Stone:Worked
Niagara Historical Society Museum
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| Nom de l'objet : | Stone:Worked |
| Catégorie de l'objet : | 10: Unclassifiable Artifacts |
| Sous-catégorie de l'objet : | Artifact Remnant |
| Discipline : | Local History |
| Numéro d'accession : | 971.324 |
| Culture : | Canadian |
| Description : | MATERIAL:STONE L: 10 CM;W:2.5 CM. -HAD A PRACTICAL USE AS WEIGHTS ON SPEAR THROWERS.POSSIBLY USED IN IROQUOIAN CEREMONIES. SMOOTH SURFACE,A CREAM-COLOURED SPOT ON ONE SIDE,TWO HOLES ARE CONNECTED (TO LOOP A STRING THROUGH). POSSIBLY POLISHED SLATE, FOUR OVAL HOLES HAVE BEEN PUT IN THE BOTTOM. GRAY & BLACK STONE. From: "Birdstones of the North American Indian" The first step in fashioning a birdstone was the selection of a suitable piece of stone. It seems that the material itself added to the significance of the specimen to its user, judging from the apparent limitation as to the kinds of stone selected in nearly 90% of cases the greenish-gray banded Huronian variety was selected for the fabrication of slate birdstones. In the manufacturing of the poryphory specimens, only the black and white, green and cream and gray and green porphyries found favour. The fallacy of the fakers in choosing other slate and porphyritic materials which the Indians never used calls attention to the selectivity the Indians exercised in their choice of materials. The same is true of quartz, as only the white and tan varieties were used by the Indians, with one or two possible exceptions. Proof that Indians in different parts of the birdstone area used native materials is demonstrated by recoveries of birdstones made from stones representative of the areas in which they are found. For example, banded Huron slate specimens are extremely rare south of the glacial edge...reddish slate characterizes the North Carolina and eastern Tennessee birdstones. Eastern Tennessee bar amulets generally are made from blue shale as witness those from the Camp Creek site. Steatite and soapstone birdstones appear along the east coast from Virginia to New England, and are exceedingly rare elsewhere. The Huronian slate used in the manufacture of most birdstones appears in profusion in the glacial drift and is particularly plentiful in the northern portion of the birdstone area. Its decrease in quantity as the glacier moved southward may be explained by the fact that it was too soft to withstand the rigorous transportation accorded by glacial action. Vast quantities of syeite, granite, dorite and porrphory from the Canadian highlands were deposited throughout the reaches of the great ice sheet and provided ready material for the primitive artisans. Some Huronian slate outcrops in NY, PA, OH, and evidence of quarrying is indicated at these sites. Many slate birdstones probably were derived from waterworn pebbles which required a minimum of working. The general shape of the desired birdstone was often attained by a hewing and flaking process wherein percussion played a dominant role. Many rejects or culls indicate that disasterous strokes during this stage of the fabrication ruined the possibility of achieving a desireable form, causing the work to be abandoned on the particular piece of stone. Flaking was followed by a more gentle pecking process wherein the undesireable protrusions on the stone were eliminated by a localized spot pounding and powdering with a harder rock. Many unfinished specimens of the birdstone and bannerstone demonstrate that this tedious procedure was essential to the completion of almost every type of specimen. Much coarse grinding followed the pecking in order to work out the eyes and tails and flint knives may have scraped or planed off portions of the slate specimens. The long stalks of many button pop eyed slate birdstones bear the varying levels caused by some flat, narrow stone file which the artisan pushed and pulled back and forth around the stalks to reduce their size while leaving the large button for the eye. After coarse grinding the stone took on its more final form, finely grained or powdered abrasives and polishing stones of dense material were used. That very fine wet sand played a part in polishing some birdstones is evidenced by the minute, almost invisible scratches in their glossy surfaces. It is to be noted that the number of specimens refected because of defective fractures and chunks knocked off which destroyed the possibility of attaining the proper shape occurred far more often among the slate specimens than the hardstone ones. This was doubtless the case because of the very nature of slate or shale...such shattering does not occur in a homogeneous and dense piece of stone such as granite, etc. So it is that the unfinished hardstone specimens usually are not culls such as result in the shale working but more often are unfinished simply because [of the] difficulty in working the very hard stone... Drilling was accomplished in the slate birdstones either by flint drills, solid sticks or copper awls. Sharp sand or powdered quartzite or quartz probably was used as an abrasive in conjunction with the wooden sticks and copper awls. The specimens indicate that drilling generally was attempted only after final polishing took place, as very few unpolished birdstones showing partially completed holes have been found. A tapered flint drill will cut a conical hole one half inch deep in slate in about ten minutes of drilling time. Many slate birdstones obviously were so drilled-a vertical conical hole being met by a horizontal conical one at each end of the base. Joseph Ringesien Jr....pointed out that when the final break through is made, the bridge is in danger of being broken, as well as the flint drill. He believes that the Indians attempted to avoid this breakage by use of a punch to attain the final break through, and that if the punch were a fraction too large, the bridge would be broken. Judging from the tiny perforations in most porphyry and quartz specimens, it seems most likely that copper drills of small diameter were rotated in conjunction with a hard, granular abrasive until the desired drillings were attained. The amount of time required to drill quartz with a bow drill has been determined by Knoblock by actual experiment - to go one fourth of an inch requred approximately 15 hours of actual drilling with a hollow reed and fine quartz sand. The glacier carried copper nuggets up to two pounds in weight in its drift and the Indians pounded and shaped this copper into their desired awls and drills. If quartzite hammer stones were used in this process. some of the quartz crystals became mixed with the pounded copper making an even more effective drill... It formerly was stated that the unfinished specimens occurred within a very limited area, namely OH, IN. MI. From this it was concluded that all birdstones disseminated from this central area of manufacture. The research for this publication shows that unfinished specimens have been found in all localities where birdstone occur, extending their area of manufacture considerably to include Mass, CT, VT, RI, NY, Maryland, PA and NC, Wisconsin. They have also appeared in Canada, KT, Tenn. Many specimens apprently were used for their intended purpose...They doubtless were fastened in place by thongs or sinews pased around their bodies and around the object to which they were attached...some specimens have deep notches cut into them which would assist in tying them to some object... Tool marks remain on a rare few hardstone birdstones, and on many specimens made of slate, soapstone, etc. |
| Commentaires : | It is generally accepted that birdstones (other animal effigies have been found but are rare) are Algonkian in origin and made their first appearance within the Late Archaic and Early Woodland periods or 3000-4000 years before present (B.P.), and that their production and usage had ended completely before Late Woodland times or 2500 years B.P.The majority are made of glacial deposits of Huronian slate.Their distribution seems to be in North East United States and Southern Ontario.The first step in creating a birdstone was the careful selection of a piece of stone.The general shape was attained by a hewing and flaking process by percussion, followed by a more gentle pecking process with a harder rock.Coarse grinding followed and flint knives may have been used to scrape and plane the surface.Finely grained and powdered abrasives were used to finish and polish the birdstones.The final step was the drilling of a vertical conical hole met by a horizontal one at each end of the flat base using flint drills or copper awls with powdered quartz as an abrasive.The question of their purpose and usage remains unanswered.It has been theorized that they were used as weights on atlatls, which were devices used to increase the power of a thrown spear.A second theory maintains that a birdstone was tied to the atlatl and used as a handle.However, the craftsmanship and time involved in their creation makes it more probable that birdstones were amulets or ceremonial objects.From: "Birdstones of the North American Indian" The first step in fashioning a birdstone was the selection of a suitable piece of stone.It seems that the material itself added to the significance of the specimen to its user, judging from the apparent limitation as to the kinds of stone selected in nearly 90% of cases the greenish-gray banded Huronian variety was selected for the fabrication of slate birdstones.In the manufacturing of the poryphory specimens, only the black and white, green and cream and gray and green porphyries found favour.The fallacy of the fakers in choosing other slate and porphyritic materials which the Indians never used calls attention to the selectivity the Indians exercised in their choice of materials.The same is true of quartz, as only the white and tan varieties were used by the Indians, with one or two possible exceptions.Proof that Indians in different parts of the birdstone area used native materials is demonstrated by recoveries of birdstones made from stones representative of the areas in which they are found.For example, banded Huron slate specimens are extremely rare south of the glacial edge reddish slate characterizes the North Carolina and eastern Tennessee birdstones.Eastern Tennessee bar amulets generally are made from blue shale as witness those from the Camp Creek site. Steatite and soapstone birdstones appear along the east coast from Virginia to New England, and are exceedingly rare elsewhere.The Huronian slate used in the manufacture of most birdstones appears in profusion in the glacial drift and is particularly plentiful in the northern portion of the birdstone area.Its decrease in quantity as the glacier moved southward may be explained by the fact that it was too soft to withstand the rigorous transportation accorded by glacial action.Vast quantities of syeite, granite, dorite and porrphory from the Canadian highlands were deposited throughout the reaches of the great ice sheet and provided ready material for the primitive artisans.Some Huronian slate outcrops in NY, PA, OH, and evidence of quarrying is indicated at these sites.Many slate birdstones probably were derived from waterworn pebbles which required a minimum of working.The general shape of the desired birdstone was often attained by a hewing and flaking process wherein percussion played a dominant role.Many rejects or culls indicate that disasterous strokes during this stage of the fabrication ruined the possibility of achieving a desireable form, causing the work to be abandoned on the particular piece of stone.Flaking was followed by a more gentle pecking process wherein the undesireable protrusions on the stone were eliminated by a localized spot pounding and powdering with a harder rock.Many unfinished specimens of the birdstone and bannerstone demonstrate that this tedious procedure was essential to the completion of almost every type of specimen.Much coarse grinding followed the pecking in order to work out the eyes and tails and flint knives may have scraped or planed off portions of the slate specimens.The long stalks of many button pop eyed slate birdstones bear the varying levels caused by some flat, narrow stone file which the artisan pushed and pulled back and forth around the stalks to reduce their size while leaving the large button for the eye.After coarse grinding the stone took on its more final form, finely grained or powdered abrasives and polishing stones of dense material were used.That very fine wet sand played a part in polishing somebirdstones is evidenced by the minute, almost invisible scratches in their glossy surfaces.It is to be noted that the number of specimens refected because of defective fractures and chunks knocked off which destroyed the possibility of attaining the proper shape occurred far more often among the slate specimens than the hardstone ones.This was doubtless the case because of the very nature of slate or shale such shattering does not occur in a homogeneous and dense piece of stone such as granite, etc.So it is that the unfinished hardstone specimens usually are not culls such as result in the shale working but more often are unfinished simply because [of the] difficulty in working the very hard stone.Drilling was accomplished in the slate birdstones either by flint drills, solid sticks or copper awls. Sharp sand or powdered quartzite or quartz probably was used as an abrasive in conjunction with the wooden sticks and copper awls. The specimens indicate that drilling generally was attempted onlyafter final polishing took place, as very few unpolished birdstones showing partially completed holes have been found.A tapered flint drill will cut a conical hole one half inch deep in slate in about ten minutes of drilling time. Many slate birdstones obviously were so drilled-a vertical conical hole being met by a horizontal conical one at each end of the base.Joseph Ringesien Jr pointed out that when the final break through is made, the bridge is in danger of being broken, as well as the flint drill. He believes that the Indians attempted to avoid this breakage by use of a punch to attain the final break through, and that if the punch were a fraction too large, the bridge would be broken.Judging from the tiny perforations in most porphyry and quartz specimens, it seems most likely that copper drills of small diameter were rotated in conjunction with a hard, granular abrasive until the desired drillings were attained.The amount of time required to drill quartz with a bow drill has been determined by Knoblock by actual experiment to go one fourth of an inch requred approximately 15 hours of actual drilling with a hollow reed and fine quartz sand.The glacier carried copper nuggets up to two pounds in weight in its drift and the Indians pounded and shaped this copper into their desired awls and drills.If quartzite hammer stones were used in this process some of the quartz crystals became mixed with the pounded copper making an even more effective drill.It formerly was stated that the unfinished specimens occurred within a very limited area, namely OH, IN. MI.From this it was concluded that all birdstones disseminated from this central area of manufacture.The research for this publication shows that unfinished specimens have been found in all localities where birdstone occur, extending their area of manufacture considerably to include Mass,CT,VT,RI,NY, Maryland, PA and NC,Wisconsin.They have also appeared in Canada, KT, Tenn.Many specimens apprently were usedfor their intended purpose. |
| Fonctions : | Probably a Bird Stone.So-Called From Its Resemblance To Birds.Used As Weight |
| Longueur : | 0.000 |
| Unité de mesure linéaire : | cm |
| Publications ou références : | Could be the stone referenced in Historical Notes #271 by Janet Carnochan. It is listed as being donated in July 1913 by Mr. Jonathan Dodd from Thessalon (North East Shore of Lake Huron) who came to Camp Niagara for training. |
| Établissement : |
Niagara Historical Society Museum
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| Ville de l'établissement : | Niagara-on-the-Lake |
| Province de l'établissement : | Ontario |
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