As some of you may have read in our newsletter, Alex Gonzales, graphics specialist and videographer, has kindly shared some of his artifact collection with us! Featured in breathtaking clarity, he has sent us photos of some beautiful prehistoric pieces including this full-grooved axe found on the Jacob Wills Farm in Evesham, New Jersey. While the Jacob Wills House still stands and is on the National Register of Historic Places, some of the surrounding property has been developed and no longer survives for archaeological exploration. All that remains of the prehistory of the site are a collection of artifacts to be shared and learned from.
Full-grooved axes were made using ground stone technology, where stone was pecked and ground in order to form a desired shape, rather than flaked apart (in the way that projectile points were created). They would then have been hafted to a wooden handle. Abraders are coarse stones that would have been used to smooth other stones.