Question.

[SportsmanAll]

What is this tool? Wondering because I may have a couple....also, my previous post about having you guys help me age a few pieces is still going to happen. Just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Thanks in advance!

 

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[Tony in SC]

At first I thought it was an atlatl, used for spear throwing, but it looks more like a chopping tool?

 

[SportsmanAll]

It's an atlatl, used for spear throwing. It greatly increases the velocity.

I’ve made and thrown lots of darts from atlatls, the shaft is definitely a dart, but the tool isn’t. No spur to lock the dart. Anyways, my question is what is the rectangular piece of stone that is circled in the photo. I’m wondering if there is a specific name for it.

 

[welsbury]

How about a celt or an adze.

 

[SportsmanAll]

How about a celt or an adze.

Possibly...very thinly worked tho and small small

 

[joshuaream]

It looks like fancy hide scraper made by someone who was thinking of an adze. The tools look similar, but there are some differences in the handle, angle and bit when using stone blades.

As you point out the bit is too thin for whacking out a canoe, and the torque from scraping a hide would snap the blade. Here is a quick picture of a historic elk antler hide scraper with a metal blade. Other places used a socketed system with a flint thumb scraper, that had the bit sticking out. If too much was out it would snap as it was pulled across the hide. The stone blade, if ancient, could very well be a scraper that is just hafted incorrectly. My guess is that the handle would have choked up high leaving only the leading edge of the bit exposed.

 

[SportsmanAll]

It looks like fancy hide scraper made by someone who was thinking of an adze. The tools look similar, but there are some differences in the handle, angle and bit when using stone blades.

As you point out the bit is too thin for whacking out a canoe, and the torque from scraping a hide would snap the blade. Here is a quick picture of a historic elk antler hide scraper with a metal blade. Other places used a socketed system with a flint thumb scraper, that had the bit sticking out. If too much was out it would snap as it was pulled across the hide. The stone blade, if ancient, could very well be a scraper that is just hafted incorrectly. My guess is that the handle would have choked up high leaving only the leading edge of the bit exposed.


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Thanks for the info! I will post a pic of my piece that is similar to the stone insert the original photo. I always assumed it was a broke preformed spearhead.