Grooved Hammer

[Charl]

With the recent hammer threads in mind. Purchased at a hobby shop in late 50's. The shop was a major supplier of southern New England relics to what would become the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology at Brown University. Bought local points there at times as well, and this probably isn't out of place in Ma. or RI, but can't be 100% certain this is local, so if you recognize this as something from a different region, let me know. At any rate, a decent grooved hammer with usage wear and nice style.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

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

[GatorBoy]

That looks like an extremely worn and used up three quarter groove raised ridge axe.. Possibly used as a maul at the end of its life

 

[NC field hunter]

As Gator pointed out, it's a raised ridge. I've always associated raised ridge with the south.

 

[Charl]

Thanks, guys. We do have raised ridged here as well, had a full groove raised ridge from RI, but not common. Does seem like an odd way to place the 3/4 groove, don't see that up here to my knowledge. Usually the groove ends on the side of a 3/4 groove axe. I have somewhere what is called a 1/2 groove axe, where the groove is positioned the same as this hammer, and have seen them referred to as 1/2 groove axes, one face and both sides grooved, but with the back side convex and un grooved. But different terms in different regions.

One thing that strikes me is that this extremely grainy material would be horrific to grind and polish, terrible choice for an axe. Might have been a hammer to start, it imitates some axe forms with the ridges and poll, but just a terrible choice of material for an axe, and would need resharpening constantly judging by the looks and feel of it. So perhaps a grooved hammer to start.

This is the kind of material that is so coarse grained to begin with(that's not weathering, it's the rock itself), that even when pecked into shape, as this must have been, you can never actually see the pecking.

 

[monsterrack]

That is a fine artifact in more ways than one

 

[NC field hunter]

What is the purpose of the "raised ridge"? I've always assumed it was a "show off" on behalf of the craftsman. When the craftsman started this project, his blank was the same thickness as the ridge. That makes for an awful lot of seemingly unnecessary pecking and grinding. My best find (my favorite any way) is a raised ridge axe.









View attachment 1052583

 

[GatorBoy]

Looking at it it just seems obvious to me that it would slip from the haft much less frequently with ridges holding it in place.
I've watched these stone axes made and used and it turns out if you haft them with the sides fitting snugly on both sides of the shaft the impact splits the shaft fairly quickly ...so hafting them with only the top and the bottom tight in the halft with ridges to keep the axe from sliding forward and back in my mind would allow you to use the axe much longer before having to fix some part of the haft or shaft.
I seriously doubt it was for some shallow reason as to show off

 

[sandchip]

That is a fine artifact in more ways than one

I agree.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

I consider all of these of mine as having a raised ridge.

I think the one Charl posted is either a really worn out Axe utilized as a Hammer or an Axe Preform that was never finished.

 

[monsterrack]

This is JMO on the raised ridges, it would allow for a more stronger piece of wood to be used and more wrapping of gut or what ever they used. Like gator said it would be less slipping. The one thing that looks strange about the one posted is it looks to have a almost flat spot on one side and that may just be the photo, but if it is a flat side it could have been hafted like a adz, just a thought. All of you have some super fine axes.

 

[NC field hunter]

This is JMO on the raised ridges, it would allow for a more stronger piece of wood to be used and more wrapping of gut or what ever they used. Like gator said it would be less slipping. The one thing that looks strange about the one posted is it looks to have a almost flat spot on one side and that may just be the photo, but if it is a flat side it could have been hafted like a adz, just a thought. All of you have some super fine axes.

Most raised ridge axe heads I've ever seen had a flat side. Here is the back of mine. (Same piece that I posted above)

 

[monsterrack]

Most raised ridge axe heads I've ever seen had a flat side. Here is the back of mine. (Same piece that I posted above)

View attachment 1052845

I see what you are saying, but if you look at the one that Charl posted, the groove does not go around on the flat area like it does the rest of the stone. That makes me think it could have been hafted different than most axe, which would make it a rare find for sure, because you don't see a lot of tool's like a maul that could have been hafted like a adz or hafted different than what we see all the time. This is JMO on how it looks to me, I see your flat spot but your groove goes all the way around. Tools I think were hafted in all manner of ways, as collectors we make mistakes when we think in modern day style, because we use modern tools our brain gives us a mental photo to go from and even the experts do this. I know they have found some tools with hafting still in place, but what I'm saying is like the way someone use a paint brush may be different than the way I hold and use one. JMO all the books on the way things were hafted, makes us think they were like that all over, but there was no set standard for that. Each group did things the way their ancestors did, until someone showed them a better way , just for example the tribes around where Larson is from hafted their knife blades totally different than other examples that I have seen.

 

[GatorBoy]

That's what makes it a three quarter groove

 

[Charl]

The reason I felt it may not have been an axe originally is because the huge grain and crystal size, as seen best in the closeup of the poll, would make it a nightmare to grind to a sharp edge. That isn't weathering of the rock, but the actual grain of the rock. As mentioned, it's the type of rock that doesn't allow one to see pecking because any pecking is invisible within such a grainy, crystalline rock. My point being the result will be a bit that might have to be resharpened every single time one used the axe for any job. But, not impossible, and it's certainly an axe form in style.

I was mostly wondering if anyone recognized it as a common form of grooved hammer in their own region, since I cannot be certain it has a local provenance.

 

[pickaway]

Cool piece...