winded!

Every point tells a part of the story. The ‘Salty Points’ I’m finding lately are speaking about a sea coast that was quite different thousands of years ago.

Not at all uncommon for quahoggers to bring up artifacts from the bottom of Narragansett Bay, which is, after all a post-glacial drowned river valley. As you know, at the height of the Last Glacial Maximum, the land above water extended for 50 miles south of what is now Block Island. All the islands, from Long Island-Block Island-Martha's Vineyard-Nantucket were connected to each other, as well as the present day mainland. Into sometime into Archaic times, it was possible to walk to those islands.

When the first offshore wind farm in the United States was constructed off Block Island, just a few years back, in the form of 5 wind turbines, the Narragansett tribe, which has passed down oral traditions of living in villages that now would be under the waters of our sounds, were part of the search for evidence of early sites in the vicinity of the turbine site. I don't believe any actual sites were located, however.

But you know things like mammoth teeth are brought up by trawlers in the George's Banks region off our New England coast.

 

[Out Of Time]

MAMucker,

I'm with you.

Don't want to dig or be destructive.

I not even sure I would be totally comfortable collecting on known sites (not that I've had that experience).

But hunting a surface find in an area you've assesed to have promise, based on access, terrain and slowly accumulating knowledge, is very satisfying.

I'm slowly building an assemblage of local artifacts and get a tremendous kick trying to decode what I've found.

Slowly a picture is building in my mind, it's partly based on reading, partly on studying the artifacts themselves and partly on the time I spend out on the land hunting these objects.

I doubt I'm the only person who senses a connection between act of hunting and the things we are looking for. It can feel like you are tracking like an indian (or becoming one).