Big ole broken rock??

[ZeroCool]

Big 'ole broken rock??

Posted first in the What Is It? forum, probably should have come here first. Anyway...

My mother gave me a box of things my father had kept over the years. He died in 1987 and she had held on to this box ever since. In it were some of his jewelery, some '64 Kennedy halves and a bunch of misc. stuff. In it was this big 'ole broken rock. My mother had said that he had found it while digging up some flower beds in a home that we lived in in Flatrock, Michigan. That would have been around 1976. Don't know a thing about it other than that. It's next to one of those 90% halves he left for me for size comparison. Well, it wasn't found with a MD, but it was found, and it's treasure to me!

**Update: After speaking with my mother at length, she seems to believe now that the artifact may have been found by my father when he was a boy and was digging near his grandmothers place in Chickasaw, Iowa. Don't know if this helps any, but there it is.**

 

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[Airborne80]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

Wow! I am no expert but it sure looks like a hammerstone or tomahawk of some kind. It is certainly an Indian artifact.

 

[Noodle]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

Oh, my gosh! That's a treasure! Keep it and try to find the history of the area where it was found. The indentation is where the leather strap went around it to tie it to the handle, making it a weapon/hammer. Great find!!!

Noodle

 

[Neanderthal]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

Definitely not just a rock. It's a grooved maul or axe (does it have a sharp bit, or is it rounded on both ends?).

 

[ZeroCool]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

(does it have a sharp bit, or is it rounded on both ends?).

One end (the large end) is almost flat, as if having been pounded against something hard. The other end, although broken, was more pointed, but still very round, and not nearly pointed or sharp enough to have been used as an ax. I would have thought this was a grinding stone of some sort, except for the groove, which indicates it had a handle. You would not want to swing a large stone on the end of a handle to grind grain. So, I'm still stuck.

 

[MD Dog]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

I'm a complete novice in this area. But my first impression was that looks like a grinding stone with the indent being a grip of sorts. Sort of like a Mortar and Pestle (Sp)

 

[*Molly*]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

There is a big difference in Hammerstones & grooved Axes. Type them in the search, you'll learn more.

Molly.

 

[MD Dog]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

So the axe on the bottom is more like a club than what I would think of as an axe for like cuttin trees then ?
BTW the one on the bottom looks identicle to the one this poster found. At least it does to me, course then again guess I'll just shut up and go back to my little corner cause I'm way outta my element. Ya'll come visit me some time in the crazy forum.

 

[ZeroCool]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

It is definitely not an ax, the ends are rounded not coming to a point and since it has the groove it had to have had a handle I would think. I don't think they ever cut grooves for holding. The real mystery I probably feel is whether it is a very large club head (weapon) or a hammer head for pounding (tool).

 

[*Molly*]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

I'm not expert either, I searched and found Hammers Id'd as Axes. I know the round ones are Hammerstones, used for knapping. I guess they had Hammerstones for ... well i guess like we use hammers today, but some have grooves where handles were, you know what, We need Matt R for input, he knows his stuff. Maybe he can give us a good site to clear this all up.

Molly.

 

[tomclark]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

maul

 

[*Molly*]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

So Tom, what you are saying is, that's a sledgehammer ?

Molly.

 

[Cannonman17]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

I would also say maul. The only one I ever found was at a quarry site and had been used for breaking up the rock.

 

[blindpig]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

I've been "mauling" over how to post and manage 2 or more pic.'s with text in-between . Completely lost my post last night , a lot of hunt & peck typing gone !!
Anyway , I'm in for maul , and here is mine from the fine state of Iowa .



In situ , digital image of 20 yr. old photo .


Thank's for the "test" site Blind Pig A.K.A. Joel

 

[Hill Billy]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

Definitely not just a rock. It's a grooved maul or axe (does it have a sharp bit, or is it rounded on both ends?).

[We need Matt R for input, he knows his stuff./quote]

I think Matt has already responded Molly...

 

[ZeroCool]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

What did native Americans due with mauls? Did all tribes use them or only specific groups?

 

[Cannonman17]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

I'm no expert but I can tell you that they were found (broken) in huge piles of 100+ next to pits where they mined native copper. They would build fires on the exposed rocks with copper and let them burn for extended periods to build up heat in the rock, then pour cold water over them to crack the rock, the mauls were then used to not only bust up the cracked rock but also to pound the copper veins back and forth until they could be broken off and carted away. I'm guessing that mauls would have also been used for pounding stakes in the ground for various structures as well. They may have also come in handy for beating bark off of things like basswood where the fibers were then used to make a wide variety of things from mats to rope etc. I suppose many could have easily doubled as defense weapons as well.

 

[blindpig]

Re: Big 'ole broken rock??

I am no expert , but 30 yr.’s ago [77 -78 ]’, I meet a man who was .Now , I don’t want to drop someone’s name but, if anybody know’s D.F of L . P . Iowa shoot me a P.M. , please .
Anyway , one question I put too D.F., was why had I seen so many of these mauls at yard /barn sales [had to have seen 20 or so that summer , from 4.oo - 10.oo ea.] and what were they used for ?
D.F.’s reply was , there main use was in butchering , picture this , you are out on the plains , 5-6 of you are hunting buffalo . Now, you aren’t going to get 1-2 buffalo on a weekly basis , no more likely 6-10 on one day , every 4-6 week’s , maybe. Now he said , you got to get these animals apart .... quickly . Now , a maul can knock big joint’s apart , crack open large bones for the marrow . But , one vary important job done with the maul is “skinning” . What ? Removing the hide, without cutting it all up. Picture this , one man holding/pulling on a leg , one or two pulling on the hide , one swinging away with a maul . Wouldn’t that damage the meat ? I suppose it would , but the blood not pumping through it , anyway you are going to make jurky for the most part . I’ve done a bit of research , and I have some photo’s from about 1900 ,in Chicago , where the meat cutters are using sledge-hammer’s in the same manner .
NOTE: this might float like a fart in church , but this man knew his stuff, now , I’ve never skinned anything larger then a rabbit , but I’ve watched cattle men in Australia take a cow apart in no more than 30-40 min, they used an axe and knife . ;
Anyway the lesson continued, why so many? Well , they [Native-Americans] didn’t carry them around they simply would leave them at there “hunting camps” Now, think of this, all those mauls and to a far lesser degree axes laying all over the place.... Now farmers have been plowing for close to 100 yr’s [N.W. Iowa] , when they saw them they took them home ,they kicked there boots off on the steps, and tossed that “Injun’” rock into the flower-bed .
So , when you go seeking permission to hunt a field , look in the flower-bed, maybe a good indicator what’s in there field
Anyway , that’s “close” to what Mr. D.F. said .
By the way , one porch “find” while seeking permission to hunt a field was , 3 -5gal. Bucket’s over-full, joke is he needed 4 bucket’s, of axes , not maul’s axes As I was looking them over , I said how I really wanted to find one . He said if I really wanted one , take one . No thanks , I’ll try to find one out in the field .....never did .

Sincerely ; Joel