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He painted them BLUE! man I can almost see that and even the thought seems gruesome. I don't want to restore everything that has a chip, but I just want to do an artifact and see how it comes out restored. I don't think I would make a hobby within a hobby out of it. BLUE!!! Man that had to be a sight. Cliff I might have to go out and gut one of the cows to get that out of my mind.
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I agree with most all comments , would not restore a broken point. Would not change the way I found it. Some I have are obvious impact fractures from many years ago. Would not change that part of history of the piece. Just me Joe!
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Anyone who has watched the Antiques Roadshow has heard them tell someone, "If you only hadn't refinished it, it would be worth $75,000 but since you did it is worth $59". A simple trick you can use is to make a black silhouette of the missing tip and place it behind the piece in a display case which from a few feet away gives the impression it is a whole piece but upon close examination you can see it isn't whole. It gives the viewer a feeling what the piece originally looked like yet no damage to the authenticity. Its a nice display for those special pieces that you just can't relegate to the trash heap. How many times have you had that heart thumping discovery turn into disappointment when you lift up a piece only to find the tip missing. I once was lucky enough to find both halves of a tang knife on my great uncle's place in Arkansas a few feet apart. Talk about an up and down ride that day!!!
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That is one thing that I have yet to achieve is find pieces that match. But I hunt the same areas and I am certain it will happen someday. Have a fellow collector here in Ohio that hunts along the Cuyahoga River, found a 7-1/4" spear in 3 different hunts over a span of 7 years. Probably won't restore the dovetail, but might play with a coffee can artifact just to try my hand at it.
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I think restoration takes away from the truth behind the artifact. I would compare it to an old Dali painting with a missing corner. No one in their right mind would try to replicate the corner. It reduces the value to almost nothing. At least with a broken piece, you know that's the way it was meant to be. Not all that shimmers is gold...
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Good restoration these days is completely reversible. You can break off a repair if you want. So it's not at all like Antiques Roadshow furniture. It will not change the value either up or down to restore.
Bad restoration will make you wish it was never restored in the first place. Some people will use the "paint roller" approach to finishing by covering the whole thing. Sometimes restoration putty will not come off. Some restorations are so ugly they just need re-patriation to the trash. Not everyone is an artist enough to be a restorer. Not every broken relic should even be considered for restoration!
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Very good Cliff point well taken. Its up to the finder what you do with your broken piece. There are good -and- bad sides to point restoration. Me, I leave alone like em the way I find them.
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If I restored the broken points Ive found it would be..........99% of what
ive found!!!! I really like what Gomer Lithics does, adds fibers that shows up under a black light so it can be identified as a restored artifact. Mark.
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I agree on the 99% of what I have found is the same Mark, not sure I have any (perfect) points or pieces. Maybe a few, but people who know more than me will always find an inperfection in what I think is perfect. To me all finds are perfect, does not matter who finds them. Thats how nature left them for us to find, can't change that. Happy hunting spring is almost here!!! Got 5 more inches of dang snow last night
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Joe Roy, if you could keep that stuff out your way. We get a little taste of warmup here and then we get more snow piled on in NE Ohio. As by coincidence we also got pelted with 5 more inches yesterday. Oh how I yearn to see the ground.
As for the restoration I am still up in the air as to whether to pursue it or not. I might try one point to see if I can make it look decent. But will not repair everything that has a chip. I have seen Gomer's work Turkeytail and it is legendary from what I have seen of the before and after photo's, I have a small Big Sandy that has some minor damage that I might try to see how it comes out. But the internal debate is still on for now.
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I know how you feel there Bill, had snow on the ground here most of the last two months. Only place to hunt is creeks and rivers as snow melts, hopefully this will be our last winter blast
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I have been doing museum quality restorations of arrowheads for about 10 years now. Mostly for my my own collection but also for fellow collectors and sellers. I spend a lot of time and effort to make sure the restored area is clean and represents the lithic material. I use no paint, I mix the sculpting material to match the broken area...the color and texture goes all the way through. A professional restoration takes nothing away from an artifact. You might be interested to know that almost 85% of the ancient artifacts in museums have been restored in some way. The same goes for fine paintings. I document each restoration with before and after photos to insure that no one will be fooled or deceived. That's not the reason I do this.
Many points are broken or nicked by plow blades and other tilling machines, or dropped and chipped by mishandling. Those events have nothing to do with the originality or period history of the artifact. I agree that things such as impact fractures and ancient fractures with matching patina should probably be left alone.
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