Artifact Found in 2003 - Need Help Identifying

[cmp2100]

Good Evening,

I was wondering if someone here is able to help me out. I am a new member so please bear with me.

I have attached photos of a presumable Native American artifact that I found in 2003 in the far west suburbs of Chicago (Oswego & Montgomery Illionis area) while helping survey a new subdivision. I have looked online and found artifacts that look similar but they seemed a lot smaller. While attending college, I took this to a professor to have checked out and he was not sure what it was and could not provide me any information.

I just would like to know if I actually have something or have just been keep a cool looking rock all these years.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

 

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[arrow86]

Has the profile of an adze or maybe a chisel but the crude material seems odd. I'm sure somebody will chime in with more info

 

[creekhunter]

I sadly have to vote natural formation, if the edge had been used it would show some use wear and possibly even a little polish.

 

[rock]

I sadly have to vote natural formation, if the edge had been used it would show some use wear and possibly even a little polish.

Its a tough one but I think it maybe natural to. On the "bit" end it should be ground down and show some polish and it doesnt. Still has the grainy look to it. Here is one I found and you can still see the polish.

 

[unclemac]

a large part of my family is 150 years in and around Naperville and I have spent many an hour hunting those cornfields...when they were still cornfields. I assume you where not near the Fox river but in actual black dirt farm land...flat to the horizon. I am going to vote artifact on your rock, or at least artifact wannabe...something that was started but not perhaps finished and used. Let me tell you why...the number one thing for me is that a random stone in that specific area should be tan limestone, tan limestone, tan limestone...and....wait for it...tan limestone. Number two is the fact that that top soil is deep, artifact rich and deep..not a lot of random anything mixed into it...all laying on top of a bed of ....tan limestone. Another reason is that that stone type appears to be a dead ringer for the hard-stone axes that I have seen pulled out of those very fields. Best of luck

 

[cmp2100]

OP here.

Thanks for the insight everyone.

The stone is heavy and one side is very thick and curvy while it tapers down to almost a handle shape. At the handle, it seems like a small indentation was made for a hand to hold it. The surface itself is still rough but at the same time smooth which makes me agree that this could have been a work in progress. I did find it at the surface while helping survey a new subdivision. It just stood out like a sore thumb and does not seem like the shape and workmanship would be naturally occurring.

If anyone has additional ideas, I would love to hear them.

 

[unclemac]

don't let "fits in the hand" fool you that is the kiss of death around here....

 

[P.ALLEN]

take into consideration that it is not siliceous or chert, many celts and adzes have been found in Illini country that were made out of other than flint rock and even polished. Look at some of the caches they found around Cahokia. Albeit it does look like natural stone, we will never know unless you can try and find out if any other artifacts were found in the same area. If so then the chances of it being an artifact go up.