Hinges?

[Wilson]

I always believed that if there were any loose hinges, or hinges period that it was a rechiip or something. Well, I was looking at my Lerma" and noticed what I guess is hinges? I thought they all popped off when it froze? I hope I posted this in the right place so I can get my name back.

[2ndoldman]

Your name and your game is back. That is a sweet find.

[clovisoid]

Nice point, and pretty material. Some hinges are scary, some are normal for the material.

[sneakygroundbuzzard]

not all hinges will come off from freeze thaw methods
like clovioid said,some hinges are normal for the material
novaculite is notorious for small hinges
even some of the best knappers in the world cant help but have small hinges on novaculite

i have taken novaculite pieces ive made,soaked in water then froze for days hoping the freeze and thaw would pop the hinges loose
no such luck though

[clovisoid]

i have taken novaculite pieces ive made,soaked in water then froze for days hoping the freeze and thaw would pop the hinges loose
no such luck though

I've heard that some people have put novaculite bifaces in a pressure cooker and then frozen the pieces to drive the water into the hinges and freeze-pop them off. Not sure how that worked out, but similar idea to yours.

[sneakygroundbuzzard]

a lot of the knappers i know have tried the freeze thaw method to remove hinges on various types of material with no luck
they,and i, find the best way to get rid of them is to not put them there in the first place
easier said than done some times,but a good method to hide them if they cant be picked off is to lightly heat the rock and then apply bees wax and it will flow under the hinges.then wipe off the excess wax and you dont notice the hinges any more

with some materials,i.e. obsidian, if you cant pick them off right away then just leave i sit for a couple of days and try again and they seem to pop off then
something about the oxygen oxidizing the material i guess

[Guest]

This is a favorite subject for me....patination and mineralization does not always occur together. The extent of either is dependent upon the conditions of soil or water surrounding the point. Having collected from the Chesapeake Bay's beaches for more than 30 years is an education in the variables of both of these phenomenon.

The example shown is a Pinetree made from a darkly opaque PA chalcedony. It was found washed up on a shoreline by myself, and sold to Mark Small a month later.

Spicules of surface erosion are clearly seen, yet there is no mineralization under the hinges. This point is 100% genuine and there is no doubting the breakdown of the surface. This is patina. A salt-water erosion of the surface, but no stability in its resting place on the bottom of the bay, thus no minerals formed as they might upon a stationary artifact subjected to a constancy of its surrounding matrix of sand/soil/etc

I strongly suggest a thorough reading of soil mechanics, types of soils and how they are formed and what they will end up becoming, due to chemical and mineral processes accompanying each different type of soil. There is not, imo, a very good likelihood your Lerma is an authentic piece as I see it from the photo. But don't take my word on it--research my words on it yourself

[gregszybala]

From what I have seen conditions do dictate what happens to a point over the years. How long was the point buried and how far below the frost line if freeze thaw is even a consideration. Extremely rare to find a point with hinges where I'm from but the further south you go the more you see points that do. Like Clovisoid said, material also dictates likelihood. Being from Texas and seeing many posted from there, hinges are not a surprise.

[Guest]

Novaculite is known for leaving hinges. Each of the PA chalcedony examples I have are the same way--as mentioned, material makes a difference as much as soil-type

[south fork]

Here's one fresh off the hard pan .

[Guest]

A bay-found Levanna made from PA chalcedony