no sleep...basal grounding?

[eastTNJoe]

I don't think I have posted a thread without a find...but..I have been exploring the site tonight and wondered if anyone could shed light on what basal grounding is or looks like? I have seen that phrase a bunch in guidebooks and posts and I will admit I really don't know what it means. Any help will be appreciated...I'm going to sleep...but look forward to any input....damn the late afternoon naps...throws off the sleep schedule!

 

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[old digger]

Basal grinding was done to lessen the chance of the material that the projectile was lashed to would not be severed.
Here is a a photo of basal grinding.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Basal grinding was mostly used during the Paleo through Archaic periods and is basically just what it sounds like. They would grind the basal areas of their Points and Knives so they would be smooth and not cut the lashings used to attach the piece to the haft.

The easiest way to to tell if a base is ground or not is to run your finger across it. If it feels smooth then it is more than likely ground. If it still feels sharp and jagged then it's not ground.

Here are some pictures showing basal grinding on some of my Thebes and Lost Lake Points which are from the Early Archaic time period.

 

[Twitch]

Joe - Both digger and reaper are right on. It was intentionally done presumably to not let the base cut through the lashings. Some are heavily ground and some are lightly ground. As Steve says the ole finger test is the easiest way to tell. Run your finger along the cutting edge of the blade first. Then run it along the basal areas. If there's no grinding they should feel about the same. If there is grinding you'll be able to tell the difference. Some are very heavily ground to the extent that is actually affects the outline of the piece and you can tell from 10' that it's a ground base. Others are ground much less heavily and will take a little more time to differentiate. Creek finds are occasionally hard to determine also as the creek washing dulls all of the blade edges.

 

[GaRebel1861]

Grim,

Can I hunt under your deck for those that fell between the cracks?