Quartz and the piedmont

[rls2040]

I have been reading what is called an" Occasional Paper" written on behalf of the GDOT, this one is entitled An Overview and Analysis of the Middle Archaic in Georgia.i printed mine of a internet site and got its spiral bound. On page 51, last paragraph "Archaeologists have been able to gain considerable insight into Middle Archaic societies by studying how lithic raw materials were procured and selected,how procurement strategies changed over time,how tool production and lithic reduction techniques were organized,and how tools and raw materials were curated and discarded. Blanton(1983,1984), for instance ,studied Morrow Mountain raw material availability and preferences in the Piedmont,Fall Zone,and Coastal Plain regions of South Carolina.He provided a detailed description of the geological distribution of lithic resources in these regions,including the abundance of vein Quartz and metavolcanic rocks such as rhyolite and argillite in the Piedmont and marine chert in the Coastal Plain.Blanton discussed evidence demonstrating how raw material procurement strategies had become increasingly localized over time, such by Middle Archaic , lithic assemblages contained minimal amounts or no non-local raw materials.He also noted that in the Piedmont region , tools were not curated and showed signs of expedient manufacture." On page 52 , it reads, Increased reliance on locally available Quartz ---------------these papers are great,maps showing geo regions, maps showing every county in Georgia showing how many points were found in each one so far,etc. if you are interested in these type papers contact, The Georgia Department of Transportation(DOT) Occasional Papers in Cultural Resource Management------

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[ptsofnc]

Living in piedmont NC, I (and many other collectors) know that quartz/quartzite was heavily used. What we find may look like random, natural, unused rocks, but knowing the context where we found these "rocks" offers convincing evidence that much of this stone was used in some way. Thanks for your post.

 

[Tony in SC]

Very interesting. Do you still have the web site? Tony

 

[dlos]

Piedmont of NC has yielded some incredible quartz finds over the years. Quality of crystal varies and the finer the quality, the finer the tool/points made from it. Always enjoy picking up a crystal quartz piece that resembles ice!

 

[discoidal roller]

Very interesting. Do you still have the web site? Tony

I think this is it...

http://www.dot.ga.gov/Projects/prog...nts/Occasional Papers/Occasional_Paper_16.pdf

 

[rls2040]

Hey ptsofnc, you,are exactly right,I have lived and worked outside along the Fall Line,in middle Georgia for 67 years and yeah buddy do we have the Quartz . When this article says archaeologists don't know how raw material was chosen or who decided what tool to make ,who oversaw the whole process from raw to finished, The article says how it was curated,I had to look it up to be sure what was meant exactly, basically it means "man in charge" and during this period of geological history in the.Piedmont and along the Fall Line when it came to raw material procurement,reduction,use and how well a tool is made, no body was in charge! Quartz is so prevalent in this area and Quartz has many different properties,some brittle and not very durable,some clear and as hard as glass.During this time the native Americans lived in small bands and basically followed the food,always traveling light and moving often as they deplete the resources in their current area. Quartz is readily available ,no material any better close by,Quartz is fine,as needed they made tools on the go,if they bagged a buck,we need something sharp to cut and process the deer,since we travel so much we don't have any tools to speak of because they are heavy and we are few, Easy for most anyone to just pick up a rock and round here a good bet would be that it is either Quartz ,granite,quartzite,and make what we need,I don't care how it looks just need it to be efficient,easy on the hand because we are going to drop it right here when we are done with this deer , too easy to make another one as needed next time. I find a lot of Quartz objects, the ones I keep feel excellent ergonomically in the hand,working edge is sharp and it looks like a nothing until you hold it and fiddle with it,both hands cause some folks are left handed, if it is a tool your fiddling will reveal how it should be held, A depression for a thumb on top and finger protection grove on bottom,working face presents it self in the proper place, if it is a man made tool you will know more by holding it and in my opinion is the best way to validate a find as tool or just a rock. Sorry ,I got so wordy but I am very interested in ancient tools,etc...HH. rls2040

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[rls2040]

Tony in SC, I will get back with you on the website, soon. HH. rls2040

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[rls2040]

Tony, I just Googled,"occasional papers Georgia DOT" first one is the one I have but I see they have more,hmmmm,,,,HH rls2040

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[yakker]

I think I saw/read about the same thing- but in Maryland. The more sedentary they became- growing more crops and staying put in general, the more they relied on what was at hand, rather than relying on trade routes more frequented by hunter-gatherers. Very interesting stuff. Thanks for your post- I'm going to need to find a similar thing for Virginia and get more accustom to the local lithic variety (or lack thereof...) HH! Yakker

 

[Tony in SC]

I found it. It has lots of good stuff! Thanks for posting this. The history of Georgia and South Carolina should be about the same. A friend has a nice collection of quartz points, that he has been doing some research on. He has 8 points that look almost exactly alike. Six were found in SC and two were found across the river in GA. He thinks that they were made by the same man and that was his trade. Thanks, Tony

Tony, I just Googled,"occasional papers Georgia DOT" first one is the one I have but I see they have more,hmmmm,,,,HH rls2040

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[Tony in SC]

Thanks for the site. It will keep me busy for a while! Tony

I think this is it...

http://www.dot.ga.gov/Projects/programs/environment/resources/outreach/Documents/Occasional%20Papers/Occasional_Paper_16.pdf