MA find questions

[Bretton]

I found these on the shore of a river near a known Indian site and had some questions:
A. I assume that #2 is an ulu like blade. I have found a few sandstone ones within a mile from here, but this material is not familiar. Any ideas?
B. I believe #3 is basalt and it has a well worn thumbprint at the narrow end. Do you think it could have been used to soften sinew or smooth arrow shafts?
C. Could #4 be imported obsidian? It is really light. It wasn't found near the other objects, but much closer to the studied site where many points were found.
D. #6, Is it a rhyolite/jasper knife or point? I can't ID it in the NE Typology. One side is clearly fluted, so I wondered if it was unfinished, yet it is very pointy as is and #5 looks similarly shaped.
E. #5, this was found very close to #6 and has many similar characteristics, but I think it is diorite, which I know isn't a material for points. Could it be a spear head?
Thanks in advance.

[Hal Gorges]

Don’t know how thick it is but it looks like a very nice hammer stone believe it or not , very hard to come by ....those ole boys got attached to a good one and they even took em to the grave......the broke ones rheumatoid threw in the trash....then a couple thousand years later I come along and get exited over finding the trash...nice finds fla. boy.

[Bretton]

I'm confused. Which one are you talking about Fla boy?

[CMD]

I believe what you thought was obsidian is actually coal. The 6th photo in your sequence does look like a chunk of rhyolite. That might have resulted from a native manufacturing something, but it is not itself a point, or knife. I do not believe what you believe is an ulu is in fact an ulu. But I'm not holding it, just looks doubtful, esp. if that's the edge in the second photo, it would be too friable a material. I'm just seeing rocks for the remainder. There's a learning curve, once things click, you'll start finding artifacts.

[SDhunter]

I’m see natural stones. Whether or not Charlie is right on the coal, I don’t know. Coal should be very light and probably crumbly. M

[Bretton]

Thanks. Well, coal would make sense as it was near a clay deposit where some very early colonial brickmaking occurred. It is definitely light, but not crumbly. Just really glassy and not like anything that I've seen in this area of Metrowest Boston.

[CMD]

Being light would suggest coal or an industrial byproduct, like coke. If anthracite coal, it won't really necessarily be all that crumbly.

[SurfaceHunter]

Rocks are all over the place. Worked rocks by ancient people arent.

[Hal Gorges]

Sorry I got my no’s. Mixed up ...was referring to no. 4 also reread info if it’s lite ,probably not a hammer stone..was in a hurry...fla boy

[Looks2Much]

I think CMD nailed it. Keep looking down

id also take a close look at the ulus you say you’ve found nearby. Ulus are not - at all - common and I think most lifelong collectors would kill to find just one. Additionally, I just don’t see how sandstone would function as a working blade, I can break sandstone between my thumb and forefinger

[Wvcreeks1987]

Not sure what you mean when you say number 6 is clearly fluted? Do you know what a flute is? Not being rude just curious. You can learn a lot here if you allow yourself

[Bretton]

Looks2much, I know that most ulus are slate but sandstone was used for knives, hatchets, and some ulus. This is mentioned in Willoughby's Antiquities of the NE Indian and many times in the Bulletin of the MAS. The effects of erosion sure look better on slate though.

I understand that ulus are not common, but they are sporadically dense in MA&RI. I just happen to live 1.5 miles from a site that produced 17 ulus when it was excavated. I found that flat, sharp stone across the water from that site.

I found the others that I mentioned on my property, which has some sandstone outcrops and is also on the water. Here are pics of 2 of them. The first one was sticking out of the ground at the base of a tree with the entire blade sticking out. I believe that the wavy edge is due to erosion or possibly chipping.

I'm hoping to get to the Robbins museum next week. Maybe I'll bring them by and see what they think.

[Bretton]

Wvcreeks1987, I apologize as my wording was confusing. I wasn't referring to a paleo flute, but meant to refer to the edge. It isn't exactly serrated and the word 'fluted' is what came to mind (like a pie crust). Probably not a good word to use lightly around arrowhead fanatics!

[SurfaceHunter]

Just look a likes plenty of them out there that look like a possible point but just a natural break

[Bretton]

I get it- just clarifying the fluted thing. Thanks.