Mahican Arrow Head: Updated pic post # 16

[Skrimpy]

Eyeballed this little guy sticking out of the mud while detecting a very old and overgrown farmers field (now dense young forest) along the East side of the Hudson in an area where the Mahican's were known to inhabit...I don't know much about points, collectibility, identification etc. All I know is it's pretty neat. What can you guys and gals tell me about this thing? Is there a way to authenticate it as Mahican? Is it collectable? Should I be going back there more often than I am? Also found the other thing not too far off...looks a little bit like it's been worked into a tool of some sort. Possibly a knife of some kind?

 

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[jeff741972]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

The upper point looks like a piscataway point , probably around 500-1500 years old woodland time period. Yeah it would be collectable, The lower pic would be some sort of tool.scraper or even a broken larger point, its kinda hard to tell.

 

[Skrimpy]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Piscataway? All the way up here in Albany? The Mahicans were here...get here through trade? A Piscataway lost it while up here?

 

[littleneckhalfshell]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Indians traded a lot of stuff, I found a triangular point of Pennsylvania Jasper on the East side of the Hudson (Kinderhook area) and the different types of flint found have sometimes been from hundreds of miles away. Up at my Dad's we have a book by the title of "A Typology and Nomenclature for New York Projectile. Points." by WILLIAM A. RITCHIE. If I get a chance I will look up your point.

 

[jeff741972]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Let me expand my explanation, piscataway is the name of the point, not the tribe who made it, weather its mohican mahican lenape susquahanock or seneca. The overstreet books are a good source of point ID along with a few others, Fogelman has a typology book out also thats pretty good on types. Piscataway type resembles poplar islands,and schuyllkill types. Along major rivers, like the delaware/susquehanna there was alot of trading going on. There have been materials from Ohio found here in eastern pa that I witnessed being found/have found, and probably some from even further away I havent seen.

Heres a link for northeast typology, I dont know if its all inclusive but it should get you pointed in the right direction.

http://www.theaaca.com/typology/Mapbyregion.html

 

[jeff741972]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Indians traded a lot of stuff, I found a triangular point of Pennsylvania Jasper on the East side of the Hudson (Kinderhook area) and the different types of flint found have sometimes been from hundreds of miles away. Up at my Dad's we have a book by the title of "A Typology and Nomenclature for New York Projectile. Points." by WILLIAM A. RITCHIE. If I get a chance I will look up your point.

Pa Jasper has been found out by riverhead already.

 

[uniface]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

One caution, guys : brown jasper outcrops all up and down the eastern seaboard. The biggest deposits are in Penna., so everybody figures that's where it's all from. But there are known outcroppings in Vermont, Mass., New Jersey, Maryland &c., and probably more that are unknown to us today.

 

[traderoftreasures]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

nice point going back would not neccessarily find more points but it's worth a shot. i would guess you could get 60.00 atleast in it's current condition. you never know where it might be from. i have found a double fluted clovis in central illinois, who would of guessed

 

[Skrimpy]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Sweet! I got a nice spot for it in the display cabinet next to the 60-80 dollar two center.

 

[undertaker]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Ive found a few like that here in Vt. I have never researched that type but always thought it might be from the adena period. Here is a point I found in Brandon Vt. I was told that this point was Penn. Jasper. Ive found only a chip or two like this since Ive been hunting so I don't think that this is a local material.

 

[Fla-Gal]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Uniface, thanks for explaining the various places where Jasper is found. I know Jasper is NATURALLY found in the tidal/near tidal area of Va,also..but not anywhere else in Va. But am I to understand that there are variations in the 'type' of Jasper found naturally in these regions and that I might learn to identify the region in which the particular Jasper artifact is found ?

 

[Skrimpy]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Two questions for you experts out there. What is my point made out of and what's the best way to clean it? I ran some warm water and soap over it and it did nothing for the dirt. I didn't want to go scrubbing it until I knew I couldn't hurt it.

 

[undertaker]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

It appears to be made out of what I consider a low grade chert. If you scrub it with a tooth brush and dish soap most if not all dirt will be removed. If it still looks dirty it is probably because the gritty look is part of the chert material. Im not sure if the chert get a dirty gritty texture in it from age or it might be possible that was the way it was when they started to make the point. Ive seen some nice spearpoints made out of dirty chert. My brother found a huge spearpoint that rates a 10 and he was disappointed that it wouldn't clean up. Still a great find even if it won't clean up. ...My buddy gave me some bears oil to help bring back some shine on some of my dull, faded points. Its been a few years now and that oil still isn't dry. It leave the arrowheads with a sticky feel. I don't recommend it. I try to keep them natural the way I find them after a soap and water cleaning.

 

[jeff741972]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Soapy water and a toothbrush would be the extent of cleaning, just like anything else old you dont want it too clean.

 

[Skrimpy]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Toothbrush and soapy water it is. Now I can see little flecks of quartz in the thing. When I find my camera I will take a better pick of it.

 

[uniface]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

am I to understand that there are variations in the 'type' of Jasper found naturally in these regions and that I might learn to identify the region in which the particular Jasper artifact is found ?

I wish you luck on that one, FG. Some of the variations are so extreme you wouldn't recognise them as even being jasper at all, even from the same, or nearby outcroppings.

 

[Skrimpy]

Re: Mahican Arrow Head

Ok. Here's the better pic. It's sweet with all the different mineral flecks in it. Couldn't see them with all that dirt on it. I didn't even know they were there, and I've had the thing a couple months. The point is wet here and would probably look sweet with a layer of oil but I think I like your approach better undertaker...if it's all scuffed looking it's probably better.