The stone age in North America, vol. 2 of 2Moorehead, Warren K. (Warren King)
History
The stone age in North America, vol. 2 of 2
Moorehead, Warren K. (Warren King)
Indians of North America -- Antiquities; Stone age -- North America
On the top shelf of Mr. Lewis’s exhibit in Fig. 511 are pointed mortars
such as I have placed under classification “C.” Usually these are of
volcanic rock, worked down light and rather thin. They were pointed in
order that they might be thrust into soft earth, or swampy places where
certain reeds and roots abounded, they being held in position by the
nature of the soil, while the women ground grain.
[Illustration:
FIG. 518. (S. 1–3.) Stone bowl from the collection of H. S. Hurlbutt,
Libertyville, Illinois.
]
Fig. 517 is a long, beautifully polished, roller pestle, about
twenty-six inches in length and owned by Mr. S. R. Turner, Riverside,
Rhode Island, and Fig. 513 is a roller pestle with an effigy head carved
at one end. It is impossible to determine what this effigy represents.
This is from the Salem collection, was found near Ipswich, and is about
thirty inches in length.
Doubtless there are not a few objects classed as mortars which were food
receptacles. I have included several in this chapter. The conditions
under which some of these more highly finished bowls are found leads us
to admit ignorance of their true meaning.
Fig. 518 is a delicate stone bowl from Illinois; Fig. 519 is a limestone
bowl, shown one third size. This was found in the oblong mound of the
Hopewell Group in 1901, by our survey. Neither of these specimens is to
be classed as a mortar. Both are highly finished, and the limestone bowl
is an unusual specimen, nothing just like it having been found in
America. We cannot imagine that these were made use of to contain
ordinary food.
[Illustration:
FIG. 519. (S. about 1–3.) Stone bowl of twelve or thirteen pounds
weight. Cut from solid limestone. It is somewhat like the type of
bowls found on the Pacific Coast, and nothing comparable to it has
been discovered in our Ohio Valley mounds.
]
Mr. C. E. Brown writes of his region:—
“A small number of stone pestles have been found in Wisconsin, and a few
hollowed-out stones which appear to have been employed as mortars. The
Wisconsin savages employed wooden mortars for crushing their corn and
wild rice. These were hollows cut into the side of logs or made of
sections of logs hollowed out. Wooden pestles were employed with these.
At Lake Winnebago and elsewhere in the Fox River Valley are large
boulders upon the tops of which are shallow depressions in which the
Indians of recent times are known to have ground corn.”
[Illustration:
FIG. 519 _A_. (S. 1–7.) Two are of steatite, and one of limestone.
They were found in eastern Kentucky. From the collection of B. H.
Young, Louisville, Kentucky.
]
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