Better late than never, 2015 recap to date

[redbeardrelics]

2015 has been a relatively slow year for me in regards to pre historic artifact hunting. The majority of the farms I surface hunt on were no tilled this year, and the dreaded rumor is that it may happen again next year. It was a crying shame because we had good rains this spring, if the fields had just been turned.
I am relegated to light duty chores today, due to my left eye being swelled shut from a bee sting on the eye lid yesterday, so I thought this might be a good time to post photos of the few treasured finds that came my way so far this year. Happy hunting to all.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Agony and Death on a Gold Rush Steamer: The Disastrous Sinking of the Side-Wheeler Yankee Blade - Grab it through Amazon!

[old digger]

Not too bad! I see a few heartbreakers though like '227' and '164'.

 

[creekhunter]

Still a pretty good year by most folks standards, just getting out anymore is a win!

 

[ptsofnc]

Some nice finds there! Is the pinkish stone jasper or coastal plains chert or something else?

 

[willjo]

Nice collection of artifacts, 164 looks like what we call a South Prong Creek point in Georgia.

 

[theviking]

Very nice, great variety of materials and artifacts. Thanks for the view.

 

[rock]

Hope your eye gets better soon so you can go find some more. No Til is the every year process here. They disc every year which helps but it will cut a point rite in half. Every other year they do a lite plow which is nice but at the same time they do the plow they put the cover crop on as I have found out this year. I looked at it today and I wouldnt call it a cover it looks more like a blanket cause you cant even see the soil

 

[Americus]

You had some nice finds. Thanks for sharing.

 

[eastTNJoe]

You take really good in situ photos…thanks for the views!

 

[Mark Todd]

I feel your pain "redbeard" , as one who lives in the land of "no till" I'd say you've done pretty good considering. Here, where I'm at they no till for 2 to 4 years then chisel disk, but that doesn't really turn much over although it does force up some of the larger rock. Unfortunately the latest chisel disc plows have mower reales on the back of them,like the old mechanical push lawn mowers, made to chop up corn and bean stubble, unfortunately they're also artifacts eaters, makes one wonder how anything survives. Anyway congratulations on your finds for the year and, it's not over yet, maybe your best find is yet to come, one never knows.
As for the bee sting I can only imagine a few worse place, after all a guy only blinks a few thousand times a day! I got stung in the underarm while rock climbing in the red river gorge years ago and was only reminded every time I moved my arm for a few days.

 

[SCrocks]

Nice bunch of artifacts! I feel your pain on the no till and bee sting. Got stung by a wasp on the eye lid a couple weeks back and a hornet got me the other day right in the middle of the back. I think all the farmers around here have sold there plows. No till and cow pastures are the about norm .

 

[Flea-bit Monkey]

Thanks for sharing. Nice finds. Sorry about the bee, we hate those almost as much as we hate no till!!!

 

[redbeardrelics]

Some nice finds there! Is the pinkish stone jasper or coastal plains chert or something else?

Thank you. Most of the reddish or pinkish pieces shown here are jasper, although the ones that are white with some pink in them are quartz/quartzite. Some folks are certain that in the mid Atlantic area red jasper does not occur naturally, and that it has to have been heat treated to turn red, but I am not so certain myself? HH

 

[redbeardrelics]

Nice collection of artifacts, 164 looks like what we call a South Prong Creek point in Georgia.

Thank you, Up my way most would type #164 as a Kirk Stemmed, or Kirk Stemmed serrated. It is made of rhyolite, which is the classic or most common material associated with that type here. This one has some damage but is the most intact rhyolite example I have stumbled across so far. HH

 

[redbeardrelics]

I feel your pain "redbeard" , as one who lives in the land of "no till" I'd say you've done pretty good considering. Here, where I'm at they no till for 2 to 4 years then chisel disk, but that doesn't really turn much over although it does force up some of the larger rock. Unfortunately the latest chisel disc plows have mower reales on the back of them,like the old mechanical push lawn mowers, made to chop up corn and bean stubble, unfortunately they're also artifacts eaters, makes one wonder how anything survives. Anyway congratulations on your finds for the year and, it's not over yet, maybe your best find is yet to come, one never knows.
As for the bee sting I can only imagine a few worse place, after all a guy only blinks a few thousand times a day! I got stung in the underarm while rock climbing in the red river gorge years ago and was only reminded every time I moved my arm for a few days.

I know what you mean, some of the local farmers here also use those old lawn mower type implements on their fields. When you watch them pull the heavy discs, usually two rows of them angled in opposite directions, followed by the mower type thingy, then a heavy ridged roller to flatten the surface of the ground, it is no wonder most of the artifacts are knicked up or broken. But, I would still rather suffer through that than no till. HH

 

[theviking]

Thank you. Most of the reddish or pinkish pieces shown here are jasper, although the ones that are white with some pink in them are quartz/quartzite. Some folks are certain that in the mid Atlantic area red jasper does not occur naturally, and that it has to have been heat treated to turn red, but I am not so certain myself? HH

Red Jasper does occur naturally here in Virginia, and not just in my area. I think I have examples of both naturally occurring and heat treated. It can also naturally occur in green and blue. The red and blue colors are usually found in small inclusions of a larger deposit of typical brown and yellow Jasper.