Fig. 707. (S. 1–1.) Slate knives. New York State Museum collection.
Fig. 708. (S. 1–1.) Grooved stone found on the island of Martha’s Vineyard by Ralph D. Bardwell. Collection of Robert D. Bardwell, Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
Fig. 709. (S. 1–2.) Grooved stones found in various parts of the United States. Phillips Academy collection.
Fig. 710. (S. 1–2.) Slate knives. Peabody Museum collection, Salem, Massachusetts.
A great deal has been written about cup-stones, as reference to the Bibliography will attest. The pitted hammer-stone, the cup-stone, and the crude discoidal are more or less related. Cup-stones themselves have never been satisfactorily explained, and it is my opinion that such ones as are shown in Fig. 713 mean more than that they were ordinary depressions in which nuts were cracked. However, one must do justice to those who believe that they were used for that purpose. There is a suggestion along the lines of that theory which I would wish to make.
The Indians used large quantities of hickory-nuts, walnuts, and butternuts. The early historians tell us that they threw these into kettles of hot water; the oil rising to the top, they skimmed it off for future use.