One of the on-going choices which knappers face is the choice of tools to use for pressure flaking, or for that matter, in percussion (hammering) work on larger pieces of stone.
The selection is between stone, bone and antler tools compared to copper and other metal tools. Between what we call paleo or aboriginal (abo) type tools and methods compared to neolithic (neo or new) style tools which may actually be made of soft metal such as copper.
The reason there is even a debate is that in late Stone Age societies in northern Africa, like Egypt, or in northern Europe, like Denmark, the knappers were sometimes using copper tools to work flint.
Most think that in the New World the local folks did not use metals, only stone, bone, antler, even wood tools for working flint and obsidian. Thus, some feel that only these naturally derived materials should be used to authentically work with flint and obsidian in making stone tools and hunting weapons.
However, I would like to point out that, even in North America, there are a number of cultures which used copper tools ... around the copper-rich areas of the Great Lakes, of Arizona, of Mexico, etc.
I have seen ancient rods of native copper in the Field Museum, in Chicago, which are over 2,000 years old. They very likely were used as pressure flaking tools, much as those tools which were used by one of the last native indigenous knappers, "Ishi", when he demonstrated the processes at a university in California back at the beginning of the Twentieth Century.
So, the choice is to be made. You can use copper-tipped pressure flaking tools, or deer antler or bone flaking tools. Both are readily available. And in the Beginner's Knapping Kits which I supply to new knappers, I provide both.
The process of working with the two tools is similar in method, and essentially identical in objective. You want to be able to trim the thin edges of the chip, so that the edge will be strong enough to absorb enough pressure to push off a long flake. This takes some practice to perfect. Actually, it takes a lot of practice. But once you achieve this a few times, you get the hang of it and are ready to harness this capability to shape the stone to your planned design.
Next time, we will talk about edge preparation some more. This is vital to achieving effective pressure flaking.
... Coming Next ... Preparation Gives You The Edge In Pressure Flaking
You are invited to visit my web site for more background information and photographs related to the making of arrowheads: http://www.arrowhead-makeyourown.com/
For fully photo-illustrated process information related to the making of an obsidian Gunther style arrowhead, plus photographs of a number of ancient and authentic Gunther type arrowheads, you are invited to visit my other web site: http://www.arrowhead-maker.com/
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Post 2 -- Making A Plan Of Action To Make An Arrowhead
For the beginning knapper (person who makes tools out of stone by breaking stone -- knapping), making an arrowhead usually begins with a flake or chip of stone.
What Kind Of Stone Is Useful For Making An Arrowhead?
Usually we will need to use a type of stone which can break fairly easily, is brittle; yet it is hard enough to be useful and endure as a tool; it usually breaks with a sharp edge, so it can be a cutting tool; and, for any repeated manufacturing benefit, it should be a kind of stone which breaks in a manner which can be controlled and repeated.
Over the millennia, our ancestors learned, by trial and error, that many varieties of the stone material which we call quartz will fit these requirements. They found that particularly fine grained forms such as flint, chert and jasper worked best. These materials brake in a cone-like fracture pattern. They are tough, so they endure as a tool in use. They are hard, so they stay sharp enough to be useful. And they break in a way which can be planned and repeated, so that a skilled knapper can create a new tool according to the plan which he has in mind.
They also found that some kinds of volcanic rock also meet these requirements to make useful, sharp tools. In particular, obsidian and other similar volcanic rock, which is high in silica, are especially useful for knapping purposes. Obsidian is not as hard as quartz type stones like flint and jasper, but it makes up for that with its sharp edges and excellent knapping characteristics.
In the knapping kits which I prepare for new students of making arrowheads, I include both flint type stone and obsidian materials. These make an excellent starting place for a new knapper.
These chip or flake pieces are broken off from a larger chunk of the same material. This can be done by striking a corner or edge of the larger chunk with a hammer stone or a large, heavy piece of a deer antler, from the base or trunk of the antler, called a billet.
Safety First & Safety Always!
Remember always, that when you are working with this kind of stone, it is very sharp. So you must wear leather gloves to protect your hands, wear safety goggles to protect your eyes, and use a leather pad to protect your legs if you are resting the stone on your leg when you knock off small pieces for pressure flaking into arrowheads. Safety practices are always mandatory. In addition, make sure you work in a well ventilated, well lighted area, preferably outside. Also it is a good idea to have a ground or floor cover like a tarp or similar sheet of material to capture the small pieces of stone, so that you can gather them together when you are finished. You do not want your pets or children or any one else to step on the sharp remnants.
What Kind Of Tools Do You Knap With?
The next part of the plan is to select a tool to use to trim the stone piece into the shape of the arrowhead which you want to make. In the next posting we will discuss several types of tools which are useful in making arrowheads.
What Kind Of Stone Is Useful For Making An Arrowhead?
Usually we will need to use a type of stone which can break fairly easily, is brittle; yet it is hard enough to be useful and endure as a tool; it usually breaks with a sharp edge, so it can be a cutting tool; and, for any repeated manufacturing benefit, it should be a kind of stone which breaks in a manner which can be controlled and repeated.
Over the millennia, our ancestors learned, by trial and error, that many varieties of the stone material which we call quartz will fit these requirements. They found that particularly fine grained forms such as flint, chert and jasper worked best. These materials brake in a cone-like fracture pattern. They are tough, so they endure as a tool in use. They are hard, so they stay sharp enough to be useful. And they break in a way which can be planned and repeated, so that a skilled knapper can create a new tool according to the plan which he has in mind.
They also found that some kinds of volcanic rock also meet these requirements to make useful, sharp tools. In particular, obsidian and other similar volcanic rock, which is high in silica, are especially useful for knapping purposes. Obsidian is not as hard as quartz type stones like flint and jasper, but it makes up for that with its sharp edges and excellent knapping characteristics.
In the knapping kits which I prepare for new students of making arrowheads, I include both flint type stone and obsidian materials. These make an excellent starting place for a new knapper.
These chip or flake pieces are broken off from a larger chunk of the same material. This can be done by striking a corner or edge of the larger chunk with a hammer stone or a large, heavy piece of a deer antler, from the base or trunk of the antler, called a billet.
Safety First & Safety Always!
Remember always, that when you are working with this kind of stone, it is very sharp. So you must wear leather gloves to protect your hands, wear safety goggles to protect your eyes, and use a leather pad to protect your legs if you are resting the stone on your leg when you knock off small pieces for pressure flaking into arrowheads. Safety practices are always mandatory. In addition, make sure you work in a well ventilated, well lighted area, preferably outside. Also it is a good idea to have a ground or floor cover like a tarp or similar sheet of material to capture the small pieces of stone, so that you can gather them together when you are finished. You do not want your pets or children or any one else to step on the sharp remnants.
What Kind Of Tools Do You Knap With?
The next part of the plan is to select a tool to use to trim the stone piece into the shape of the arrowhead which you want to make. In the next posting we will discuss several types of tools which are useful in making arrowheads.
... coming next ... Selecting And Using The Tools To Break Stone To Create An Arrowhead
You are invited to visit my web site for more background information and photographs related to the making of arrowheads: http://www.arrowhead-makeyourown.com/
For fully photo-illustrated process information related to the making of an obsidian Gunther style arrowhead, plus photographs of a number of ancient and authentic Gunther type arrowheads, you are invited to visit my other web site: http://www.arrowhead-maker.com/
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Post 1 -- Thoughts on Making Your Own Arrowhead
How To Make Your Own Arrowhead.
"It's so easy the cavemen did it ... for thousands of years" ... and so can you, with practice.
Actually, ancestors of all of us used stone for hunting weapons for a very long time. The use of metal only replaced sharpened stone, bone and wood in the last few thousands of years. And then, in most of the world, the knowledge of "flint knapping" became a lost art. It wasn't until the Europeans came to the Americas that Old World eyes once again realized the efficiency of stone arrow heads and knife blades.
Making Your Own Stone Arrowhead.
All knapping begins with a piece of stone. Then you break away the parts of the stone which do not fit the idea you have in mind for the final product. This process is called reduction. The thing is, that once you break a piece off of a stone, you can not put it back. Unlike clay or metal, which can be reshaped, a stone tool is not moldable or bendable or malleable. You break it to change its shape.
To break stone you must obey the laws of physics. I think that observant flint knappers were the ones who first codified knowledge of the physical laws which provide order and predictability to the world around us. Much was discovered by trial and error, and then passed on to students from the masters of stone craft.
... coming next ... Step One in the Process of Making Your Own Stone Arrowhead
You are invited to visit my web site for more background information and photographs related to the making of arrowheads: http://www.arrowhead-makeyourown.com/
For fully photo-illustrated process information related to the making of an obsidian Gunther style arrowhead, plus photographs of a number of ancient and authentic Gunther type arrowheads, you are invited to visit my other web site: http://www.arrowhead-maker.com/
"It's so easy the cavemen did it ... for thousands of years" ... and so can you, with practice.
Actually, ancestors of all of us used stone for hunting weapons for a very long time. The use of metal only replaced sharpened stone, bone and wood in the last few thousands of years. And then, in most of the world, the knowledge of "flint knapping" became a lost art. It wasn't until the Europeans came to the Americas that Old World eyes once again realized the efficiency of stone arrow heads and knife blades.
Making Your Own Stone Arrowhead.
All knapping begins with a piece of stone. Then you break away the parts of the stone which do not fit the idea you have in mind for the final product. This process is called reduction. The thing is, that once you break a piece off of a stone, you can not put it back. Unlike clay or metal, which can be reshaped, a stone tool is not moldable or bendable or malleable. You break it to change its shape.
To break stone you must obey the laws of physics. I think that observant flint knappers were the ones who first codified knowledge of the physical laws which provide order and predictability to the world around us. Much was discovered by trial and error, and then passed on to students from the masters of stone craft.
... coming next ... Step One in the Process of Making Your Own Stone Arrowhead
You are invited to visit my web site for more background information and photographs related to the making of arrowheads: http://www.arrowhead-makeyourown.com/
For fully photo-illustrated process information related to the making of an obsidian Gunther style arrowhead, plus photographs of a number of ancient and authentic Gunther type arrowheads, you are invited to visit my other web site: http://www.arrowhead-maker.com/
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