A LARGE OBSIDIAN BLADE/BIFACE FROM CALIFORNIA
SISKIYOU COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
LATE STONE AGE TO EUROPEAN CONTACT
ST. LOUIS SCIENCE CENTER COLLECTION
Pete Bostrom holding a 30 inch California biface.
PETE BOSTROM HOLDING A LARGE
OBSIDIAN BIFACE FROM CALIFORNIA
ST. LOUIS SCIENCE CENTER COLLECTION

Closeup of the writing on this obsidian biface. Pete Bostrom holding a large obsidian biface from California.
LARGE OBSIDIAN BIFACE
LATE STONE AGE TO EUROPEAN CONTACT
SISKIYOU COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
ST. LOUIS SCIENCE CENTER COLLECTION

   The largest bifaces in North America are found on the west coast in California.  The example pictured here was originally in the Dr. Henry M. Whelpley collection and is presently located in the St. Louis Science Center's collection in St. Louis, Missouri. These bifaces were made of Obsidian and range in size up to 30 (76.2cm) inches long. The example shown in these pictures was collected several years ago on the Salmon River in Siskiyou County, California.

Large obsidian biface laying on 5 large spades.
 CLICK ON PICTURE FOR VERY LARGE IMAGE
LARGE OBSIDIAN BIFACE
SISKIYOU CO., CALIFORNIA
ST. LOUIS SCIENCE CENTER COLLECTION

   This obsidian blade is one of the largest bifacially flaked stone artifacts ever found in North America. It's a good representative example of one of the extraordinary large obsidian blades from California. This one measures 30 inches (76.2cm) long. It's laying on top of several large Mississippian spades from Missouri and Illinois. 
   The second largest flaked stone artifacts in North America would be the Mississippian spades from Late Stone Age sites in the Central Mississippi Valley. The people living at that time were able to make these spades because they had access to a plentiful supply of stone called Mill Creek chert, just like the native people in California had a plentiful supply of obsidian to make their large ceremonial biface/blades. There was enough of this tabular chert in southern Illinois to supply everyone within reach of their system of trade. Countless tons of Mill Creek chert must have been paddled up the Mississippi River system in small boats or canoes. 
   This picture shows two different types of unnotched spades. The two on the ends are flared bit spades and the three in the center are called oval spades. These digging tools were once hafted onto handles and used in the same way hoes are used. The largest one measures over 16 inches (40.6cm) long but larger examples have been recorded over 18 inches (45.7cm) long. Most of the spades in this picture are made of gray and brown Mill Creek chert from southern Illinois. The second one from the right is made of Kaolin chert. Notice the polish on the bits from digging (can be easily seen in the enlarged picture).

   W.H. Holmes, a noted archaeologist working for the Smithsonian Institution at the turn of the last century, said, "among the most remarkable chipped implements in America, and in the world for that matter, are the obsidian blades of California, the largest of which are upward of 30 inches in length and at the same time are of remarkable symmetry and beauty of finish".

Closeup of the area of repair on this obsidian biface.
THIS LARGE OBSIDIAN BIFACE
SHOWS SIGNS OF AN EARLY REPAIR
SISKIYOU CO., CALIFORNIA
ST. LOUIS SCIENCE CENTER COLLECTION

   There is some reason to believe that this obsidian biface from Siskiyou Co., California was an important artifact to the person that once owned it. Evidence indicates that there was an early attempt to repair the area where it was broken. As can be seen in this picture there is a crack where it's presently glued together but an earlier repair was aided by at least four notches on each side of the crack. The first repair was probably both glued and wrapped with some type of fiber.

   These large bifaces were in use up to and some years after European contact. Published accounts by anthropologists describe these artifacts as ceremonial and were kept primarily as objects of wealth.

"REFERENCES"


1919, "Handbook of Aboriginal American Antiquities" by W.H Holmes, pp. 214-216.
1978, "The Whelpley Collection of Indian Artifacts" by Leonard W. Blake and James G. Houser, plates 27 and 35.
1983, "Archaeology of the Central Mississippi Valley" by Dan F. Morse and Phyllis A. Morse, pp. 204-206.

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