6o NEW YORK STATE MUSEIJM 



Pestles. The ordinary Algonkian pestle is cylindrical in form 

 and long. The diameter varies from i ^ inches to 4 inches. A few 

 pestles are as short as 6 inches but the average form is approxi- 

 mately 14. Exceptional pestles have been found with lengths above 

 18 inches and ranging up to 24. Along the Hudson river from 

 Catskill to Glens Falls, and along the Seneca river, pestles have been 

 found with the effigies of animal heads at the upper or handle ends. 

 In most cases the head bends at a slight angle. Along the Seneca 

 river some pestles seem to be phallic. These may have been used 

 as clubs (see plate). 



Stone mortars. Stone mortars are not to be regarded as com- 

 mon, though one should not consider them rare. In proportion to 

 the number of stone pestles, however, mortars are exceedingly 

 scarce. Most of them are made from small boulders hollowed out, 

 apparently, by a considerable expenditure of time and energ}^ The 

 cavities vary from mere hollows to cups 3 to 5 inches deep. A few 

 New York specimens are double faced. 



Metates. Most of the grinding or meahng stones found in Algon- 

 kian sites are flat pieces of shale or sandstone, of convenient size and 

 thickness. One surface usually shows that it has been depressed 

 and smoothed by the rubbing of a muUer, and the reverse generally 

 is pitted and scarred as if used as an anvil in the breaking of chert 

 or other hard stones. It is quite likely that earthen pigments, 

 burned stone and other hard mineral substances were reduced in 

 mortars and metates, and that they were not merely used in the 

 preparation of vegetable meals and hominy. 



Mullers. For cracking and grinding substances on the mealing 

 stones, mullers were used. Mullers are fairly common on sites of 

 this culture and may be recognized by the smooth and slightly 

 curved underside. The more finished types are discoid and well 

 shaped. In many instances the edges seem to have been used for 

 hammering, and thus many of the finest specimens have a rough- 

 ened circumference. Some mullers are polished on both sides and 

 so nearly circular as to resemble quoits or game disks that might be 

 rolled over the ice in contests of skill. For certain forms of mullers. 

 see plate 130. 



Celts. Stone hatchet heads, frequently called celts, are commonly 

 found on Algonkian sites. There is much difiference between the 

 roughest of these specimens and the best. Some of the finest are 

 highly polished and balanced with great nicety. The Algonkian 

 people liked to bring out the grain of the stone and to reveal by 

 polishing the mottling or the banded layers. Some of the best speci- 

 mens are of granitic rock, many are of diabase and a few are of 



