2 Mill stones

[jihunter]

Found theses two millstones in the marsh on James island SC just outside Charleston. They were located between between two of the abandoned pre-civil war houses in the marsh. Auctioneer said in 34 yrs hes only had 1 come to auction and its was from a yard downtown that the owner had bought it and shipped it in. He siad hes never heard of anyone finding them around here. Musem guy also said hes never heard of them being found around chas.
Sounds from my research that they were not massed produced in the states but usually brought in by ship from carribean or Europe and usually by wealthy folks.
They were even more amazed that I found two in the same spot.

aAny ideas on period, worth

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Minelab PRO-FIND 35 Waterproof Pinpointer Metal Detector for Experts with Tone ID & Adjustable Sensitivity - Grab it through Amazon!

[screwynewy]

Awesome find. Not something you see posted everyday. People actually pay good money for those to use as yard art. Hope you didn't have to carry them far. They are really heavy.

 

[beez0404]

Howdy!...............I am definitely not an expert with regard to millstones. You know I am sure that they were used in grist mills and came in matched pairs. Generally there would be a large one that lay flat and the smaller one would roll on the larger one crushing the wheat or whatever they were grinding up. I have seen these at a number of antique shops and auctions. The size you have I have seen sell for $150.00 and up. I believe the manufacturer is important and plays a large role in determining the price. Hope that's a little bit helpful.

 

[vpnavy]

Great finds! Thanks for sharing...

 

[bulrush]

Grindtones were actually mass-produced in Grindestone City, Michigan. See tip of Michigan's thumb, eastern side. https://maps.google.com/?ll=44.052989,-82.902575&spn=0.019524,0.033088&t=h&z=15

I visited there. It was a big grindstone production area. I'm not saying these got far out of Michigan though, they were big and heavy.

 

[terpfan]

I love grindstones, what a great discovery you made! Could you tell us how they were found and how you were able to move them?

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

Originals sell for big bucks by me. Great find! I have one I found that was just too big for me to move alone. Hopefully it's where I left it, because I am planning on lugging it out this year.

 

[Gaspipe]

I usually like to see metal detecting finds but I gotta say those are beautiful! I would guess that they would have significant value especially since they aren't huge and could be used for many creative projects or just to display. Awesome