Latest from Napa

[tomf]

A scraper and a three points.

All obsidian.


Little knife blade or drill (it's got a bevelled tip).





This point has lost it's tip. Shame.

[tomf]

Nice little scraper.







Nice little point.





That's all.

[willjo]

Always look at your post and like what I see but they are not like points in my area and don't always recognize them but they are always amazing.

[flintguy]

Feel the same. Always look and always confused that they don't look like any style of point I've ever seen.

[tomf]

It's the same for me looking at artifacts from other areas. I still find them fascinating. There are differences, but still plenty I recognize. The stuff you find is always top notch and easy to admire. We all like good workmanship.

Like anywhere else, I think the artifacts from this part of the north coast range (California) have their own style. Few of the ones I find are conventionally stemmed which might look strange to those used to classic shapes. I dunno.

[Hal Gorges]

I always look forward to that vineyard stuff, love it, and I feel like I have actually been there, does that sound crazy? Anyway, I noticed the leaf has an older patina, is it an older point or buried in a different matrix, or different grade obsidian, etc.?

[tomf]

I've started holding back on the accompanying beauty shots as there were getting more likes than the finds.

There is a big range in patina on the obsidian I find. Factors involved; age, exposure, type of obsidian. Can't say which makes the difference.
Tempting to see the heaviest patinas as the oldest when they are found alongside shiny ones. Often I find old pieces with heavy patina reworked to reveal fresh stuff underneath.

I have also found things which I believe to be Mid Archaic (over 2000 y/o) that look like they were made yesterday.

In the end it's a subject I think a lot about but still can't unravel.

[gregszybala]

A good day, the last blade is a beauty.

[tomf]

Thanks, Greg.

[UpNorth]

Really like the obsidian, very nice finds......your gonna get a lot of them, out of that vineyard.... keep posting them!👍

[redrocks]

Nice!!!! Tom. They're all cool finds. But I'll take the Tear drop point!

[tomf]

Thanks, Red. It's a sweet little point and good find.

[south fork]

I like the last photo of the Coastal Contracting Stem point . The obsidian looks to be from a different source .

[tomf]

I'm always listening when you call a type on one of my finds. I can't find 'Coastal Contracting Stem' in Overstreet or PPnet. Maybe it's in Justice. Would love to know more.

Types in Overstreet this one is a little like are; Ano Nuevo, McKee Uniface (though it's not uniface), Houx and some of the Lake Mohave ones. Ano Nuevo is about 100 miles away so it's a possibility (though very doubtful for other reasons) and as Houx is known in this area that's more likely.

There are a least six different obsidians sourced locally. They range from the slick jet black stuff from St Helena to the grey sugary one from Clear Lake.
I haven't yet figured out exactly which is which but it's a big ambition to do so.

[SurfaceHunter]

Beautiful finds

[tomf]

Thanks, SH.

[south fork]

Tom within the coastal contracting stem cluster are a lot of different types . Shape and where found is how I make my best guess . That obsidian point in my area would be in the Sierra Contracting Stem Cluster or The Great Basin stemmed cluster which are much older . Great Hobby

[SurfaceHunter]

Black ice Tom