174 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



The first process, after a suitable material had been found, was 

 to chip the implement into shape, outlining the wings and centrum. 

 With the exception of the central bulb from which the wings 

 expand and the indentation on the upward curve, all these heavier 

 specimens in form are kidney or bean shaped. The second process 

 as indicated by our series was that of picking or pitting; the third 

 process that of scouring or grinding, and the fourth finishing the 

 polish. A set of these specimens also indicates that the hole or 

 perforation was started in the centrum on the inward-curving 

 side. Preparations for the perforation were also indicated on 

 specimens which have merely been blocked out, by a picked-in 

 indentation. It would seem, therefore, that the shaft which we 

 postulate was placed in the centrum was inserted first at this point. 

 It may be possible that the shaft was sometimes placed in the 

 unfinished specimen. 



Incomplete banner stones have been found throughout the State 

 from Lake Champlain region on the north to Staten Island on the 

 south and westward through the Mohawk valley to Chautauqua 

 county (see figure 2, plate 3). Other specimens are reported from 

 the St Lawrence valley, but a greater majority have been reported 

 from the Finger Lake region of central New York and from the 

 valley of the Genesee and its tributaries. 



A fine incomplete specimen of laminated limestone containing 

 chert is contained in the D. F. Thompson collection (T-27923) 

 and was found at Waterford near the Mohawk river. This speci- 

 men has been roughly chipped to shape and shows some minor 

 picking. The top side is indented to shorten the length of the 

 centrum, but the perforating process has not been started. 



An unfinished specimen chipped and roughly picked to form 

 comes from the Susquehanna region a little east of Binghamton. 

 It is a heavy specimen of compact schist containing a vein of sandy 

 quartz. The centrum has been roughly blocked to shape, but there 

 is no indication that the specimen had been sufficiently formed 

 for the commencement of drilling. The material out of which 

 this artifact is blocked appears entirely unsuited for the purpose 

 and very likely this specimen was rejected in the unfinished form 

 because of the defects in the material. This specimen is 6 inches 

 in length and the measurement through the centrum diametrically 

 is 2^4 inches and the weight is 28^ ounces. 



Another specimen of unfinished banner stone is of silicious sand- 

 stone. It has been picked completely to shape but one wing is 

 longer than the other by nearly one-half of an inch. A chip, 



