THE PLATFORM
-a publication of the Minnesota Knappers Guild-
Editor: Gene Altiere
4329 Peabody Lane
Duluth, MN 55804
VOLUME 4, NO. 1
February, 1992
MKG 4th ANNUAL KNAP-IN
Set aside June 27-28, 1992 on your
calendars! Plan your vacations,
birthdays, honeymoons and anniversaries around that weekend! It's time for
the 4th Annual Minnesota Knappers Guild Knap-in! The event chairman, Jim Regan
has promised that the weather will be perfect, the mosquitoes few and that
all your bifaces will turn out thin and long. The Knap-in will once again be held
at the North West Co. Fur Post in Pine City, Minnesota just three miles off
the Minnesota to Texas freeway (I-35). This event has grown each year and we
expect it to be our biggest yet.
Jim will have more details in the next newsletter but if you want any specific
information now, just give him a call at (612) 462-5568 (evenings).
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MKG
Midwinter Meeting
For the past
few winters, a few of us have got together in Pine City, MN for a day of knapping
and camaraderie. It's turned out to be a lot of fun and the editor thinks
that we should consider turning this into an annual Guild event. There is a
major problem with having an indoor
knap-in and that is of course the silica dust that is raised. It doesn't
take more than a few knappers to create an uncomfortable (and dangerous) cloud
of dust. We could consider having a single "guest knapper" or speaker
or other type of demonstration (there are some excellent videos available).
Let the editor know if you would be interested in this type of event. If enough
people show interest, we could arrange for something next year. Let's hear
from you all!
IN COMING ISSUES
Watch for articles
on: silver and gold wire-wrapping (hafting) of small projectile points to produce
very attractive jewelry gifts; hafting techniques for knife blades and knife
handle production; Ice Age Hunters In Minnesota; and Munsell color coding. If
there are any topics you would like to see in the Platform, please write to the
editor and we'll see what we can do.
NEW MEMBERS
1992 has
seen an influx of new members into the ranks of the MKG. Thanks to word of
mouth at the knap-ins and some good publicity in "CHIPS" and the "FLINTKNAPPERS
EXCHANGE" our membership is growing and spreading around
the country. New members include: W. Art Belding, W5460, 920 Pine Dr., Norway,
MI 49870, Art wrote the editor an interesting note about a dentist who used
to make preforms out of glass by
melting down and shaping the glass in a dental burn-out furnace. Has anybody
else heard of this technique?; Robert Blue, 4514 Morse ave., Studio City, CA 91604;
Art Brown, 12400 31St Ave. So., Burnsville, MN 55337; Barney De Simone, 11146
Densmore Ave., Granada Hills, CA, 91344. Barry's business card indicates
that he does some commercial knapping. The fantastic photos that he sent of his
point work and replication of North American Indian artifacts says a lot more
than his card! We have another
artist in our midst. Barry is also a bowhunter which, of course, makes him an
A1 individual in the eyes of the editor. He sent along a super article written
about his experiences with taking game using primitive weapons which he created.
Anyone having an interest in this activity should send him a note; Jerry Fisher,
813 Columbia Dr., Janesville, WI 53546; Edwin Hendris, P.O. Box 114, Dallardsville,
TX 77332; Bernard Novy, 1511 Dewey St., Manitowoc, WI 54220. (Say
Bernard, do you have any idea
what "Manitowoc" means? - Ed.); Bob (Robbie) Robinson, 16808 Abbotts
Beach Road, West Point, KY 40177; Mike Potter, Route 3, Box 325 A, Eldon, MO
65026; Charlie Shewey, 8812 Sioux Trail, Kansas City, MO. 64131. Those of you
familiar with the Ft. Osage Knap-in will recognize Charlie as one of the co-sponsors.
Charlie indicates he's been trying to learn to knap since 1918 and has
finally learned "a few things" (I'll bet - Ed.); Edwin Stafford, P.O.
Box 130, Mooreville, MS 38857.;
R. Gary Stollenwerk, 18906 Hebron Rd., Havard, IL 60033.; Martin Tillett,
Howard B. Owens Science Center, 9601 Greenbelt Rd., Lanham-Seabrook, MD 20706.
Martin is a prehistoric life specialist for a school district and puts on a
number of programs dealing with paleontology and the study of fossils commonly
found in the regions around Maryland.; and a gentleman by the name of Whittaker,
1517 Elm, Grinnell, IA 50112 but we failed to get his first name.
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QUESTIONS
Occasionally,
"the
Platform" will receive technical questions from our readers. Since the
editor is usually not smart enough to answer them (or too smart ?), we like to
pass them on to our readers. Barney De Simone wrote in the following: "I
do a lot of copper billet work and would like to see anything on the difference
in platform preparation between copper and antler percussion on flint. I want
to move more to antler as a percussor."
Well, how about it knappers? Anyone willing to share
their views
with Barney and "the Platform"? Send your response
to the editor and we'll get it in print for all to see.
By the way, Harry
Walter sent in a thank you to Jack Hutchinson for the article describing the
copper-cap billet (Feb. 91 "Platform"). He says he tried it and it
is working very well for him. Thanks Jack.
GOOD RELATIONS
There
has been much written
recently on the negative feelings that exist between some archaeologists and some
knappers. Thus far, "the Platform" has not had a lot to say on the
issue but the editor is sure that at some point we will address the ethics involved
in flintknapping. However, it does seem appropriate, at this point, to
tell everyone that not all contact between archaeologists and knappers needs to
be negative. The editor recently received a letter from the Supervisory Archaeologist
of the Superior National
Forest, Gordon Peters. He was writing to thank Tony Romano and the editor for
putting on a knapping demonstration at one of the excavation sites that was
open to public view last summer. Part of his letter read, "I know that the
public appreciates seeing how much knowledge one has to have to practice "prim-itive
technology". It also helps to put my perceptions of prehistoric
survival into perspective." To the editor, that's high praise from a
profession which supposedly has
little respect for flintknappers. He also invited members of the MKG to participate
in the 8th Annual Workshop on the Archaeology of the Lake Superior Basin.
The topic is Paleoindian and participants must be prepared to present materials
of academic interest. He commented that "both archaeologists and knappers
might benefit from this interaction." The editor agrees with this approach
and plans on being there to help with Dr. Romano's presentation. It is
a good start at establishing the
type of relationship that should exist between flintknappers (many of whom fit
into the category of "experi-mental archaeologists") and the professionals
who work in the area of prehistoric lithic materials. If anyone is interested
in this type of activity, please contact the editor for more information.
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THEY
WEREN'T ALL STONE
"...In
very old times the stalk of the June berry bush was used for arrow
shafts; a notch was cut in this
stalk, the arrow point of stone or iron was inserted and held in place by winding
the shaft with strips of green bark from the small branches of the June berry.
Arrows made of pine or cedar were used in hunting ducks or other water birds,
as they would float on the water if they missed their mark, and could thus
be recovered, Such arrows had a further advantage in that they did not tear
the bird. If arrows with metal points were used in hunting ducks, it was customary
to sharpen the metal like
a little blade so it would cut the feathers and go through the bird. A special
arrow for hunting rabbits had the end tipped with the claw of a mud turtle. This
was like a sharp spike and penetrated the fur better than an ordinary arrow
point. In old times arrow points of bone were used for shooting deer. These
were made of bones that were somewhat pointed and were made sharply pointed for
this purpose. A Canadian Chippewa said that his people fastened the arrow point
to the shaft so lightly that
it became detached as the deer ran through the bushes. Remaining in the animal,
it made its death more sure. The earliest iron arrow points were cut from the
hoop of a pork barrel and tied in place with sinew. Later they were cut from
frying pans or other utensils obtained from the traders. ..." (taken from
"Chippewa Customs", by Frances Densmore, 1929, page 147)
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NOTCHING
TOOL
by Jim Regan
I
am always looking for new
or better tools to assist me in my flintknapping endeavors. In fact, I probably
spend too much time looking for that "magical" tool instead of just
improving my abilities through actual knapping. In any case, I was trying to
come up with a toolmaking idea for this issue when I received a clever little tool
from a friend of mine. His name is Larry Scheiber, and he is a knapper from
Huntington, Indiana. Larry goes by the pen name of "Lone Wolf", and
makes frequent contributions
to "Chips", in the form of articles and cartoons. What he sent me was
a small pressure flaking tool that can be used to put fine serration on points
such as Cahokia, Scallorn, Morris, etc. It should also work just fine for making
nice thin notches on points. It is a piece of dowel about 3/4" in diameter,
and 6" long, with a hole drilled in the center for a copper rod.
Drill the hole as deep as you can for the copper bit, which can be wire, rod or
in this case a 1/8" diameter
copper tube. (I've also used a soft iron nail in a tool similar to this one
and find that it works well - Ed.) Drill the hole just a bit larger than the
rod so you have a slip fit. Now take the rod or tube and flatten one end with
a hammer. Push the rod into the drilled hole as far as you can. The flattened
end, which is now wider than before will have a shoulder which will stop against
the end of the dowel, keeping the rod from pushing back in. As you wear down
the tip, just pull out the
rod, flatten it some more, and push it back in. Taper the end of the dowel so
that you can get into tight areas easily. I've tried this tool and find it works
very well indeed.
PATCHES
Our
Minnesota Knapper's Guild patches are still available. This is a beautiful
3" patch and is the official emblem for the MKG. Patches are $3.00
each. Make out checks to [Eugene Altiere, editor, "The Platform"] and
mail to 4329 Peabody Lane, Duluth,
MN 55804.
About the following article:
In Vol 3., Numbers 1-4, the Platform was privileged
to publish a series of Articles by Anthony Romano titled Northern Lithics.
Archaeologist and MKG member Leroy Gonsior responded to our plea for "the
rest of the story" and has submitted a manuscript describing the knapping
materials native to the southern
portion of Minnesota. It will be published in serial form through the next
few issues.
In his article he points out that there is need for yet a third
article describing the lithic materials of western Minnesota. Once again,
the Platform is sending out a plea for "the rest of the story". How
about it MKG members? Anyone out there feel like tackling this project? It
would give the Platform the privilege of having printed perhaps the most complete
literature on this topic.
For
those who may have academic interest in Leroy Gonsior's complete manuscript
(seven pages), it can be obtained by writing the editor. Please send a SASE
(two stamps, typing paper size envelope).
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LITHICS
MATERIALS OF
SOUTHEASTERN MINNESOTA
by LEROY GONSIOR
Within Minnesota,
a wide range of lithic raw materials were used by American Indians for making stone
tools. These materials occur
naturally in three broad, overlapping regions of Minnesota including the northern,
central and western, and southeastern. Lithic materials available from
the glacial till and bedrock outcrops from the northern region were discussed
by Anthony Romano in previous issues of The Platform. In the central and western
region, lithic materials are available from the glacial till and include the
lithic materials from the northern region with three additional major lithic materials
being represented, Swan
River chert, Red River chert, Tongue River Silicified Sediment, and a variety
of minor types. Included in this region is Sioux quartzite which is available
in surface exposures in southwestern Minnesota. The final region, southeastern
Minnesota, contains cherts available from bedrock deposits that are the topic
of this paper. Beginning with the older Ordovician age (440 to 505 million years
old - Ed.) Prairie du Chien, Galena, and Maquoketa formations, and the more
recent Devonian age (360 to 408
million years old - Ed.) Cedar Valley formations, all of these geological formations
have cherts that were extensively used by American Indians. Most of these
materials were gathered from outcrops, lag deposits (nodules exposed by natural
erosion - Ed.), and streambeds, with only Grand Meadow chert having documented
prehistoric quarries.
Since descriptions of some of the lithic
materials that will be discussed have not been published, specifically Grand Meadow
chert and Maquoketa chert,
many people are unfamiliar or unaware of their existence. Hopefully, the format
of this article, which includes a combination of lithic material descriptions
for comparative identification purposes, source areas of American Indian use
and availability, and the results of experimental working of these materials,
will be useful for both archaeologists and flintknappers.
Heat treating
was conducted in a laboratory oven provided by the Minnesota Historical Society
Archaeological Laboratory
at the Fort Snelling History Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The experimental
heat treating and use of traditional tools for flintknapping was conducted to help
interpret a number of lithic procurement and processing sites being investigated
by the Minnesota Trunk Highway Archaeological Reconnaissance Survey in southeastern
Minnesota.
Prairie du Chien Chert
Prairie du
Chien chert is an inclusive name used by Minnesota archaeologists for the chert
derived from both the Oneota
and Shakopee members ("member" is a term used to refer to an identifiable
layer of a geologic formation - Ed.) of the Prairie du Chien Formation.
In Iowa and Wisconsin, they are separately referred to as Oneota chert and Shakopee
chert (Morrow 1983). In Minnesota, however, cherts from these two members
are often indistinguishable due to the presence of ooliths in both members. Oolitic
specimens are easily identified by the presence of significant numbers of
oolites (single cell organisms
or sand grains surrounded by concentric calcium carbonate deposits. These oolites
have been invaded by silicon dioxide ie. silicified. During knapping, the
flakes will usually pass through the entire oolite in a uniform fashion leaving
a circular or target-like appearance in cross section - Ed.). The Oneota variety
generally has fewer ooliths, with ooliths absent from bedded (occurring in
"beds" or layers rather than as nodules - Ed.) samples. The Shakopee
variety is highly oolitic and
is found primarily as nodules. Oolitic cobbles commonly have voids or pores
and occur in grotesque shapes with large boulders common in some areas. Samples
collected in the La Crosse, Wisconsin area ranged in color from dark gray through
medium gray to light gray. Streaks and mottling with colors such as white,
light gray, grayish yellow, olive gray, light brown, pale brown, brownish gray
or grayish pink were found to occur in nonoolitic specimens giving the chert
a swirled, mottled appearance
(Withrow 1983:48). Chert from the Shakopee bed is generally a light gray color,
however, a reddish orange color is present in chert from the Willow River Member
of the Shakopee Formation. Changes in color and luster are produced by heat
treating. The overall color appears to be lightened, usually producing Munsell
color readings (a coded method of describing colors - Ed.) including a grayish-pink
[5 R 8/2] or very pale orange [10 YR 8/2] in oolitic specimens and producing
moderate yellow [5 Y 7/6],
grayish-pink [10 R 8/2], moderate reddish-orange [10 R 5/6], moderate pink [5
R 7/4], light red [5 R 6/6] or moderate red [5 R 4/6] streaks and spots among
the usual gray of nonoolitic specimens. In all cases, freshly fractured surfaces
exhibited a more vitreous (glassy - Ed.) luster after heat treatment (Withrow
1983:48-49).
The Prairie du Chien Formation is a lower Ordovician
age dolomite (A type of limestone containing more magnesium than calcium carbonate.
It is usually darker in color
- Ed.) deposit comprising the upper Shakopee Dolomite Member and the lower
Oneota Dolomite Member (Austin 1972). The Oneota Member is predominant along
the lower portion of the St. Croix River and southward along the Mississippi River
including the many tributaries streams and rivers, although the Shakopee Member
is also present through much of the same range. Prairie du Chien chert is
the most common chert in southeastern Minnesota and can easily be found in streambeds,
roadcuts, and as lag deposits
especially along the loess (loess is an extremely fine soil which is formed
from wind blown deposits over a period of time - Ed.) covered edge of the
Mississippi River Valley in Wabasha and Winona counties. Secondary deposits of
chert from the Shakopee Member are extremely plentiful in the Mankato and Le Sueur
area along the Watonwan, Blue Earth, Le Sueur and Minnesota rivers. Lag deposits
have also been identified on uplands west of the Blue Earth River. Prairie
du Chien chert is unquestionably
the most common chert found at archaeological sites in southeastern Minnesota.
The oolitic variety, apparently from the Mankato area, is commonly found
in sites in central and western Minnesota.
Both the Oneota and Shakopee
varieties of Prairie du Chien chert are moderate quality cherts that can
be difficult to knap in their natural state. Heat treating is clearly a prerequisite
for successful flintknapping. Archaeological analyses of lithic debitage
from American Indian sites indicates
that the material was usually heat treated. Heat treating experiments
of Prairie du Chien chert have found that a temperature range of about 600 to 675
degrees Fahrenheit is required (Roetzel 1992). Interestingly, a recent archaeological
excavation of a site in Le Sueur suggests that the extremely abundant
chert at the site was partially reduced to flakes and cores and placed within
a below ground, rock lined kiln and a fire was then built above the chert within
the kiln. One kiln, comprised
of over 900 rocks, was excavated and found to measure 1.5 by 0.75 meters (Roetzel
1992). Traditional heat treating in pit features were identified at the
St. Croix River Access Site near Stillwater where cores were covered with sand
before a fire was built above them (Lothson and Hoffman n.d.).
REFERENCE
CITED
Austin, George E.
1972 Paleozoic Lithostratigraphy of Southeastern
Minnesota. In Geology of Minnesota: a Centennial Volume, edited by
P. K. Sims and G.B. Morey. Minnesota
Geological Survey, University of Minnesota, St. Paul.
Bleifuss, Rodney
L.
1972 The Iron Ores of Southeastern Minnesota. In Geology of Minnesota:
a Centennial Volume, edited by P. K. Sims and G.B. Morey. Minnesota Geological
Survey, University of Minnesota, St. Paul.
Gonsior, LeRoy
1992
Archaeological Survey and Site Evaluation Report of Proposed Minnesota Department
of Transportation S.P. 2309-15 & 2309-17 For Reconstruction of T.H.
52 From T.H. 44 Near Prosper to
Preston Fillmore County, Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Minnesota
Historical Society, St. Paul.
Lothson, Gordon A., Brian Hoffman
1985 St. Croix River Access Site (21 WA 49) A Spatial Archaeological Approach
to the Study of a Middle and Late Prehistoric Lithic Processing Site. Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Historical Society. Unpublished
manuscript at the Minnesota Historical Society Fort Snelling History Center,
St. Paul.
Morrow, Toby
1984 Iowa Projectile Points. Office of the State Archaeologist, University
of Iowa, Iowa City.
Mossler, John H.
1978 Cedar Valley Formation
(Devonian) of Minnesota and Northern Iowa. Minnesota Geological Survey, Report
of Investigations 18, University of Minnesota, St Paul.
Ready, Timothy
L.
1981 An Occurrence of Jasperoid From The Root River Basin. Paper
presented at the 1981 Council Of Minnesota Archaeology Spring Symposium, Hamline
University, St. Paul.
Stoltman,
James B., Jefferey A. Behm, and Harris A. Palmer
1984 The Bass
Site: A Hardin Quarry/Workshop in Southwestern Wisconsin. In Prehistoric Chert
Exploitation: Studies From the Midcontinent, edited by B.M. Butler and E. E.
May. Center for Archaeological Investigations, Occasional Paper No. 2. Southern
Illinois University at Carbondale.
Roetzel, Kathleen A.
1992 Personal
Communication.
Trow, Thomas L.
1981 Surveying the Route of
the Root: Archaeological Reconnaissance
in Southeastern Minnesota. In Current Directions in Midwestern Archaeology:
Selected Papers From the Mankato Conference, edited by Scott F. Anfinson.
Occasional Publications in Minnesota Anthropology No. 9, Minnesota Archaeological
Society, St. Paul.
Withrow, Randall M.
1983 An Analysis of Lithic
Resource Selection and Processing at the Valley View Site, (47 LC 34). Unpublished
M.A. Thesis, Department of Anthropology, University of Minnesota.