My new bone tool frame: North Dakota

[joshuaream]

After having drooled for many years over the Late Great Larson1951's finds, I found an auction near Fargo, ND and decided to go build a couple of frames.

Here is my new bone tool frame in progress that I recently put together. As I understand it from the auctioneer, the collection was found by a single collector on a primarily prehistoric/protohistoric Mandan site. Growing up in Northern Indiana, I saw collections of bone tools from other parts of the Midwest, but the soils in my area were not conducive bone preservation.

I say the frame is in progress. It's packed too tightly, but I'm keeping all the pieces in here while I go through an "Gomerize" the pieces that need preserving. I'll thin it out a bit an come up with a better layout eventually.

The whole frame:


Bone fishhooks:


The bit of the scapula hoe. Natives would break up the soil with stone axes/celts, and then maintain/fluff the loose soil with these bone hoes. They cut off the ridges and beveled the bit.



Bone fleshers for scraping and cleaning up hides. Heavy duty tools.



Worked bone, heavy duty stuff.



Awls.



More awls, socketed antler points, quill flateners, fishhooks, etc.



I realized I didn't put anything in there to scale. The frame is 48 inches wide.

 

[welsbury]

Excellent assortment of bone goodies Josh. I like the fishhooks and bone fleshers most. Great score.

 

[1320]

Wow, that's some serious eye candy there! Thanks very much for the share. I could spend hours studying those.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

That is very impressive Joshua. I have a few of each type you posted that I acquired in trades with Steve. I cherish every piece I have from him.

Are those Rasps I see in one of the pictures? Very cool pieces. I think Steve had several of those as well.

 

[scruggs]

FANTASTIC COLLECTION YOU HAVE!!!! KEEP IT UP AND GOOD LUCK TO YOU IN YOUR FUTURE HUNTS!!! MY FIRST BONE AWL I FOUND SIFTING UNDER A ROCK SHELTER IN Tennessee. IT HAD A SNAKE CARVED ON IT AND I COULDN'T WAIT TO GET HOME AND CLEAN IT UP. IT INSINERATED IN MY HAND WHILE I RINSED IT OFF, IT JUST DISAPEARED. IT REALLY UPSET ME....LEARNED THE HARD WAY.

 

[rock]

When I saw you and quito had gone to the same auction I was thinking to myself and wondering if it was some of Steves collection being sold? Nice pieces
If not I wonder what ever happened to all of his.

 

[old digger]

That is a fantastic collection. That scapula hoe looks to be in excellent condition. When I was at Steve's site it seemed that the hoe's were all damaged. But I did manage to find several of those nice bone awls.

 

[justonemore]

Always amazed me what Steve presented here. Same soil conditions here as to finding bone as you Josh. Congrats on picking up that collection.

 

[quito]

When I saw you and quito had gone to the same auction I was thinking to myself and wondering if it was some of Steves collection being sold? Nice pieces
If not I wonder what ever happened to all of his.

we had the same thought rock. Steve's was a North Dakota collection and this was both north and south Dakota stuff, and I don't recall Steve's artifacts displayed in cases like the ones holding the points here. Not to mention, we figured Steve gave way to much away for there to be this much left.

 

[monsterrack]

That is a super collection of bone and they will display very nice. Great score