Indian made silver bracelets?

[ModernMiner]

So back in 2007 I dug two silver bracelets at a property that was part of an earlier 1799 plantation property.
They were dug about 100 yards apart. My detecting buddy at the time dug a third one.
A light bulb went off this week that perhaps they could be Indian made?
On this same property there is a creek where I’ve dug a lot of CW relics and a few arrowheads in the past. I ran into a guy one day that was searching for arrowheads by that creek. He told me that across the road was a hill that was known as “Indian Hill” because of all the arrowheads that have been found there. I also found a large square stone about 5” across that had different sized cupped out areas on each side. I was told it was used for grinding things.

Anyways, my question to you is:

Could these silver bracelets have been made by Indians?

There are no marking inside, just the design you see on the outside.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. I know nothing about Indian artifacts.

Thanks,
MM

 

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[ModernMiner]

So back in 2007 I dug two silver bracelets at a property that was part of an earlier 1799 plantation property.
They were dug about 100 yards apart. My detecting buddy at the time dug a third one.
A light bulb went off this week that perhaps they could be Indian made?
On this same property there is a creek where I’ve dug a lot of CW relics and a few arrowheads in the past. I ran into a guy one day that was searching for arrowheads by that creek. He told me that across the road was a hill that was known as “Indian Hill” because of all the arrowheads that have been found there. I also found a large square stone about 5” across that had different sized cupped out areas on each side. I was told it was used for grinding things.

Anyways, my question to you is:

Could these silver bracelets have been made by Indians?

There are no marking inside, just the design you see on the outside.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. I know nothing about Indian artifacts.

Thanks,
MM

Here’s the stone I mentioned above.
Indian artifact?

 

[newnan man]

I have no clue other than the Shawnee in Ohio wore silver jewelry and apparently had a lot of it. No one has ever found their source of silver. They were a Historic tribe that interacted and fought the European settlers in the Ohio River Valley.

 

[pepperj]

So back in 2007 I dug two silver bracelets at a property that was part of an earlier 1799 plantation property.
They were dug about 100 yards apart. My detecting buddy at the time dug a third one.
A light bulb went off this week that perhaps they could be Indian made?
On this same property there is a creek where I’ve dug a lot of CW relics and a few arrowheads in the past. I ran into a guy one day that was searching for arrowheads by that creek. He told me that across the road was a hill that was known as “Indian Hill” because of all the arrowheads that have been found there. I also found a large square stone about 5” across that had different sized cupped out areas on each side. I was told it was used for grinding things.

Anyways, my question to you is:

Could these silver bracelets have been made by Indians?

There are no marking inside, just the design you see on the outside.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. I know nothing about Indian artifacts.

Thanks,
MM

Those are really nice couple of silver bangles/bracelets. Well dug for sure.
Instead of made by Indians, I wonder if Trade Silver would be more fitting.

 

[ModernMiner]

Those are really nice couple of silver bangles/bracelets. Well dug for sure.
Instead of made by Indians, I wonder if Trade Silver would be more fitting.

Now that’s something I never thought of. That could very well be.
Thanks,
MM

 

[tamrock]

Finding 3 leads me to believe they're pieces of stacking bangle bracelet. How old they are I can't say.

 

[RGINN]

Cool finds. I think they're probably trade items. Most of the 'silver' trade items where I came from aren't really silver at all, but what's called German silver.

 

[ModernMiner]

Cool finds. I think they're probably trade items. Most of the 'silver' trade items where I came from aren't really silver at all, but what's called German silver.

Anyone want to “trade” for a gold coin or CSA buckle? Anyone? 🤪

 

[pickaway]

Some nice finds, congrats...

 

[dognose]

I agree that the bracelets were most likely mid to late historic items.

It's possible that they were made by native Americans, it's difficult to impossible to know 100% for sure.

If they were made by native Americans, the silver could have been melted silver coins, poured and hammered into shape and polished. Analyzing the material may yield more clues or deepen the mystery.

I found this hammered and drilled coin May 28, 1990 on a site in southwestern Marion County Indiana. While the coin was not Native American made, its re-use into an ornamental item to dangle from some type of clothing was. I theorize it was a three-cent silver 1851-1873 mint.

The item may have been used on something like this. See the dangles at the bottom.

 

[ARC]

I agree that the bracelets were most likely mid to late historic items.

It's possible that they were made by native Americans, it's difficult to impossible to know 100% for sure.

If they were made by native Americans, the silver could have been melted silver coins, poured and hammered into shape and polished. Analyzing the material may yield more clues or deepen the mystery.

I found this hammered and drilled coin May 28, 1990 on a site in southwestern Marion County Indiana. While the coin was not Native American made, its re-use into an ornamental item to dangle from some type of clothing was. I theorize it was a three-cent silver 1851-1873 mint.
View attachment 2121690
The item may have been used on something like this. See the dangles at the bottom.
View attachment 2121693

Dognose... where did you cite the second breastplate picture from ?
Was there any information available on this piece / culture ?
Who, what tribe... where etc ?

 

[tamrock]

I agree that the bracelets were most likely mid to late historic items.

It's possible that they were made by native Americans, it's difficult to impossible to know 100% for sure.

If they were made by native Americans, the silver could have been melted silver coins, poured and hammered into shape and polished. Analyzing the material may yield more clues or deepen the mystery.

I found this hammered and drilled coin May 28, 1990 on a site in southwestern Marion County Indiana. While the coin was not Native American made, its re-use into an ornamental item to dangle from some type of clothing was. I theorize it was a three-cent silver 1851-1873 mint.
View attachment 2121690
The item may have been used on something like this. See the dangles at the bottom.
View attachment 2121693

This information I read in a book titled Thirty-one Years in the Plains and mountains. The author was describing trade with the Native American and White traders where they would engage in a bidding frenzy with the natives, that would start with something like one Buffalo hide for two silver half dollars. Then the natives would compete and raise the offers to as high as 5 Buffalo hides for the just one silver half dollar. The author was describing how he felt the hide traders were taking advantage of the native Americans, due to their lack of monetary interest.

 

[ModernMiner]

Thanks to everyone for the input. Like always, I always learn something new here on Tnet. Great stuff!
-MM-

 

[tamrock]

Thanks to everyone for the input. Like always, I always learn something new here on Tnet. Great stuff!
-MM-

Your welcome. Now what's the story behind that item that looks like a bent up gold ring?

 

[ModernMiner]

Your welcome. Now what's the story behind that item that looks like a bent up gold ring?

That was a smashed up flat gold bracelet. I found that the same day but not with those bracelets. I worked 1/4 mile down the road from that 190 acre property back then. The owner lived in Florida and gave me permission to hunt there whenever I wanted to. I detected that place for about 10 years and found all kinds of CW relics, arrowheads, jewelry, coins, early (1940’s) toys, etc. I found areas where CW troops had camped too. My oldest coin there was a 1775 one reale Spanish silver. It was a super cool place with open areas, woods, hills, streams, gravesites, etc.
It later got logged, and then sold. It is all new houses now and unrecognizable.
Sad.

 

[dognose]

Dognose... where did you cite the second breastplate picture from ?
Was there any information available on this piece / culture ?
Who, what tribe... where etc ?

I cant recall exactly where the photo was from.

I found the photo in the 90s, it's not meant to be a literal example of what the hammered coin was attached too, especially here in Indiana.

More likely a dress like garment than a breastplate. I had a photo of such a dress also at one time - back in the 90s.

 

[dognose]

Here is a better photo of the breastplate and another of Mary Martin, Indian, three-quarter length portrait, seated. - Library of Congress

Mary Martin, Indian, three-quarter length portrait, seated

 

[RGINN]

This information I read in a book titled Thirty-one Years in the Plains and mountains. The author was describing trade with the Native American and White traders where they would engage in a bidding frenzy with the natives, that would start with something like one Buffalo hide for two silver half dollars. Then the natives would compete and raise the offers to as high as 5 Buffalo hides for the just one silver half dollar. The author was describing how he felt the hide traders were taking advantage of the native Americans, due to their lack of monetary interest.

I would probably prefer trading hides for guns and ammo. Whiskey got the hides coming in later on. However about those silver dollars, in 1832 the Kiowas attacked some traders in the Texas Panhandle. The traders were carrying about 10 grand in Mexican silver dollars and had to abandon them in order to escape with their lives. The Kiowas picked up some of them and pounded them in to conchos. I was shown some of those a few years back that were passed down. The Comanches saw these dollars and told the Kiowas 'Fools, that's Tah-Koy money. You can like go to Target or Walmart and buy all kinds of things with that.' The Kiowas went back and poked around and dug up a lot more the traders had buried. Some of that's been found, and some of that's still out there.