A few things

[Older The Better]

I worked over a site I’ve beat to death several times over, I actually managed to come up with a few things.
First is a ramrod pipe from a northwest gun, trying to see if I can’t find an exact match

Next I got a couple round balls the first seems chewed on, makes you wonder about the phrase bite the bullet… I’ve hear hogs can do it but as far as I know none were around, maybe a deer?

The last thing is one of several similar pieces, they look like someone cut up a can… but there are no home sites nearby, no modern trash, the property has been in the family since the late 1800’s… unless someone sat in the woods and cut a can into triangles I have to suspect it’s 1830’s ish… anyone ever find anything like this at other trade sites?

Last photo should show some size comparison, and the only definitively modern things I find out there, shot shells and .22’s…. Above the .22 slug is a small lead disc, I’m wondering if it’s not a sprue that’s been snipped from a round ball.

 

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[Ia.FurTrade]

What metal is the triangle made of ?
Nice finds !

Iowa Dale

 

[Older The Better]

Those are odd balls compared to the rest of the site, there is no modern trash, no bottle caps, gum wrappers, wire, wire nails, pieces of sheet metal pots, ect…. only things for sure modern are shot shell bases, casings, and slugs. If I found the triangles near a house I’d say they were from an aluminum can. Even out there I’d say a can except they none of them show folding or crumpling, the few I’ve found are generally flat and all have sharp clean margins like they were cut.
Cut bits of metal In triangles would fit the trade site but aluminum would not at all… either they are a different rust resistant metal or someone took some scissors to a can out in the woods hunting, also a bit odd if that’s the case

 

[plehbah2]

Those are odd balls compared to the rest of the site, there is no modern trash, no bottle caps, gum wrappers, wire, wire nails, pieces of sheet metal pots, ect…. only things for sure modern are shot shell bases, casings, and slugs. If I found the triangles near a house I’d say they were from an aluminum can. Even out there I’d say a can except they none of them show folding or crumpling, the few I’ve found are generally flat and all have sharp clean margins like they were cut.
Cut bits of metal In triangles would fit the trade site but aluminum would not at all… either they are a different rust resistant metal or someone took some scissors to a can out in the woods hunting, also a bit odd if that’s the case

I would wager that the cut triangle is very thin silver. If it is not oxidized or corroded, then there are very limited possibilities of what it could be. Aluminum is possible, too, but the fact that it is intentionally cut into a triangle really makes me think it was intentionally modified by Indians. One of the things I have noticed in the contact/ fur trade era sites I have investigated is that the Indians repurposed, modified, and fabricated lots of stuff from other stuff. I have found bits and pieces hammered, cold chiseled, cut and folded- all kinds of interesting stuff that often leaves one guessing. One guy had some kind of square nail industry going where he was somehow removing the heads from a pile of nails without cutting or bending them. About 60-70 of them in a Ute or Jicarilla Apache camp in the woods. I would imagine he was making awls, but it leaves me scratching my head how he was removing the heads from the nails. I have also seen triangles like yours cut from sheet iron and brass.

On your item there a good possibility is that they were planning on making something like this:

 

[Older The Better]

Thanks for the thoughts, this is one of my favorite modified items from the site, my interpretation is they unrolled a brass/copper cylinder (maybe a cup?) and cut notches to create a saw.