Im speechless

[mainejman]

I'm speechless

Just pulled this out of the ground about twenty minutes ago pulled over to send.Its either ivory or antler I'm guessing.

 

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[pippinwhitepaws]

a fantastic find...thank you for showing us...i'd like to see some pics of the site itself...if that is possible?

 

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[Charl]

Well, here is a small piece of mammoth ivory from Florida. It's Pleistocene in age, so it could be tens of thousands up to one million years old. So I imagine walrus ivory would not turn dark like bone does with age, either, perhaps. If this piece seen here is old ivory, which it is, I think your point might be as well. And I do know 3 inches of thin ivory will feel very lightweight for its size.

 

[blueracer]

BANNER !

 

[Tnmountains]

Mammoth ivory will have a grain to it not unlike a fine wood.

See the late archaic stone projectile they say similar styles have been found made of bone.

http://www.nps.gov/acad/forteachers/upload/artifactcatalogue.pdf

I am guessing bone. Be neat if you could have someone look at it.

 

[GatorBoy]

I have a piece I found right here.
The minerals where it came to rest have alot to do with its color as you can see.







The Sperm whales teeth were a source of ivory in that region ..I would look into that also.

 

[mainejman]

Well at this point I don't know.To me I find it almost impossible for bone to stay intact without any deteriation or stain.ing.I've found bone numerous times.Its always porous and brittle.I'm leaning towards ivory but having a hard time believing I could find something that unique .Thanks for your inputs

 

[naturegirl]

Believe it! and enjoy it.... anything can happen to anybody, anywhere.

 

[mainejman]

Thanks.This find had it's consequences.Man I got into some raging poison ivy.But I just scratch and smile.Helluva reminder....

 

[GatorBoy]

If you post your piece in the fossil forum you may get some good info.

 

[mainejman]

Well I sent a picture to David Sanger PhD professor emeritus of anthropology and climate change institute university of Maine.Lets just call him Dave.Anyways Dave says.......bone or antler barbe spearpoint or harpoon.He wasn't all that informative but it's a start.check out his credentials .David Sanger PhD on line.

 

[bci101tractors]

Daves got some cred...
Nice find Mainejman,
Bone can be funny, a lot of variables and scenarios. Any chance it could have been under water??
Please keep us posted as to what you find out. That point is nice, he may not be informative until he gets to know you. These guys get bombarded with a lot. I really doubt they are that busy, but don't take it personal.
Good luck, Steve

Well I sent a picture to David Sanger PhD professor emeritus of anthropology and climate change institute university of Maine.Lets just call him Dave.Anyways Dave says.......bone or antler barbe spearpoint or harpoon.He wasn't all that informative but it's a start.check out his credentials .David Sanger PhD on line.

 

[mainejman]

Well I'm gathering all the information I can get.I need better pictures and I think the authenticator needs to have it in hand...

 

[GatorBoy]

I agree.
I also have a feeling salt water may have had some effect on it.
Salt anyway.

 

[mainejman]

Thanks tractors I suppose at one time it could have been.Don't think so.My way of thinking is.The things thousands of years old.why is it showing no deterioration.If the grounds the cause where are all the rest of the bonesThere should be thousands of animal bones in this area.I've found maybe 3or4 and they looked like what you would expect.Grey,brittle,porous and crumbly.

 

[chase2]

Mainejman, I understand your perplexity concerning why no deterioration. But many factors would be in play for it to preserve your artifact. The brittle bone you find even though buried were exposed to the sun and air and the elements. The artifact you found most likely never saw the light of day. it could have been encased in a fatty lard of an animal buried and put in a airtight environment. The ground that encased it was never dry and kept it moist, thus preserving it. It is truly a find that would be a crown jewel of any collection. It sounds like you will have your answers soon, please let us know, as well as all places you have shared this artifact.

Thanks for letting us be apart of your find!

 

[Charl]

Just to clarify, I was not suggesting mammoth ivory. Just showing the color on that piece I did show. If it were ivory, it would be walrus ivory, which the Maritime Archaic did utilize for tools.

http://www.fws.gov/lab/ivory_natural.php

 

[mainejman]

Well chase2 I suppose you're right thanks for your input.Eventually I hope to get it into the hands of an archeologist.

 

[mainejman]

Well Charl i've looked at my share of bone and ivory the last few days.Both had examples that looked like mine.I still wouldn't bet the farm on either one.But folks seem to be leaning towards bone.I'm still waiting on some more responses from some more archeologists....This Sanger guy wasn't very forth coming with the info.He didn't even mention Maine maritime and that's his specialty .

 

[Charl]

Yeah, if it were buried in a deoxygenated environment, like a peat bog, it could emerge in perfect shape. The closer to such conditions the better the bone or antler will survive....

it's possible Sanger was puzzled by the condition and did not want to get into that area, specialist or not.

 

[mainejman]

Well we will see.Just feel fortunate to have found such a rare artifact.I'm gonna be awhile topping this one.The only way will be Paleo I'm guessing.