A few days ago, my brother asked me if I wanted a "small pile of interesting rocks" that he had collected. He's moving, so he's keeping the best (possibly Native American tools) and giving me the rest to put in my garden areas. THIS is what I got!!! 27 boxes full!!!!!!!!
That is a 25-year collection of stones from "Emerson's Rock" on Plum Island. It is generally believed to be an ancient seasonal settlement for Native Americans. My DB claim these are grinding rocks, clam openers, and misc. primitive carved tools. Does anyone know about this stuff? Or did he play a colossal prank on me??? (Actually, that's only a portion of the collection; DB took 16 boxes to his new place.)
Yikes!
Sounds like a trick. If authentic, that's a big no-no.
That is a bit out of the ordinary... ☺
My whole family is a bit out of the ordinary.
Victor, the good stuff was collected by the state ages ago. DB had the ranger's permission (you have to pass a ranger station to get on to this preserve). These rocks are only found intertidally, in the winter, when the clay substrate is exposed. There were arrowheads there, once.
ONLY my DB would be standing in mud on a North-facing barrier beach in January. Except, I confess I bird-watch there in February!
Add to the fact that they look like plain 'ol beach stones to me!
A grinding tool?:
A Jax,
That looks like it came from my mortar & pestal set!!
Maybe a flesh remover... like for skinning Deer??
Anywaaaz... you could call them pedigree rocks!
~* Robin
This message was edited Apr 1, 2008 8:38 PM
LOL, Robin!!!! My DH is going to FREAK when he pulls into the drive. DB says it's a tool to grind corn into a fine meal. He has some flat stones that he *swears* are the surface where they were ground. I dunno...
I think I'm going to put them in clay pots and use them as "hardscaping"!
Now to find 10,000 clay pots... I only have about 700!
Hi, I'm brand new here and don't understand anything about the North. My DH of 36 years is from Newton, MA. and I am from Miami Beach. I think it's a New England thing, or maybe a MA thing. Either way, there are different brain cells at work here (:)?). I can attest to this obsession with weird non-organic collections as we have a garage, shed, basement, etc. full of railroad spikes, geodes, rocks, minerals and trylobytes (sigh). I frequent the Trash to Trasure forum on DG hoping to find a creative use for this collection. He now have this stuff stored at three houses! This does not cover the organic wood collection. Help!!!
Laurel
Not a North thing! I don't have it and I'm a New Yorker all my life. People have weird hobbies / obsessions no matter where they live.
Gosh Victor, you squelched my attempt to generalize. Us Southerners are wont to do that :).
Laurel
Hee hee.
I was born in Gloucester and I don't understand my "non-organic" obssesion, either.
My neighbor has a yard FULL of antique farm equipment. OK, the first 5 antique plows were cute, but he went over the top w/ the 1930 era tractors!
I have rocks in my garden that were picked up all over the world. I even have some basalt from Montreaux!!!
I mark my new plantings w/ clam shells!
Oh yeah! Plant ID rocks; bet you that you can't lose them in bad weather.
~* Robin
Nice rox Jax, but didn't you have your own rock farm there to begin with?
Looks like you should start a water feature. I collect rocks too, from everywhere and now I finally have a water feature to put them to use in.
Nice pile of rocks, but like most cooks and hunters, a person tends to get a tool that they like and then work it to death or pass it on to there kids and on and on, so I am thinking you may have a tool or two, but I doubt you have 27 boxes full. Arrowheads are so much more common as they got lost or broken during hunting.
There are many people here who hunt for Indian relics here and they always argue with each other about the authenticity of their finds. One guy is jokingly called by a bunch of other searchers for his constant claims that what he has found is a rare "authentic" Nantucket Indian tool, X_____"In his dreams" X________.
I used a rock yesterday to pound on a stake because I was too tired to go and get the sledge. Now it is an official "tool". I could send it to you. But I think it is cool that he loves collecting whatever they are. Patti
Bbrookrd, I think I'm onto something. Everything he collected when we first moved to GA, via Miami, was an 'arrowhead' or 'early railroad artifact' (according to he who knows these things). We have boxes and bags of 'arrowheads'. Even bowls and handmade containers. They are mixed in with the possum jaws, cowry shells, conchs, seabiscuits, pine galls (that he carves into roses). These things don't even vaguely resemble the fine New England and upstate New York folk art/craft/ of his ancestors. I've been to the Smithsonians (daughter works there in preservation and material culture). I have placated his lust for the primitive for almost forty years because (1) love is blind and (2) he really is extrodinarily creative with this...what should I call it...stuff.
Jax are you doing something with them? And how did you guys moved them all to your yard, it looks very very heavy.
I was on vacation on Christmas in the Caribbean and i of course could not resist those beautiful river rocks by a river we visited. I did not think i could actually bring them with me, that would've been awfully heavy.
If you find they are just plain rocks, let me know since i have a corner i want to make into a rock garden.
I was thinking along these lines!!! If I pick up a rock and use it, then drop it, is it an "artifact"??? None of these stones are definatively carved, unless one has an overactive imagination or smokes what they grow in their garden (DB?)!
Al, I have more rocks than a quarry. I've learned to love them!
The problem is, when you use a rock for a plant marker and the plant dies, you have the marker for the next few million years, reminding you of this failure! I still have a dozen or so that sit and mock me... now who's smoking?... but really, they do! Pass the white-out!
I do have a water feature- a pond. I'll think of something.. I always do!
Dulci, we backed up his truck and unloaded them, with Jax standing in each box. His added weight was no help!
I don't know if I'll ever know "for sure" if they are artifacts or not. Well, they are artifacts now- once stored in boxes by some nutty people!
You have some great edging and hardscape materials there!
Jax - Having spent quite a bit of time in Northern AZ collecting arrow heads, grinders, metates (bowls made from stone) etc. with very knowledgeable old guy...I want to say that a quick look at your photo does not show anything that has been tooled....they look like naturally weathered or broken rocks.....but I've been wrong before......and I know I will be wrong again...LOL!!!
Seriously.....I'm sure your brother loved collecting these, and I would use them to edge my gardens if I were you!
Have fun hiding them from your DH!!!
My DB keeps saying "the ocean doesn't make marks like this", but, I disagree- the ocean can do anything it darn well pleases, including smashing rocks and rolling them around for a few million years. I'm sure the ocean has made a few rocks that look like the kitchen sink!!!
I love to use stones as mulch- it also offers shelter to our friends, toads and snakes!
Here I am a week late for the rocks muse.
My grandmother (born 1885) lived on a farm at the edge of Lake Ontario New York State. She had a long ovoid rock that was pointed at one end similar to some I saw in your box. She told me it was a skinning stone, they had collected many arrow heads and stone tools when they were kids. The lake shore was a great place to gather those things. Indian tribes camped benieth the bluff the farm was built on in1860's. Indian stuff would be my guess.
WHERE did you get your wheels??? They're lovely!
Do you have a OC brother?
I would hang on to those wheels. If gas goes up anymore, we will all have to go back to horse & buggies, so you will have a gold mine there! How much is hay? ;0)
I do have 1 metal cart wheel. I use rocks to keep it upright in the garden.
You guys should collaborate - best way to move all those rocks is with some wheels.
Wheels - Gram Parsons/Chris Hillman
(as recorded by Emmylou Harris)
We've all got wheels to take ourselves away
We've got telephones to say what we can't say
We all got higher and higher every day.
Come on wheels take this boy away
We're not afraid to ride
We're not afraid to die
Come on wheels - take me home today
So come on wheels - take this boy away.
Now when I feel my time is almost up
And destiny is in my right hand
I'll turn to him who made my faith so strong
Come on wheels - make this boy a man.
