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CHAPTER XII
GROUND STONE ARTIFACTS
Primitive man produced for his use as tools or ornaments a great variety of stone artifacts usually designated by the term "ground implements" in which, as the name implies, the process of grinding was used in their manufacture. While in most cases this was all that was necessary to produce the desired form, yet in many cases before grinding could be begun, the stone must be chipped into the approximate shape, this step being very important in determining the final size and shape of the implement. Grinding and polishing took place after the approximate shape or form was wrought out, although in some cases much of the final polish may have come by actual use of the implement if we may judge by the fact that the portion having most use obtained the highest polish. This hammering into rough form is usually called "pecking" to accomplish which a special form
FIG. 129. THE FIRST STEP IN GRINDING. Artifacts roughly "pecked out" ready to be polished. The specimen in the upper left-hand corner is a double-bitted ax.
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of hammerstone was often used. Such hammerstones were of very hard material and were somewhat eggshaped with one rather sharp end which was used to do the pecking. Figure 129 shows a granite pebble rough-pecked into a form suitable for the manufacture of an axe or celt. It will be noted that much of the original water-worn surface of the pebble still remains, the pecking showing only on the edges. In this figure is shown also a typical pecking hammerstone showing considerable use and a portion of a roughed-out pestle. This pestle, made from a block of stone almost square in cross-section, was being converted into a rough cylinder at one end when it broke in the process and was discarded. The original square end was left to be the grinning end of the pestle but shows no signs of actual use; it was, therefore, never part of a finished object. Such findings would seem to indicate that primitive man, in working stone, brought the implements by rough pecking to practically the final form before beginning to grind or polish them. We know but little of his method of grinding, which must have been crude at best. Doubtless he learned the use of sand, sandstone, and water, but even under the most favorable conditions the process must have been laborious and very slow. His artifacts therefore testify to patient effort and great industry in their manufacture. For the purpose of our discussion, we may classify the ground implements found in Kentucky, including all those rough-pecked, polished, and drilled, as follows:
a. Axes j. Plummets b. Celts k. Net sinkers c. Chisels 1. Cones d. Pestles m. Banner-stones e. Mortars n. Gorgets f. War clubs o. Pendants g. Play balls p. Drill heads h. Pipes q. Whet-stones i. Discoidals
The most important implement made by pecking and grinding was the stone ax. In discussing the various forms of axes one is forced to include the celt, as many celts, both large and small, were attached to handles and used as axes or hatchets. For the
ANCIENT LIFE IN KENTUOKY
for attachment, it was probably left unpolished in most cases, and such polish as it acquired was due to actual use. The full-grooved ax was attached to a handle by lashing to the side of a straight limb of some pliable wood. Several have been found with handles still attached. In particular one such hafted ax was found on a shelf of stone in Hines Cave, Wayne County, Kentucky.
FIG. 131. PARTLY GROOVED AXES. Grooved on three sides with one side flat or convex.
Specimens of the ax grooved on three sides are shown in figure
- In general this is a larger type of ax than the full grooved form. There appear to be a very few small specimens that are not full grooved. It is generally assumed that the flat edge, left ungrooved, was placed next to the end of the handle. After the ax had been lashed to the end of the handle, rather than to the side, a wedge was inserted between the end of the handle and the flat side of the ax, and upon being driven in, the lashings were drawn tight. While there are many very highly worked full grooved axes, there appear to be also many quite
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carbonate. It was worked down to the desired form, having a full
groove and sharp bit. When discovered in the field it was covered
by a coating of limonite, 3.5 mm. thick. This coating is the same
thickness in the groove as over the rest of the specimen. The
whole of this coating must therefore have been formed after the ax
was finished. If this coating was produced by weathering of the
carbonate the very interesting question is raised as to how long it
would take a specimen of this kind to develop a coating 3.5 mm.
thick. Clearly the great thickness of this coat might argue a very
great age.
In the consideration of axes it is necessary to include stone
celts, as in many cases they were hafted, and used as hand
hatchets and axes. The celt which is ungrooved has quite as great
a range of variation in form and material as the grooved ax. Many
celts are but one inch broad by 1½ inches long, the largest shown
in figure 133 is 9¾ inches long and weighs 5½
FIG. 133. CELTS. Various types of stone celts from Kentucky.
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but many apparently were hafted. One very interesting type of very small celt is the form made of hematite. These are usually quite small, from 1¼ to 2 inches long and 1 to 1½ inches broad. They are highly polished and have quite sharp edges. The pole of these small celts is also quite smooth, and the body is quite thin. It is commonly supposed that they were set in a large piece of wood, used as a war club. Such a club studded
FIG. 135. CHISELS. In the lower row are shown two of the peculiar "double-bitted" type.
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FIG. 136. WAR CLUBS AND PLAY BALLS. The war clubs in the upper row are grooved for attachment; the playballs in the lower row are spherical and highly polished for rolling.
with these small celts would be a very effective weapon. This supposition is based on the known practice of historic tribes to insert pointed objects in their war clubs, holding them in place by the use of asphaltum, and also from the fact that these small hematite celts are often found in graves in groups of 3 or 4 or more together. Closely related to the stone celt, is the chisel. These artifacts show great care in manufacture, being made of granite, greenstone, and even of limestone. Many show the effect of being buffeted with a hammerstone, the basal end being chipped. Chisels are often found in graves and seem to have been highly regarded as mortuary offerings. The longest specimen in figure 135 is 8¾ inches long, of limestone, and was taken from the left hand of an extended skeleton in Fox Field by the authors. The same figure also shows a number of beautiful chisels which are double bitted. It is difficult to understand how such chisels could have been used unless they were hafted. The blades show no damage by use as would naturally be expected if they had been struck with hammerstones. It has been suggested that many of the more highly finished chisels were not utility implements but rather were ceremonial. These chisels certainly could have been
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Reference has been made elsewhere to the "hominy holes" of
the cliff dwellers. The pestles used in connection with these
hominy holes were also bell shaped, but were used in a very
different way. These holes were conical in form, and are often
three feet deep, or more. They usually are about nine inches in
diameter at the top. It is believed that they were started in the
rock ledge under the cliff by grinding out a hole only a few inches
deep. By using one of the bell shaped pestles found in association
with them, with the small end down, the operation
FIG. 137. PESTLES. Left-hand specimen with flat base for grinding on a flat surface; right-hand specimen used in a "hominy-hole;" upper central specimen cylindrical for rolling; lower central specimen a river pebble fashioned to work In a groove.
of grinding corn could be made very simple. It required only that
the pestle be raised and dropped into the hole, pointed end down.
At least one hominy hole with pestle remaining in it has been
found by the authors in Hart County which gave a clew as to the
use of this type of pestle for grinding.
As the grinding of grain continued year after year the hole
got somewhat larger and very much deeper, so that the pestle
passed completely into the hole. Then it was lashed to a billet of
wood, perhaps several feet long and the operation could be
continued till the hole became so deep it was difficult to withdraw
the meal from it. When this occurred a second and even
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a third hole was started in the vicinity, often in the same large bowlder or cliff ledge in many cases only a few feet from the old hole. Thus hominy holes are often found in groups. The group contains the "worn out holes" too large for further use, the holes still in use when the site was abandoned, and often a small hole just started. In particular, the large boulder with the "hominy hole" found under the cliff in Hart County and removed to the University of Kentucky has been drilled completely through and when found had the bottom of the hole plugged with a broken pestle. The right-hand specimen shown in figure 137 was found under the Cow Cliff, 12 miles from Howe's Valley, Hardin County, at a depth of five feet in the accumulation of earth about a large sandstone bowlder which has in it three hominy holes, two large ones and a small one just started. In another such bowlder under a cliff dwelling in Hardin county, the boulder contained three hominy holes, but in addition thereto some eight or ten well defined grooves, some nearly two inches wide and about an inch deep extended from the edge of the same surface of the bowlder, almost vertically downward along its sides some three or four feet. This particular bowlder was some eight feet higher than the present level of the cliff floor, and had on one side a large stone mass some four feet thick lying against it. The adjacent rock enabled one to gain the top of this bowlder with but little difficulty. It is probable that the original floor level of this cliff when inhabited by the makers of these hominy holes was much lower than at present. Investigation seemed to show that it was at least four feet deeper if not more. An attempt was made to discover if possible what these vertical grooves in the side of this boulder could mean. The suggestion which seems most plausible was made by Prof. A. M. Miller, who with the authors investigated this cliff dwelling. It would seem that here the pestle working in these extra large hominy holes had been attached to a billet of wood in the usual fashion. The suggestion is that this pestle and attachment, instead of being raised and lowered by some one on the top of this large stone, was raised and lowered by a young sapling being bent over it from the cliff side above. The motion of the sapling and its attached weight being controlled by a person at
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Specialized pestles made from small river worn bowlders,
are also sparingly found in this state. Figure 137 shows a red
granite bowlder, rough pecked, over half of its surface, to form a
handle. The remaining portion is the grinding surface. Such
pestles were usually used in grooved stones, worn into a trough
some two feet or more long, the grinding being accomplished by
sliding the stone back and forth in the groove.
The small bell shaped pestle, having circular base and con-
vex basal surface, is quite common in Kentucky, being usually
associated with a simple form of lap stone with which it is used.
These occur over the whole state in small numbers, generally, but
are very common in the western portion in the Cumberland and
Tennessee River region, and westward. These pestles, rough
pecked, and just large enough to give a grip to the hand, are found
in large numbers on known village sites. The lap stone used with
it is generally a large flat river pebble, though sometimes a square
block of sandstone is used.
The lap stone required no process of manufacture beyond
actual use. The woman of the tribe selected the stone, and with
pestle began grinding. In time the stone became worn down till it
could tell its own story. In this grinding the motion of the hand
holding the pestle was a circle of only a few inches radius. The
pestle being small, there was thus worn in the lap stone a circular
depression from one to three inches deep, and from four to seven
inches at its widest point. This method of grinding was an
individual or family affair, and doubtless every Indian woman had
her own pestle and lap stone, to judge by the number found in
village sites.
In Marshall County, on the bank of Jonathan Creek, at its
entrance into the Tennessee River, the authors with the Hon. W. J.
Curtis and accompanied by Mr. Homer Sirls as guide,
investigated the ancient village site at that place. The ground was
cultivated in corn and covered with grass and weeds. Into this
tangle of vegetation which almost precluded investigation of the
surface, the party passed back and forth down the corn rows.
They were rewarded by finding four beautiful specimens of lap
stones in perfect condition. Several others were discovered
broken, which were not removed. Figure 138 shows these stones,
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with their pestles, together with one presented by Mr. Robert A.
Shepherd, found by him on this same site.
Some of these lap stones were used on both sides for grind-
ing, the amount of wear being about the same. Other specimens
have in the reverse side one, two, or even three pits, about an inch
in diameter and an inch deep. It is suggested that these pits may
have been formed when the lap stone was used to hold a nut
while being cracked.
FIG. 139. NET SINKERS AND CONES. Highly polished artifacts usually with grooves for attachment.
The stone artifacts previously discussed in this chapter were
generally but little polished in manufacturing except by actual
use. To this group might be added "net sinkers" and "cones"
shown in figure 139. The so-called net sinkers made of granite,
hematite, dense phosphate and other heavy materials are usually
flat on one side being in general semi-ellipsoidal in form. Many
have a well cut groove over the curved surface, as if they were to
be attached by a string to some object against the flat side. A
suggestion as to possible use in connection with drills has been
previously made. The use to which the so-called
GROUND STONE ARTIFACTS 249
FIG. 140. TUBULAR PIPES. The middle specimen in the upper row is engraved with pictorial writing.
the area of distribution of many forms. It is therefore to be
expected that a variety of pipe forms should be found within the
state. McGuire, Moorehead, West, and other writers on aboriginal
pipes prefer to classify pipes as to their form and material, rather
than assign to them tribal or cultural classifications. The
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reason is one of necessity except in relatively few cases, the
racial or cultural association of the pipe being unknown.
In the discussion presented in this chapter pipes will be dis-
cussed under the following groups. It is not pretended that this is
a complete classification, but it is believed that it covers the
forms most numerous in Kentucky.
a. Tubular g. Ovoid b. Heavy animal and bird h. Vase shaped c. Monitor i. Elbow pipe d. Micmac j. Totem e. Disk k. Siouxian f. Double conoidal
FIG. 141. BIRD PIPE. A fine specimen of a zoomorphic form.
The tubular pipe appears to be one of the oldest forms. It
occurs east of the Mississippi, through Ohio and Kentucky,
southward and westward to the Pacific Coast. It is thought that it
is the most primitive and its form probably developed naturally
from the known custom of the tribes in the Southwest and
Mexico, who when first seen by white men, used for smoking a
roll of leaves, rolled out and twisted together to form a cylinder
many inches long.
Tubular pipes usually have a large capacity in the bowl, the
stem hole being smaller. Figure 140 shows one type of tube
evidently presented directly to the mouth in smoking. Others may
have had a separate stem. While most tubular pipes are of
sandstone, one specimen shown in figure 140 is made of
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A specimen of the Monitor Pipe, which is not very common in Kentucky, and also a good example of the Micmac type are shown in figure 143. These types are found along the northern boundary of the United States and into Canada and are particularly numerous in the Great Lakes region. The finding in Kentucky of Micmac pipes is unusual, and it would seem that they are to be regarded as strays, here by the accident of trade or travel. In figure 143 is also shown a very beautiful specimen
FIG. 143. INTERESTING FASHIONS IN PIPES. Showing in the upper left-hand corner a micmac pipe, in the upper row a Cherokee pipe with animal design, in the center a monitor pipe and a disc pipe, and in the lower right- hand corner a pipe made from a concretion.
of disk pipe ploughed up in a field in Bourbon County, Kentucky. This type of pipe is very interesting, in as much as it was designed to be and is without a stem. The hole in the disk is in effect a stem hole. The pipe was smoked by pressing the lips of the smoker against the disk holding the pipe by the long handled bowl. This specimen is made of catlinite, or the red pipe stone of Missouri. It has on one side of the handle pictographs of two human figures apparently in combat. On the other side is a very well executed figure of an alligator extending the entire length of the handle.
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The double conoidal pipe generally regarded as a very ancient form is well represented in Kentucky. The name is given because of the characteristic bowl and stem holes, being each a cone, usually of the same size, reamed out at right angles to each other, so the tips of the cones intersect. This produces a stem hole the same size as the bowl, and would require a specially adapted stem for service. Figure 144 shows three very handsome specimens of this form. The middle specimen was found in Franklin County and is made of a block of carbonate of iron
FIG. 144. DOUBLE CONOIDAL PIPES. The bowl and the stem-hole are both cones which meet each other at their tips.
weathered to hematite on the outside. The right-hand specimen is of sandstone, and shows a human face carved on opposite faces of the pipe. While Col. Bennett H. Young reported double conoidal pipes found in graves and in mounds, the authors' records on such pipes show that they are usually ploughed up in fields showing no apparent connection with any prehistoric grave or dwelling site. The ovoid pipe made of limestone is shown in figure 145. There is also shown a number of small ovoid pipes, a very common form on sites known to be of the Fort Ancient Culture. These small ovoid pipes are usually of sandstone, and have little or no decoration. They
are usually found in very similar association with the vase shaped pipe also shown in the center of the figure and with the small elbow pipes, also typical of the Fort
