Help with type?

Pbarker1492 · May 27, 2020

Hi all
Can you help me with this? Any idea on type?
It’s from Texas. Tip has been poorly restored just to give it shape.
Thanks

Pbarker1492 · May 27, 2020

One more pic....

tnmudman · May 27, 2020

Poorly restored? I think you are being over generous with that. It seems to be much too nice of an artifact to put whatever that is on the tip of it. Not sure on a type but I would remove that stuff from it. Just my opinion, but hopefully someone here can identify it for you.

Tdog · May 27, 2020

Restored is the wrong word for that!

Pbarker1492 · May 27, 2020

It’s just clay and comes off. Im more interested in the type and hear that there are experts here.

Thanks

antmike915 · May 27, 2020

is this a personal find?, it doesn't appear that the base is ground. I can't tell you but someone on here will.

Pbarker1492 · May 27, 2020

A friend found it. Base is not ground but the lateral sides are. Looks like they were setting it up to flute via enterline method? Just a guess.

antmike915 · May 27, 2020

Could be a unfluted Clovis. I agree it does look like they set it up to flute. I would get it professionally restored, I've never had a point restored but I would get that one.

sandchip · May 28, 2020

Nice looking point. Glad you told us it had been restored. I thought someone left their chewing gum on the tip.

As far as having it professionally restored? It would depend. This Simpson that I found years ago appears to have an impact fracture on the tip, part of the story of the life of its original owner. I could never cover that up, as nice as it would be to see what it looked like whole.

Garscale · May 28, 2020

In my opinion the point was never finished. In guessing the tip was damaged from anvil contact while preparing the base for fluting. A little thick to be Folsom but a lot of that could have been fluted away I guess. I'm gonna say its possible its Clovis that failed.

Pbarker1492 · May 28, 2020

Garscale- here are pics with the clay gone. Any idea how it broke? Not sure if it can be told with the pictures? Thanks

Garscale · May 28, 2020

That makes me second guess the anvil damage. Clearly it was intended to be a fluted point or at least seriously thinned. I just don't know.

newnan man · May 29, 2020

Some nice flaking on it. It looks good just like it is.

sandchip · May 29, 2020

As finished as the base and hafting portion of the blade is (don't think there would be lateral grinding if it wasn't), maybe it saw use as a knife opposed to a projectile point, with the tip ending up like that after an errant strike during resharpening (second pic). I really don't know, just blathering...

I think it looks good just the way it is, too. It's the way the owner left it, so that's part of its story, whatever that may be and to cover that up just doesn't seem right...to me anyway.

ToddsPoint · May 29, 2020

In the last pic, I see what looks like 2 inclusions at the break. Weak spots that could have easily caused the tip failure. Base was set up to take a flute off that never came. Gary

Garscale · May 29, 2020

ToddsPoint said:
In the last pic, I see what looks like 2 inclusions at the break. Weak spots that could have easily caused the tip failure. Base was set up to take a flute off that never came. Gary

That's the way I see it.

sandchip · May 29, 2020

I see what y'all are talking about and agree, but would it be normal procedure to grind the sides before fluting? Just seems like grinding would be the last step of manufacture.

I'm seeing what looks like a negative bulb of percussion at upper left in the second pic. A question to the owner, what are the two marks in that flake scar? Color in the flint or initials written in ink, "TI" or "TL"?

Garscale · May 29, 2020

sandchip said:
I see what y'all are talking about and agree, but would it be normal procedure to grind the sides before fluting? Just seems like grinding would be the last step of manufacture.

Grinding is last step before hafting. I thought he said it was not ground which supports the thought that it broke and he never finished it. Flute not struck and no grinding.

Pbarker1492 · May 29, 2020

Yeah, base is not ground,but the lateral sides are smooth as silk. The writing says TX-where it was found.
It washes off

All things considered, it looks Clovis like I think. One side was easier to thin than the other. The other side has step fractures which may be what caused the tip to break?