holmes] 



ABORIGINAL AMERICAN" ANTIQUITIES PART I 



.^10 



as any of the ancient ones. The Hints, in many cases water-worn ])('lil)les, aii]>eai' 

 to have been splintered by percnission Into frai;inents of suitable sizes, and these 

 sharp-ed.ued spalls are flaked into shajie by means of a little instnnneut consist- 

 int;' (if a short, straight rod of some ]i;!r<l mati'rial mounliMl in a short curved hafl. 

 We collected nine of these tools (kT'i;!i), of which two liave no ))lades. No. 89202 

 (122;*>) li.^ni'cil in Point Parrow IJeport, I'Uhnoloyy, plate iii, ti.uure 7, has liccn 

 selected :is the tyiie. The handle is of walrus ivory 7.8 inches lon.ii', sd'ai.uht 

 and nearly cylindrical for ;d)(»ut 4i inches, then bendintj down like a saw han- 

 dle and spread out into a spatulate butt. Fitted into a deep gi'oove on the top 

 of the handle so that its tip projects 1.8 inches beyond the tip of the latter is a 

 slender four-sided rod of wliale's bone, 4.7 inches long. This is held in place 

 by two simple lashings, one of cotton twine and the other of seal thong. The 

 Hint to be flaked is held in the left hand and pressed against the Ileshy ])art of 

 the palm, which serves as a cushion and is protected by we;iring a thick deer- 

 skin mitten. The tool is firndy grasped w(>ll forward in the right hand, \\-ith the 



Fig. ISl. Bono chipping inipli>in<>nt of tho Eskimo. (Miu'doeli.) 



thumb 'on top of the blade, and by pressing the point steadily on the edge of the 

 flint flaki'S of the desired size are made to fly off from the under surl'act'. 



These tools vary little in patlei-n. Iiut are made of different materials. Hard 

 bone appears to have been the connnonest malerial for the ])lade, as tliree out 

 of the seven blades are of this substance. <)ne specimen (No. 8!)2()o |7!K')i 

 from I'lkiavwln) has a blade ol' iron of (he same shape but only 2 inches long.^ 



Nelson appears iiol to lia\e witnessed the iiiakiiio- of flint iin[)Ie- 

 iiieiits during' his protracted stay among tiie western 

 Eskimo Eskinio, l)iit states that "Hint Jcnives, spearheads, 



and urrow|)()ints are nnide by flaking. The llakers 

 are made of sniail, rodlike pieces of deerhorn, wood, or i\'oi"y, 

 fastened into a sk)t at the end of a haiuUe, usually of ixory or deer- 

 horn, Avith wrappings of sinew or rawhide cord." The specimens 

 collected by Nelson from Kot/ebue Soinid, Hotham Inlet, and Point 

 Hope are identical in type with those observed among the Eskinio 

 elsewhere.- 



- IMurdoch, Ethnological RcsuKs of the Point I'.arrow Expedition, pp. 2S7-2S8. 

 ^ Nelson, The Eskimo About Bering Strait, i). Ul. 



38657°— 19— Bull. GO, pt i 22 



