Age of Ax Heads

[toe2short]

I read that you can't tell the age of an Ax head by the shape or type.I also read , I think it was on this site, that the depth you found it would more accurately tell the age of the Ax head. I found a hammer hatchet and an Ax head in the same spot. They were both very close to the surface. They looked to be a hundred years old. The style appears to be Rockaway. I am sorry I had to start a new post, I couldn't find the other Ax head posts. /Users/jamesmclaughlin/Desktop/IMG_0881.JPG

 

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[luvsdux]

Having dug numerous axe heads from old logging camps and farmsteads that were in the neighborhood of 75 - 100 years old by the known history of when activity was current, I would think the two you show should be MUCH more rusted unless the area they were found in was quite protected. Unless you've cleaned them up a bit?
luvsdux

 

[toe2short]

Hi luvsdux, You,re right I cleaned them up. I am going to keep them. I was just wondering if there is a way to tell the age on them. They had a lot of rust on them. I also found a couple of shotgun shells in the same area. They are 1895-1930s paper shell, I looked them up.

 

[luvsdux]

Items that can be traced to a time frame like the shotgun shells can be a big help in trying to determine the approximate age of other artifacts. I once did an internet search on the history of nails, especially square nails for that purpose. If square nails are common in an area you can probably be sure that whatever had been built there was prior to around 1900. Axe heads and other iron artifacts are fun to find, but they're heavy to bring home and what to do with them once there, can be problematical if you find many of them.
luvsdux