Paleo knife?

[katana]

The pictures suggest that it is a sedimentary type rock ....which tend to be relatively soft ...when compared to flint etc.

Regards David

[Atlantia]

Sorry Rust,
looks natural to me. As David says, looks like a soft material.
If it was chert or flint then...
I'd still think it was a random shape.

[Rust Collector]

My pictures are lacking and I will try to get a better shot of the edge. It is also a river find so the edges are rounded a litttle but it cleary shows percusion and pressure flacking and the base is ground round where it would be held.

[David]

Originally Posted by Rust Collector

My pictures are lacking and I will try to get a better shot of the edge. It is also a river find so the edges are rounded a litttle but it cleary shows percusion and pressure flacking and the base is ground round where it would be held.

I think the point the others are trying to make is that this is not a suitable material for the type of tool you are hoping this is. Paleo man didn't hold any college degrees, but he had "street" smarts. Sedimentary rock would not be his mineral of choice for such a tool.

[spiral]

I must say on a purley factual level some stone age tools were of sedimentry rocks, I guess people on occasion used whatever was to hand.I agree the were not the tool or weapon of choice of course though.

But having seen many thousands of admitadly mostly mesolithic tools dug & itemsed, as well as having owned & studied the personal collection of an archaelogist that was aquired & dug from m 3 continents mostly between the world wars, I tottaly agree with evryone else this is a possibly frost & or certanly mechanichly damaged & water rolled stone, shaped by the forces of nature.

Many Victorian archaelogists fell for their charms as well, there often called Eoliths.

Some still believe in them. Ive even wanted to myself on one occasion.



spiral

[Atlantia]

Originally Posted by spiral

I must say on a purley factual level some stone age tools were of sedimentry rocks, I guess people on occasion used whatever was to hand.I agree the were not the tool or weapon of choice of course though.

But having seen many thousands of admitadly mostly mesolithic tools dug & itemsed, as well as having owned & studied the personal collection of an archaelogist that was aquired & dug from m 3 continents mostly between the world wars, I tottaly agree with evryone else this is a possibly frost & or certanly mechanichly damaged & water rolled stone, shaped by the forces of nature.

Many Victorian archaelogists fell for their charms as well, there often called Eoliths.

Some still believe in them. Ive even wanted to myself on one occasion.



spiral

Hi Jonathan

Axes and the like, I've seen (had) made from softer materials, greensand etc, but they're often ceremonial or status pieces.

Not knives though, unless it's something like Obsidian (and volcanic glass isn;t the same thing of course)
Although my experience (as that of most I guess) is based on the far more plentiful later stone tools, dating through to the EBA.
I've still got a box of flints somewhere, only a few that are still to hand:

[spiral]

I agree Gene, Ive never seen a sedimentry knife, I took the butchering comment to mean something heavier, but thats my error perhaps...

I am away for a couple of days but we must talk about flints sometime, they were my speciality & obsession for a long time. {I prefer the one on the left.}

Spiral