Fig. 181. (S. 2–3.) Flint celt. Material: light-colored flint. Collection of M. L. Young, Pontiac, Illinois. Found in Massac County, Illinois, on the surface.
It is significant that although large quantities of flint were quarried at Flint Ridge, Ohio, yet there are few celts made of Flint Ridge stone, the Ohio Valley natives preferring other materials.
Fig. 182. (S. 1–2.) All chipped celts and hoes are by no means of flint. Sandstone, limestone, and trap rock were often employed by the natives of Pennsylvania and other sections. W. E. Bryan of Elmira has sent me photographs of chipped celts found near Elmira. Fig. 182 is a chipped and polished celt, having on its face a bow and unknown signs carved into the stone.
Fig. 183. (S. 1–2.) A better example of chipped celt in stone other than flint is shown in Fig. 183, also from near Elmira. Both front and side views are presented half-size. W. E. Bryan’s collection, Elmira, New York. The Mohawk, Susquehanna, Connecticut, Delaware, and other valleys furnish numerous specimens of chipped hoes and celts, but seldom of high workmanship, as they were rather common agricultural implements or general service tools for use about the camps.
The flint celts, nine in number, shown in Fig. 179 are from various portions of Kentucky. I am indebted to Colonel Young for the loan of these and some fifty other illustrations. Attention is called to the high finish on these celts. Compared with other flint celts, they tell an interesting story. It is not so much the material or the location in which the implement occurs, as it is the amount of work put upon it and skill evinced by the manufacturer.
While speaking of the flint celts in Colonel Young’s collection a few lines previously, I would call attention to Fig. 181, Mr. M. L. Young’s collection, Pontiac, Illinois. This is also a remarkable flint object in that it is neatly grooved, well chipped, with sharp point, and it was doubtless used as a hand-hatchet, mounted as in Fig. 176.