Obsidian travels

[tomf]

OBSIDIAN RESEARCH IN TENNESSEE AND ALABAMA

By Mark Norton.

"Seven obsidian artifacts found in Tennessee and Alabama were sent to the Northwest Research Obsidian Studies Laboratory in Corvallis, Oregon for x-ray fluorescence sourcing and hydration measurement tests. The results indicate obsidian was traded into our region from sources in California, Nevada, Oregon, and Arizona possibly as early as the Late Archaic period (ca. 2000 BC)."

Napa and Sonoma projectiles found, according to report in Tennessee Archeology.

The_Nelson_Site_A_Late_Middle_Woodland_H.pdf

Lot's of other good stuff in this publication too.

[gregszybala]

Yet to find a whole point but I have picked up and saved pieces of Obsidian from what was a twenty plus mound site Here in NW Indiana.

[tomf]

Yet to find a whole point but I have picked up and saved pieces of Obsidian from what was a twenty plus mound site Here in NW Indiana.

What I find really surprizing is that some of these Tennessee examples were traded in as ready made points, that I recognize as common local types (Excelsior and Stockton) here in California.

That's like me finding a Dover chert Adena in my vineyard. Pretty crazy....

[gregszybala]

The day make come yet Tom!

[Savage1!]

I believe man has been navigating waterways pre palio!

[Cecilia]

Tom, you know this one of my favorite subjects! This article part of my big collection reference material from all over the world re what’s been called most recent important archeological interest: Obsidian Migration.

Obsidian is such a distinctive lithic; a system and methodology exist by which it can be traced to its volcanic source; and, it was so very, very valuable to all the People…. these factors combine to make its movement perfect reflection of our social and commercial evolution!!

[tomf]

Tom, you know this one of my favorite subjects! This article part of my big collection reference material from all over the world re what’s been called most recent important archeological interest: Obsidian Migration.

Obsidian is such a distinctive lithic; a system and methodology exist by which it can be traced to its volcanic source; and, it was so very, very valuable to all the People…. these factors combine to make its movement perfect reflection of our social and commercial evolution!!

I knew you'd find this interesting, C.
It's extraordinary to think of manufactured points travelling so far and , tbh, I'm not completely convinced that it's true. The specimens have little provenance, coming from amateur collections. We're they surface hunted or excavated? They are said to have come from known sites and dating is consistent, but the sites are multicomponant (cover wide time span) which muddles it up a bit.
Most problematic is that if we accept this kind of extra long range trading why don't we see more examples? The points reported represent a time span of several thousand years, but only seven examples found so far, and paltry amounts in adjacent territory ( I suspect).
If it did happen as they theorize, it was most likely accidental. A series of many short distance trades that amounted to a freakishly long one. That it happened more than once, tests the theory beyond it's limit, but it's all I can come up with.
Other, less charitable idea, is the old boys at the Tennessee Archeology Society were playing games with each other.
Personally, I have never heard of a point travelling quite so far. If you (or anybody) know of other similar stories, I'd love to hear.

[Cecilia]

There is a group of same fellas who write articles, sometimes together as co-authors, about obsidian found in “faraway (from source) places”. They generally pooh-pooh idea of pre-made points being traded and traded until end up “discovered” eons later in PoDunk, Alabama, and much of their reasoning similar to yours only delivered in high-brow fashion! (I’ll send you one where they talk about several, and methodically debunk all but one.). And, there are some fairly credible cases where determined lithic, not point, was trade item (like maybe my little spalls found Columbia County, Ga)

Occurances like last scenario subject of many doctoral thesis of European students; there is excellent one about obsidian in Africa by woman from University in London….

[tomf]

Please post your links here or, even better, on new thread I started on long distance trade.

No dispute that material was traded or carried very long distances, often in form of bifaces. Finished points I'm not so sure about.

[Missouri Breaks]

Great article! Had to show a couple of mine for comparison. Also useful was the ID’ing of the Anadel and Napa material.

[tomf]

That's awesome, Matt. Perfect matches.
I could do the same.
You have to admit, that if true, it's an amazing story.
I'd need more info on sites and circumstances of the finds before I believe it completely.
The point types are so specific and local that there can be little doubt of their origin. Stocktons, in particular, have very limited distribution in both time and place. You hardly find them outside of Sacramento valley and delta and Southern North Coast Range out to the ocean. To imagine that little point hop-scotching it's way across the country is mind-bending.

[clovisoid]

Missouri Breaks,

I was scrolling through and I didn't catch the comparison between their points and your points. Aside from the tip, nearly identical examples!

[Missouri Breaks]

[tomf]

BTW, Are you guys having a power cut today due to fire weather conditions?

[tomf]

One thing to note about the Tennesse Excelsior is how heavily sharpened it's been. Looks like it's seen practical use. So not ceremonial? Not given special status for it's rarity?

[Missouri Breaks]

Oh ya, that TN blade was used, probably highly valued, the Stockton used less, looks like… maybe kept nice. The TN Stockton has that hydration test chunk missing? Mine exc was ‘stocktonized’ originally I think. Can’t see the serrations resulting in a round of re-furbishing an originally classically shaped excelsior. This is what I mean by the lines being blurred as far as our typology goes, is it a Stockton blade/or large point or an Excelsior with serrations?…

Read the entire article and no mention of specific trade routes or practices. I guess there would’ve been gatherings known far and wide intended for trade or these are unique situations resulting from meetings between groups and or individuals. I’d think there would’ve been enough scrutiny on the reported locales of the finds to filter out the possibility they were in collections with unknown provenance and were then said to be found at the sites. If traded directly between CA people and the peoples of the south east, what was exchanged and where are those objects in the CA records(no records that I’m aware of)… Or there where intermediary’s, or the trades were of a different nature than object for object like beads for hides etc…

Haven’t heard about planned outages but am aware of the possibility.

[tomf]

Excelsiors can have serrations though never the extra pronounced ones like Stocktons. Houx points can have them too and can be confused with Excelsior. Justice says Excelsior is evolution of Houx but, according to Moratta, there is a bit of an overlap.
I think they both descend from old leaf forms of pluvial lake tradition they may have an expression in the first people of Clear Lake region.
Excelsior are found as far south as Baja, but North Coast Range is heartland.

[clovisoid]

Tom,

I didn't comment the first time I saw this thread, but since you introduced it, I share your potential for doubt. I only scanned the article but I didn't see them mention any potential for modern contamination.

I've walked some of the public areas where the first flake sourced as having come from, and that hazy look comes from sitting in the windy Nevada desert for a long time. Most of the obsidian flakes found in the Midwest/Southeast were likely flaked off larger pieces here. (A single large waste flake sat in the desert for several thousand years, was picked up, taken to Tennessee and discarded?)

FWIW, Several thousand soldiers per year since the 1940's have probably rotated through Nellis air force base that on the edge of that valley, and flakes like that are pretty common. My grandfather had some small artifacts he picked up when he was stationed in New Mexico during WW2, they sat in a box with his finds from the farm in Indiana for 60+ years. (Artifact migrations happen.)

Joshua

[tomf]

I was hinting at modern contamination with my comment about good old boys playing tricks. Probably not fair, as there are other potential sources as you say.
Reporting more about circumstances of finds could have addressed some doubts. Authors don't acknowledge the possibility though.
Also curious that the pieces was found at separate sites and have very different dates but come from same source. I don't know what to make of that...
Patina on everything pictured is consistent with aging in the west but I don't know that its ages different elsewhere.
I agree that the simple flake is very random and hard to imagine as imported in that form.
I want to believe a marvelous story and don't doubt the sincerity of it's tellers, but I'm struggling a little.

[Cecilia]

Tom, where is new thread you started on long-distance trade? Can’t find……duh……

[tomf]

It's in Native American Culture & Lifestyle - Questions & Discussion

https://forums.arrowheads.com/forum/general-discussion-gc5/native-american-culture-lifestyle-questions-discussion-gc141/577366-long-distance-trade-in-manufactured-projectiles

Thanks, C

[gregszybala]

https://phys.org/news/2021-06-underw...msiGClzncGy6Gs

At underwater site in Lake Huron, research team finds 9,000-year-old stone artifacts Including Obsidian

by Devynn Case, University of Texas at Arlington

[Sugaree]

Here in North Carolina we have a site called Town Creek Indian Mound. This mound was excavated Joffre Coe our legendary Archeologist.According to his book Town Creek Indian Mound there was a single obsidian point found during the professional excavation and below the plow level. I really can’t find any information on it outside of his book. In his book Coe states that the point would be more at home in Southern Ohio? I’ll add some pictures of the point and everything that pertains to the point from the book. Also curious if any one recognizes the point type.

[utilized flake]

Point looks desert sierra maybe?

[Cecilia]

NOTE RESPONSE NOT ABOUT OBSIDIAN ARTIFACTUAL OBJECTS, BUT ABOUT RAW LITHIC (altho spalls just big flakes, and we all know flakes are artifacts!)

Recall the black pieces of “glass” I dug up here Columbia County, GA?

I sent TomF pics, and his response changed the course of my research. After confirming as best as could with amateur scratch and streak tests that all but one of the pieces appeared to be obsidian (first far left NOT), I began journey still on: how did far-away obsidian get in my backyard?

According to scholar at https://www.academia.edu/12914367/Ob..._to_Archeology, the movement of obsidian from its natural source is attributed to three potential methods:
1)procurement directly from the source as part of a normal resource extraction activity pattern,
2)procurement through trade/exchange with other groups, or
3)transport in conjunction with the colonization of a new territory.

My Q maybe answered with history of local People. The last People who lived here had eventually became known as the Yuchis (aka Ugee or Euchee) and the Kiokees, and they had settled along the western bank of the Savannah River (exactly where I live now). They were part of bigger group known as Muscogees, later known as Creeks. Long before they had tribal names, they had been driven from the Red River area of the American Southwest by neighboring hostiles. Perhaps these little obsidian spalls traveled with them, maybe transport-method #3, thru colonization of a new territory?!

[Ain’t this grand fun!?!]