FOUR DIFFERENT
DRILLING DEVICES

ILLUSTRATIONS FROM "A STUDY OF THE PRIMITIVE METHODS OF DRILLING",

J.D. McGUIRE 1896.
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   Many different primitive hole drilling devices have

been invented by different cultures around the world.

These four drawings illustrate four of them, although
there are many more. The one on the left is a bow drill,

the next one is a pump drill, then a disc drill and the one

to the right is an Eskimo strap drill.
   There is no way of knowing which, if any, of these

techniques were used to drill shell beads at Cahokia.

It's only logical to theorize that one of these fairly simple

machines might have been used. Only the stone drill bits

and some of the drilled shells have survived. Most of the

lesser stable materials that would have been used to make

a drilling device have decayed long ago. But it wouldn't
be impossible to find evidence of one. There has been

some wooden objects found at Cahokia. In Mound 72 some

of the wooden cedar stretchers were preserved and in

feature  227 there was some matting and bark preserved.

Also in feature 237 there was a section of twisted knotted

cord.

Four different primitive drilling devices.

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