22 AMERICAN MUSEUM GUIDE LEAFLETS 



from any locality in the East. From the battered appearance of the butts of 

 these axes, it may have been that they were sometimes used in lieu of mauls or 

 hammers. It is possible that they may have been used in war. It is gen- 

 erally supposed that in cutting down trees, making dug out canoes and other 

 kinds of wood-working, fire was used as an adjunct to the stone axe. the 

 former being the active agent. The process of burning and charring having 

 gone on sufficiently, the stone axe was used to remove the burned portion. 

 However, some stone axes seem sharp enough to cut quite well without the 

 aid of fire. 



Celts (Fig. 12). Ungrooved axes or hatchets, usually called celts, are 

 frequent throughout this area; but are nowhere as abundant as the grooved 

 axe, especially near the southern border of the region. The grooved axe 

 seems to have been the typical cutting and chopping tool of the local 

 Algonkin. The widespread idea that the celt was sometimes used un- 

 hafted as a skinning tool, has no historic proof, but may possibly have 

 some foundation. The Cree of the southern Hudson Bay region use an 

 edged tool of bone for this purpose, a fact which is somewhat suggestive, 

 although the implement differs in shape from the celt. Celts with one side 

 flat and the other beveled to an edge may have been used as adzes. From 

 the worn and hammered appearance of the polls of some celts, it is possible 

 that many of these implements were used as wedges in splitting wood, after 

 constant manipulation in their chopping capacity had permanently dulled 

 their edges. 



The celts of this region are, as a general thing, poorly made, a pebble of 

 suitable shape having an edge ground on it with little or no preliminary 

 shaping. More rarely, however, they were carefully worked all over by 

 pecking and polishing, as in the case of the grooved axe. 



In type, aside from the general division of rough and worked celts, we 

 may add that most celts in this region have slightly rounded polls, the bit 

 broader than the butt, although some exceptions have been found. The 

 forms are as follows: a, rough stone celts, pebbles with one end ground 

 to an edge, but otherwise scarcely worked: and A, worked stone celts, which 

 include the following: 



1 . Wedge-shaped, poll narrower than bit, and angles rounded : common. 



2. Like number one, but with bit much broader than poll. Very rare. 



Cross-section oval. 



:!. Like number one, but one side flat, other beveled at one end to make 



a cutting edge. 

 4. Like number two, but with cutting edge flaring, broader than body. 



"Hell mouthed type." Very rare. 

 North and west of this regi.ni, we find the Iroquois territory where most 



