A WONDERFUL STEATITE BOWL
Jim Simmons
Jarratt, Virginia
The use of hollowed soft stone as cooking vessels falls
chronologically between Archaic Period deerskin-lined holes in the
soil and Woodland ceramic vessels, with a good archaeological guess
being from 4,000 B.C. to 0 A.D. In the foothills and mountains of the
East, outcroppings of steatite are not uncommon. This easily worked
talc material is commonly called soapstone because it can be readily
carved when initially broken from the outcropping. After exposure to
air and fire, the stone hardens and cannot be so easily altered. The
prehistoric natives used soapstone to manufacture bowls, pipes,
gorgets, net weights and other utilitarian and ceremonial objects.
More:
http://www.csasi.org/1998_october_journal/pg201.htm

LONG-STEMMED SPUDS
ToneyAid
West Plains, Missouri
Take an ungrooved celt, polish it, stretch it (up to two feet long),
flare the bit slightly and what have you got? A long-stemmed spud!
For many years archaeologists for reasons of clarity have wished that
the spud might be renamed "elongated celts" or "sociotechnic axe
form," but the common name of "spud" persists, named for a type of
spade used to dig potatoes. Early archaeologists thought the spud
was some type of digging tool. Clarence B. Moore (Moore 1903) was one
of the first to describe it as an unusual form of celt, not an
implement meant for digging. Very few long-stemmed spuds have chips
or show any evidence of wear on their bits which would indicate use
in digging or chopping.
More:
http://www.csasi.org/2000_january_journal/Pg-12.htm

THE WILDLIFE PLOT CACHE
Cliff Jackson
Warrenton, North Carolina
In October of 1989, Steve Boykin noticed a lot of flint on the ground
as he was plowing. This South Carolina outdoorsman was preparing
wildlife food plots on his hunting grounds along the Savannah River
in Allendale County, South Carolina, on the first ridge off the
palmetto flats which border the river. The sandy land was covered
with Coastal Plains chert flakes and broken pieces of soapstone
vessels. This was enough for Steve to realize that there was an
ancient Archaic habitation site on this ridge from deep in the past.
More:
http://www.csasi.org/2002_january_journal/pg21.htm

THE DAY THE BIG ONE CAME
OUT OF THE GROUND
John Dunn
Daphne, Alabama
The year was 1962. My wife and I lived and worked in Oakland,
California. My parents lived in Callaway County, Missouri. Over the
years we kept in touch mostly through letters; however, on special
occasions we would use the phone. One Sunday evening the phone rang
and it was my mother. After visiting about the family, Mom
said, "Your dad has something to tell you about Indian rocks." To
Mother, arrowheads, spear points, and axes were just Indian rocks.
When Dad got on, I could tell from the tone of his voice that he had
made a good find. How good it really was, I would not know for
several months. Dad went on to tell me about stopping by a site
that he had heard about one day after work. After getting permission
from the owner of the farm to hunt, he made his way over to some
recently plowed ground. The site showed promise as there
was "chipping seemingly everywhere." His success that day consisted
of a few broken pieces. But his eyes and mind targeted on an area
near the southwestern corner of the field. There were three separate
circular areas, each about 10 feet in diameter where the soil was
much darker looking than the surrounding soil. It was getting late,
but Dad had resolved to go back to the site at some later time for
more extensive exploration. He returned a few days later, and out of
the plowed earth came a beautiful Etley point about 5 inches in
length. It was perfect except for one missing ear. I do not recall
the number of points he said he recovered that day, but it was
several.
More:
http://www.csasi.org/2001_july_journal/day_the_big_one.htm