Birdstone   Save
F. J. Moley Collection
Description: This birdstone is made of red and gray banded slate. It is flat on the base, while the sides curve slightly to form a ridge in the midline along the top. One end is shaped to form a stylized head and neck, possibly of a bird, and the other end forms a tail that has straight sides and is flat on top. There is a drilled hole at either end of the base, one of which goes through to the base of the tail, the other through to the base of the neck. Although the function of birdstones is unknown, they might have served as highly-decorative spearthrower weights. This piece comes from Glacial Kame Culture. The Glacial Kame people are noted for their emphasis on ceremony, but their daily lives were much like those of other Archaic cultures. They hunted with spears aided by spear throwers. Deer, their major source of meat, also provided antler tines that were made into tools for pressure flaking flint knives and spear points, or into harpoons for fishing. Deer leg bones were cut and ground into sharp-pointed awls for sewing and basket making. Slate and coal from glacial deposits were made into ornaments, perhaps for "everyday" use. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: A0107_000001_1
Subjects: Prehistoric peoples; Effigies;
Places: F. J. Moley Collection