bone awl thread

[larson1951]

post your awl type tools here please, maybe we can get a good thread going like thirty7 did with the knives

here are a few frames showing the various types of Arikara/Mandan bone awls
the awls with the round pulley on the end were made from deer or elk leg bones
one bone would make 2 awls which started out about 6 inches long and were sharpened over and over until they became so short that they were used up
i will post some images of these at the various stages of construction soon
larson

 

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[SouthernGirl]

these just blow my mind thanks so much for sharing with us

 

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[larson1951]

thanks southern girl,
do you have any bone pieces ?
larson1951

 

[larson1951]

harry,
i still can't figure out why the florida bone gets that color
do you have an opinion on this ?
lars

 

[Harry Pristis]

harry,
i still can't figure out why the florida bone gets that color
do you have an opinion on this ?
lars

The bone is stained with tannins. Tannins are produced from decomposing vegetation in the swamps which drain into the rivers during the rainy season.

 

[larson1951]

thank you Harry
that makes a lot of sense
i have wondered about that for a long time
that is really a nice tool you posted
lars

 

[Neogeo]

Yep Tannins...Aka..creek stain as well....Great stuff everyone....LOVE IT!!!!

 

[larson1951]

hey thanks there mr drill finder, cat lover
lars

 

[The Grim Reaper]

I finally got around to taking some pictures of my Bone Awls. I don't have near as many as Lars does (but then, who does? lol)

These are the best ones I have and they are all from one site, the same site where the Pipes came from. Some are surface found and some are from back when we were digging trash pits.

The first picture is what are referred to as Trigger Bone Awls and are made sharpening the ends of the Deer Ulna Bone. I have a bunch of just the bases of these with the tips gone.

The next 4 pictures show a really nice Bone Chisel in the center and 2 nice Bone Awls beside it with a bunch of Splinter Bone Awls along the bottom. Also a couple of close ups of the Bone Chisel. This was found in 2 pieces in a trash pit. I found one part(I think the base) and a buddy found the other in the hole after I left and he gave me his piece to make it whole.

The fifth picture shows a Bone in the center made from a Raccoon Penis Bone and the other are various types of bone. The 2 to either side of it are very highly polished.

These next two are a Bone Hair Pin on the left and a Bone Needle on the right. the Needle is curved and probably made from a Deer Rib Bone.

The last picture is 2 crude looking Bone Awls but both have nicely polished tips.

 

[*Molly*]

Great lookin bone awls everyone. Hopefully I'll be able to post mine soon.
Nice to see bone tools.
Thanks for sharin guys..

Molly.

 

[larson1951]

more nice stuff you guys

SRV,
those things you call trigger awls are laying all over in my field
i have never kept any, i think i will now
also would you be so kind as to look at my frames and tell me if i have any hair pins ?
lars

 

[larson1951]

SRV,
do you see any hair pins in my frames ?
thanks, steve

 

[The Grim Reaper]

I see quite a few that might be Hair Pins. All the long skinny ones that are very highly polished all over could be Hair Pins. The one with the lines engraved could be one too.

 

[flintdigger]

Bone artifacts do not hold up well in the ground around here, but I have a few here are some of the better ones.

 

[larson1951]

those are nice
i see those kinds of bone quite a bit in my field but they are not made into awls or such

what animal do they come from ?
i am very curious about this
are they called 'trigger awls'
steve

 

[flintdigger]

I am not sure what type of animal they came from but they were found in a campsite that produces some pretty good artifacts. The longest one at the top is about 4 inches long and the shorter ones are bettween 2 3/4 to 2 inches long.

 

[SouthernGirl]

thanks southern girl,
do you have any bone pieces ?
larson1951

No I sure don't I think that here in Alabama the moisture gets them. I would love to find the kinds of things that you do.

 

[flintdigger]

Those are some really nice bone artifact's. Here in my part of Texas the soil we have will not preserve bone very well. The few that I have were dug and were fairly deep 2-3 ft. Finding them is far and few bettween. That is a great collection. I really like bone artifacts they are just hard to find and you don't find many well preserved ones.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

those are nice
i see those kinds of bone quite a bit in my field but they are not made into awls or such

what animal do they come from ?
i am very curious about this
are they called 'trigger awls'
steve

Steve, yes they are called Trigger Awls and they are made from Deer Ulna Bones. We also find a bunch of these that have never been worked or used.

Here's a few more I just recently acquired. The long well made piece is more than likely a Hair Pin.

 

[flintdigger]

Nice items there SRV. I like the drilled teeth I have found a good many different kinds of teeth but never a drilled one, and that hair pin is great by the way have you ever measured it if so how long is it ? That is a nice piece.

 

[Tnmountains]

Thanks for sharing the bone tools everyone. I have very few. Kinda rare surface finds here. Ineed to find a good swamp site that preserves everything.