Stone tool ID

[Hydrophilic]

Found this on a friends ranch near the mouth of a creek. I have a really hard time believing it formed naturally this way...but I'm far from an expert. No idea what it could be. Maybe a woodworking tool? It sits completely flat on one end and comes to a perfect blunted point

 

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[sandchip]

Sorry, but I'd bet it's just more of Nature's wacky work.

 

[newnan man]

Neat shape but doesn't look man made. Just a rock.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Sorry, just natural erosion..... Better luck next time...

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Definitely natural and shows no signs of ever being altered by man.

 

[Hydrophilic]

Thanks for the responses - I'm still not convinced its natural, in the most respectful way of course. Found this in the soil above the high water line in a nice flat area. It fits my hand perfectly, the rock is dark, smooth, and polished where the hand meets it all the way around. Where my hand doesn't grip it, the rock is a different, lighter color. Also a red color only where my hand doesn't grip. There are slight grooves where my fingers grip. The notch at the top also fits my thumb perfectly and is that same darker, polished texture. Not to mention the symmetrical blunted point as pictured above. I did find some similar tools doing some research online. Also had some artifact hunters at the office tell me they thought it was a tool of some sort, but that's also just their opinion.

Other than your thoughts that its natural, feedback would help me better. How would you tell if its been pecked and polished? How do you know what types of stone tools to look for? That will help me hone in on stones on future hunts.

 

[arrow86]

If you google images of polished celts / axes you can see the unique look they have .... A lot of larger rocks will nicely fit in your hand and some may have been used for hammers etc. but as far as pecking / polish or man made marks on ur rocks I don't see them but sometimes pics don't always capture what you may see.

 

[monsterrack]

What they all said

 

[quito]

Amazing how well our hands can grip so many shapes and sizes. Maybe it was a little hand held pick. The pointy end does look a little beat up compared to the rest of it.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Just for comparison purposes, this is a Wood Working Tool. This is a Chisel made from Black Diorite, which is a very dense stone. You can clearly see this was shaped by the hand of man and it also has a very nice bit end which you would need for it to be used as a Wood Working Tool. It is battered on the Poll end from where it was pounded on with a Mallet or Hammerstone.

 

[arrow86]

Sweet chisel grim ^

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Sweet chisel grim ^

Thanks. One of my favorite finds.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Thanks for the responses - I'm still not convinced its natural, in the most respectful way of course. Found this in the soil above the high water line in a nice flat area. It fits my hand perfectly, the rock is dark, smooth, and polished where the hand meets it all the way around. Where my hand doesn't grip it, the rock is a different, lighter color. Also a red color only where my hand doesn't grip. There are slight grooves where my fingers grip. The notch at the top also fits my thumb perfectly and is that same darker, polished texture. Not to mention the symmetrical blunted point as pictured above. I did find some similar tools doing some research online. Also had some artifact hunters at the office tell me they thought it was a tool of some sort, but that's also just their opinion.

Other than your thoughts that its natural, feedback would help me better. How would you tell if its been pecked and polished? How do you know what types of stone tools to look for? That will help me hone in on stones on future hunts.

First thing you DON'T DO is test to see how a stone fits in your hand, 99.99% of natural rocks will fit in your hand.





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[arrow86]

First thing you DON'T DO is test to see how a stone fits in your hand, 99.99% of natural rocks will fit in your hand.

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Could this maybe be because that's what our hands were designed to do..... Like you said 99% of rocks if turned enough times will fit nicely in your hand. Also if you have to talk yourself into believing it's something chances are it's not

 

[Tpmetal]

I know everyone is saying here its natural, but what unnatural is where its polished like he says. The polished areas end abruptly and are only where a hand could grip, thats the really odd part and worth further investigating for sure in my mind.

 

[Hydrophilic]

I sent it home with a coworker who's husband is an artifact hunter/collector, and he thinks it's a tool. I don't know the guy I've just seen pictures of his collection and it's pretty neat...stuff he's found and stuff he inherited, not including artifacts they've donated to the museum. I'll look into it more and talk to other people. Good to get different opinions I think. Thanks for your help, those that helped.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

As far as not in water or near water, rivers and streams change, they found a riverboat in in Missouri that was a half mile from the Missouri river.

 

[RGINN]

Best test is, what would you use this for?

 

[unclemac]

I know everyone is saying here its natural, but what unnatural is where its polished like he says. The polished areas end abruptly and are only where a hand could grip, thats the really odd part and worth further investigating for sure in my mind.

i see no "polish"... what i see is red staining most likely a result of some unique exposure at a certain angle to a certain soil type over time.

 

[unclemac]

Best test is, what would you use this for?

yep...pretty much spot on...Native tools usually have obvious purpose and modern day counterparts