Ft Ancient Village Site-Scioto County Ohio

[The Grim Reaper]

Everything you see posted here will be a personal find with the exceptions of a few items given to me or a couple I purchased. So, 99.9% of what you see was found by me between the years of 1993 when I found my very first piece on this site and up until the present. The Ft Ancient Village site located here has been carbon dated from around 1000 to 1650 AD, but when it was excavated in the 30's and 40's lots of early Archaic and Paleo pieces were found in the deeper pits. I have found Bifurcate Points in Trash Middens so maybe they found them and made use of some of them again as well.

This site is located in Clay Township in Scioto county Ohio. It sets up on a large plateau that juts out into the river bottoms. The site used to be a lot larger at one time but they removed a lot of it to obtain gravel and fill when the built the new highway back in the mid 20's I believe so there are probably a lot of artifacts buried under Rt 23 at the Clay Overpass. This area is zoned commercial and has numerous businesses located there. The area that is still farmed is owned by a local attorney and off limits, but the long slopes leading down to the bottoms belongs to another person and he allows me to hunt it. I'd say 50 to 60% of what you see has came off that slope, which is a wooded area you basically have to crawl around on to find anything.

The artifacts found on sites like this is just astounding. You could literally fill up a 5 gallon bucket with Pottery within a couple of hours if you chose to. I usually only pick up Rim, Handle, or Decorated pieces now. The Points are all Triangles and some are nicely Serrated. Lots of Bone Tools, Beads of Bone and Shell, Fish Hooks, Deer Antler Arrow Points and Flakers, Drills, Pipes, Flutes, etc. You find a lots of broken and damaged pieces mostly because what we find is eroding from Trash Pits.

The first Pipe you see is by far my best find off the site and probably my best find ever. It has a mouth cut into the bottom so it's an Effigy and it is in pristine condition. It's made from a very fine grained Sandstone. The second Pipe is also an Effigy. It is a Phallic Effigy and that has been confirmed by several well known collectors.

Hope you enjoy the photos and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Treasure of Victoria Peak - Grab it through Amazon!

[sandchip]

Bone down this way stands about as good a chance as Williams (Jim Kelly) did after Han accused him of snooping around at night in Enter the Dragon.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[The Grim Reaper]

Steve always good to see your material. Banner worthy.

There are some different reasons bone on sites is preserved. A lot of it has to do with the right soil conditions but a major part comes from the amount of trash discarded (modern stuff in landfills doesn't break down either.) That changes the acidity and microbes in the soil, and leads to better preservation. Bone & shell tools that have been cleaned of meat and then been polished through use also preserve better than unused natural bone and shell that rot and then get buried.

An archaeologist that helped dig here for a couple of years before moving on another project in northern Ohio told me the large amount of Mussel Shell at this site really helps preserve the Bone artifacts. Like you said, it's changes the acidity of the soil to keep it from breaking down quickly.

 

[monsterrack]

Super collection from one site it is banner worthy !!!!!!!!

 

[Timbermusic27891]

Grim Reaper, thanks for your response.

I have never been lucky enough to find an area where I thought a trash pit existed. Then again some of the fields that I find artifacts in could have been a trash pile originally and were spread out across a broader area from the use of farm equipment cultivating for the lasts 100 years. Hard to know for sure?

I think my mind jumped to the conclusion of some kind of natural disaster covering up your area quickly to protect the artifacts because about 10 years ago I had an extreme amount of dirt moved on a farm of mine. I had a motor grader and pan cut the top off the crest of a hill and moved the dirt to the low side of the hill making it a level area on the low side to make it a suitable building site. We cut down at least 8 ft in some areas of the hill. Between 6 and 8 foot I found one arrowhead. What was baffling to me most of all there was what appeared to be small camp fire sites scattered about. There was not any rocks around an area that made it look like a fire site. What I am referring to is there was charred wood, small logs burned to cinders in small spots like there was little fires here and there throughout this area consisting of about 500 ft by 150 ft along this hill we had cut deep into. The fire pit looking areas were scattered here and there with no real looking rhyme or reason. There was different types of soil as we cut through the earth with the pan. The charred wood and arrowhead were found in the hard clay pan part of the soil. I saved some of the charcoal and maybe took some pictures with my phone but I would really have to look for them.

I always felt like whether the fires were man made or natural like from a lightening strike that some kind of natural disaster had to take place that moved the dirt quickly over the area protecting what was left of the fire which was charcoal looking black cinders now. If we build a fire in the yard today and put it out. Next year for the most part with exposure to the elements there would be very little sign that a fire was ever in that spot.

Maybe one of you all have an idea of how these small fire pits of charred wood ended up like this and became protected for apparently several hundred if not thousands of years?? Always been a mystery to me... Thanks in advance for your insight.

 

[jamey]

yea my vote is in.

 

[sandchip]

...Maybe one of you all have an idea of how these small fire pits of charred wood ended up like this and became protected for apparently several hundred if not thousands of years?? Always been a mystery to me... Thanks in advance for your insight.

I've seen those same features and wondered the same thing. Found a bird point in one and wondered that if it was used for cooking, would the fat in the animals dripping into the soil affect how well the fire pit might be preserved as opposed to us just burning limbs and stuff.

 

[tnmudman]

wow! that is probably the best collection by an individual i have ever seen all from the same site makes it even better .a real treat to be able to see thanks for sharing it

 

[The Grim Reaper]

wow! that is probably the best collection by an individual i have ever seen all from the same site makes it even better .a real treat to be able to see thanks for sharing it

Thank you.

 

[jamey]

yep,Grim has put his time in.

 

[Timbermusic27891]

The artifacts found on sites like this is just astounding. You could literally fill up a 5 gallon bucket with Pottery within a couple of hours if you chose to. I usually only pick up Rim, Handle, or Decorated pieces now. The Points are all Triangles and some are nicely Serrated. Lots of Bone Tools, Beads of Bone and Shell, Fish Hooks, Deer Antler Arrow Points and Flakers, Drills, Pipes, Flutes, etc.

Hope you enjoy the photos and if you have any questions feel free to ask.[/QUOTE]

In your 3rd and 6th pictures there are a few items that appear to look just like spurs from the leg of a wild turkey. Is that what they are? Thanks

Timbermusic

 

[The Grim Reaper]

The artifacts found on sites like this is just astounding. You could literally fill up a 5 gallon bucket with Pottery within a couple of hours if you chose to. I usually only pick up Rim, Handle, or Decorated pieces now. The Points are all Triangles and some are nicely Serrated. Lots of Bone Tools, Beads of Bone and Shell, Fish Hooks, Deer Antler Arrow Points and Flakers, Drills, Pipes, Flutes, etc.

Hope you enjoy the photos and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

In your 3rd and 6th pictures there are a few items that appear to look just like spurs from the leg of a wild turkey. Is that what they are? Thanks

Timbermusic[/QUOTE]

Yes,that is exactly what they are. We find a bunch of them, but I have only seen a couple that looked to have been modified or used for something. I still tray up the nicer ones just because they are cool and great conversation starters at shows.

 

[unclemac]

it looks like you found one of everything, the only thing you are missing is a genuine thunderbird. that flute is just plain riduculous...so personal and so wonderful. do you find many items for personal adornment? larson used to find these really great orange agate ear pendulums...how did these folk pretty themselves up?

 

[Timbermusic27891]

In your 3rd and 6th pictures there are a few items that appear to look just like spurs from the leg of a wild turkey. Is that what they are? Thanks

Timbermusic

Yes,that is exactly what they are. We find a bunch of them, but I have only seen a couple that looked to have been modified or used for something. I still tray up the nicer ones just because they are cool and great conversation starters at shows.[/QUOTE]

IMO, the turkey leg spurs could possibly have been tied to a stick and then possibly dipped in an ink solution for applying tattoo's on their body as they tapped the point into the skin very rapidly. It's amazing those spurs could survive so long like they have. Just an amazing collection of artifacts. Every time it rains I bet you can't wait to get to that hill side

 

[tnmudman]

on the fifth frame down about center right in the frame is that a turkey spur so much cool stuff there i saw what looked like a madison in there are those found that far north may be called something else there anyway it is a lot there to look at thanks

 

[tnmudman]

sorry just saw were someone had asked about the turkey spurs

 

[The Grim Reaper]

on the fifth frame down about center right in the frame is that a turkey spur so much cool stuff there i saw what looked like a madison in there are those found that far north may be called something else there anyway it is a lot there to look at thanks

Yes, there are several Turkey Spurs in those frames as I explained above. We find lots of Madisons in my area as well as the Hamilton and Ft Ancient Triangle types.

 

[scotto]

Never tire at looking at your collection Steve.

Some beautiful pieces.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Never tire at looking at your collection Steve.

Some beautiful pieces.

Thank you.

 

[catherine1]

Nice collection Steve.....been awhile since I seen you neighbor. Take care.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Thanks Scott and Keith. I appreciate the kind words.