✅ SOLVED Just a rock? (rock with deep pit)

[EricTheCat]

I will admit I believe this is just an unusual example of one of those rocks that develops a pit due to erosion in a stream. Anyone more experience want to share your thoughts?

I thought it better to ask than assuming I know better given it looks a little different than most of these I find. Main difference with this one is it appears slightly beveled around the pit and also has some interesting marks down the side as I'm hoping the 2nd pic shows. The rock is fairly flat and the only pits are the 2 on the top (one deep, one shallow).





Thank you for looking and happy hunting!

 

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[quito]

Looks like natural occurrences to me. The holes are awful rough, I doubt the holes were put there and used by native americans.

 

[EricTheCat]

Looks like natural occurrences to me. The holes are awful rough, I doubt the holes were put there and used by native americans.

Thanks quito. I appreciate the input. Yeah I thought it seemed kind of rough as well.

By the way, weather permitting I will be heading into South Dakota again this October for a rock collecting trip.

 

[quito]

Cool! We will be making a few trips ourselves. Wife wants to hit tepee canyon, and I wanna hit and explore more of the buffalo gap grasslands.
im just across the border and 1.5 miles north of I-90. Maybe stop by and talk rocks. You gonna hit the artifact auction at Lakeville on the 4th? They have lots of gems and minerals from South Dakota too.

 

[willjo]

We have rocks similar to yours made out of soapstone and the hole goes all the way through them and they were used for cooking stones. Is yours made out of soapstone.

 

[EricTheCat]

Nice. That might be fun to talk. 1.5 miles isn't too far off my path. I'll send some detail about the trip.

I do not plan to attend the auction, though it sounds very interesting. I'm not looking to make any purchases right now. It sounds like an amazing collection.

 

[EricTheCat]

We have rocks similar to yours made out of soapstone and the hole goes all the way through them and they were used for cooking stones. Is yours made out of soapstone.

Hi willjo,
I think it is basalt but I can't swear to that. The hole does not go all the way through, but it gets surprisingly close to the other side. Less than 1/4 inch.

 

[ToddsPoint]

I can see rings in the hole. It was drilled. Rings in holes don't form naturally. Gary

 

[Charl]

I can see rings in the hole. It was drilled. Rings in holes don't form naturally. Gary

I see them as well, and no, rings don't form naturally. Unless it was the mold of a fossil crinoid stem, which I'm not saying is the case....

 

[quito]

I saw the rings as well. The ridges looked to strong to me for them to be from drilling.
I also see what appears to be another spot that looks like a hole just not near as deep. Could be the same forces worked that too.

 

[Jon Stewart]

The rusty colored dent looks like an area where a concretion was formed and the other hole with the rings as mentioned looks like a crinoid pocket.

 

[gilmerman]

I have such a rock with a hole that goes all the way through. I was First Sgt of a Security Police Squadron, at Whiteman AFB, Knob Noster, MIssouri and we sent some troops from the squadron to Alaska on a Security exercise. It was a test about cold weather operations. The troops knew I collected artifacts. As they were living in tents and most the of the operation was outside digging two man fighting pits and maneuvering training. They brought me back everything they thought was an unusual rock. At end of the exercise they had collected several broken points, a couple of cores, other nice stream polished stones. One of them was the rock with the hole in it. I kept it and some others on my desk. I always felt it was a natural.

 

[EricTheCat]

Thanks everyone for your input. I am definitely still leaning toward natural causes for this formation. This one can stay in my collection of interesting pitted stones.

I will mark this solved. I really appreciate all the replies.
Cheers,
Eric