Rock Piles

Monday, June 15, 2015

Why you shouldn't climb on rock piles

It is a bit superstitious and a bit scientific to believe that climbing all over a rock pile is tasteless. After all, it might be someone's grave. It is certainly fragile. So keeping off of it is a good way to be respectful.

Solstice Viewing in Boxborough

via Peter Anick at NEARA:

This Sunday morning, June 21, NEARA member George Krusen will host a summer solstice sunrise meeting at a location in Boxboro hypothesized by Byron Dix as a sunrise alignment. (There is also a winter solstice sunrise alignment here.) Information here from Sudbury Valley Trustees site: http://www.sudburyvalleytrustees.org/events-calendar/summer-solstice-sunrise-weather-alert

If you know of other sites to visit for observing possible alignments, send me a message with directions and I will post to the group. Take photos and videos to test your hypotheses. As most of you know, the sun will rise/set at roughly the same horizon location throughout the week before and after the actual solstice, so you can check the weather and pick your day(s) to optimize viewing.

In past years, some of us have gone to Upton Chamber for the sunset (between 7:30 and 8:30pm). There is foliage but the glint of the sun setting over Pratt Hill can usually be made out from inside the chamber. You can watch from outside, but if you want to go inside, bring boots in case there is water.

A Few things about Indigenous Clam Gardens

"demonstrating a sophisticated understanding of stonework engineering”

Photo and Image: Amy Groesbeck.

http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2015/06/clam-gardens-june-2015.html

Saturday, June 13, 2015

Boulders in Smithfield RI

This photo above comes from here:
https://trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com/category/mercer-lookout/
(By some power lines, if you look here: http://www.exploreri.org/trailmaps/wolf_hill_map.pdf
or here: http://binged.it/1Qv7fN2)

Also at Wolf Hill Forest Preserve - Smithfield, RI, I find someone relates that "Stone walls (are) everywhere..."

http://www.yelp.com/biz/wolf-hill-forest-preserve-smithfield

This, "Quartz rock at Nipsachuck, showing repeated use in artifact making," comes from:

http://www.bvhsri.org/past-events/2014-annual-meeting-and-christine-nowak-lecture-with-kevin-mcbride/

Friday, June 12, 2015

A recent visit to the woods northwest of Parker Hill in Fitchburg turned up very little. For example the only thing that looked like a mound also looked bulldozed:

But there are always a few rock piles around and there were some nice lighting opportunities.

Modern rock pile

Curiously, there were rock piles of three sorts in this one place. Some old ones, some messy agricultural discards, and several of these modern "Sedona Stacks".

Living in the Past

Landowners often loot or destroy archaeological sites. Is this new subdivision a solution?

By Nick Romeo

JUNE 12 2015 3:54 AM

“When he was a boy in the 1930's, (Archie) Hanson loved collecting beads, fishhooks, arrowheads, shells, and any other tangible relics of the Native American tribes that once inhabited the California coast where he lived near Long Beach. Throughout a prosperous career as a California land developer, he continued amassing an amateur collection, flying a helicopter along his private stretch of coast and landing to grab artifacts. In the late 1980s, he and Mary became interested in the archaeology of Southwest Colorado after taking a river rafting trip guided by three archaeologists associated with the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, a nonprofit institute located next to ICR that is dedicated to research and public education. Mary loved picking up beads and arrowheads as much as Archie did, but on this rafting trip someone was always admonishing her to put them back down. “Finally I said to Archie, ‘Let’s get 10 acres so I can do what I want,’ ” Mary told me. “Here they believe in property rights,” Archie added. “You can dig up skulls and throw ’em over your shoulder.”

“I really respected archaeology,” Archie told me, “but I was doing a development here. So how do you treat ground that contains ruins respectfully?”

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2015/06/indian_camp_ranch_private_archaeology_looting_destruction_of_puebloan_sites.html

Ai'nt got nothing like that 'round here!!

Only sort of Rock Pile related, but...
http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2015/06/aint-got-nothing-like-that-round-here.html

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Native American Mounds (GA)

"Permanently disabled, Zimmerman began looking for a rustic hideaway and ended up buying 74 acres in Richland Township, Berks County, not far from Crystal Cave. He began exploring his property in an off-road vehicle — and made what he says is a startling discovery. The steep terrain was full of earth mounds, carefully constructed rock piles and other evidence of life among previous residents that he believes could date back to pre-Columbian times. Excited, he began seeking confirmation.

Unfortunately, his claims haven't generated much interest. He's looking for someone with expertise in this area to see his discoveries firsthand. "I know what I have here," he insists..."

http://www.mcall.com/opinion/white/mc-bw-indian-artifacts-20150516-column.html

Bill White writes, referring to the story above: "My column today mentions a Georgia author who responded to my recent story about a Berks County man who believes mounds and cairns on his remote property date back to ancient Native Americans.

In preparing that earlier column, I ran photos past a couple of experts who were unimpressed. But as I wrote today, Rick Zimmerman of Richmond Township received a lot of support in emails I received and sent on to him.

Zimmerman told me last week he hadn't contacted any of those people yet. But I learned after my column was filed Wednesday night that since we spoke, he reached out to one of the people with Lenni Lenape connections, who probably will visit his property this fall, when the foliage isn't so thick.

Still, the message Zimmerman found most intriguing came from Richard Thornton of Georgia, president of the Apalache Foundation:"

http://www.mcall.com/opinion/white/blog/mc-native-american-mounds-20150610-column.html

Modern-day explorer rediscovers rock Quinnipiac Indians worshiped, celebrated (video)

Via the NEARA Bulleting Board [click here]

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

More artifacts from the Kentucky Stone Wall/Mound Site

More photos from Yanaba L, who writes:
I found this arrowhead a few miles away from the rock pile location on a Creek bed..my friend has also found quite a few arrowheads at this creek..
Also, I found this fish shaped rock in the area of the rock piles..found quite a few of them but this is the only one I kept...

Tuesday, June 09, 2015

Up by Some Power Lines in CT

Some recent site destruction at an enhanced or decorated outcrop in an Archaeologically Sensitive Area, along the power lines, on the border of Woodbury and Bethlehem CT, along a path Norman, Peter and I once walked back in Nov. 1998.

(Above an enhancement of "before" and below a photo of "after:")

http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2015/06/feeling-powerless-under-power-lines.html
http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2015/06/older-photos-from-under-power-lines.html

Monday, June 08, 2015

Lovell Reservoir Continued

Continuing from here. Essentially my walk took me along the side of a valley, up to its origin, and then back up the side to a plateau, after a brief rest.

Let me tell you that after my brief rest (under the letter 'v' of "Lovell") that slope to the northwest looked inviting. Open, sunny, not too much underbrush but patches of fern and, as it turned out, patches of exposed rock that looked more and more like deliberate rock piles. At the brow of the hill was a wall with a conspicuous wall bulge. It caught my attention because of the collapse at the center against the wall:

This was also "suspicious" because there was an auxiliary small pile (to the left) and because of some quartz details:

(Lower right, there is a small piece of quartz, then another above it near the green leaf and, finally, I am pointing slightly to the left of a third piece.) Also, I could see another pile from there and was more confident - for the first time during the walk - that yes, these piles are the real thing:

But never mind the little stuff, I turned and saw this with its feet in a vernal pond (there is water seeping out of the ground in several places on this plateau):

I took quite a few pictures. You can see there was a bit of structure (wall in back and hole in front), now fallen down:

I did not realize there were two larger ones out of sight off to the side. Here is one:

Let me call attention to the cream beige quartzite left of center:

About 15 feet down the left side of the pile was a second piece of quartz:

And here is a view from that end:

You can glimpse the quartz on the right behind the sapling. As with the first mound, there is obvious structure here - now collapsed.

The last, and biggest:

And again there is a hint of collapsed structure:

Goodbye, I'll probably not see you again:

On the way back to the car, there were a few smaller mounds, a house foundation, then a further small cluster of piles around a seep. I have no reason to think the house foundation is from a different age than the piles. As is often true in northern Fitchburg, it looks like the farmers were continuing some older traditions. One comment about the style of piles: these are not your typical rectangles with hollows - they are more like messy, multilevel, with internal walls. Quite like others from this same specific area, as shown here and especially here.

The whole slope is a graveyard. Does it matter? Perhaps the town needs to know about it, so they can avoid bulldozing and logging. But otherwise it is a remote area and reasonably likely to remain undisturbed.

Sunday, June 07, 2015

Unfamiliar stone tool from stone mound/wall site in Kentucky

From the same site in Frankfort KY.

Friday, June 05, 2015

A site in Phippsburg ME

Thursday, June 04, 2015

From Bear Sign to Mound Group

I parked on Ashby West Rd and followed Scott Brook downhill before cutting across the side of the hill northward hoping to get into a ravine I could see on the topo map, east of Lovell Reservoir..
Here were some unfamiliar flowers:

I came across some bear poop, as I mentioned. Which is my first contact with such things in Massachusetts. Eventually I got across the hillside, covered with pine saplings, into the ravine.
As I followed the west side northward, I tried to keep an eye on the eastern side - which looked dull. I kept coming across piles of rock that were ambiguous. Were they natural? Were they part of nearby system of walls? A first of several wall bulges:

Then down to the very top of the ravine - where water first comes out of the ground. And look west:

And look east, and there is a large berm, divided, with smaller piles nearby:

A smaller pile next to the berm:

And a smaller pile next to it:

See what is in between the heart-leafed lillies?

A busy place - the head of the ravine.
I fell into the poison ivy at one point and rushed down to what was left of the brook to wash my hands in the mud. From the head of the ravine I continued northeast to a lookout over the reservoir then headed back northwest into the remnants of the valley. I was not sure where to go from there but the slope to the northwest was inviting - with large sunny patches of hay-scented ferns and more rock piles that seemed somewhat natural and hard to make out on the slope. I saw more:

A nice symmetry

More on the Hensler Site

Via Norman Muller:

For those interested in the Hensler site in WI and the petroglyphs found there, here is a link to an article on the site by Jack Steinbring:

***
Update:

This link will take you to the page with the Steinbring article on the Hensler site. It is the third article down under “Research”, p. 27-45. Tim’s link is to an abstract of the longer article.

http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/3/1

Hensler Paleo-Indian Point Petroglyph (Wisconsin)

A video by Todd Rongstad, part of the Sacred Ground Documentary Series, that features Dr. Jack Steinbring, David Weier, Ritchie Brown, and DS Cook.

Click here: THE DISCOVERY - Hensler Paleo-Indian Point Petroglyph
Click here for the other videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1uQDrP2EIsgP8dNtiSbm_w

Wednesday, June 03, 2015

Stone Mounds (Morris/Litchfield CT)

I was walking along some undulating rows of stones, open space land now, probably post contact time pasture turned woodlot as the times changed when the automobile replaced the horse, when I encountered some stone mounds in a sea of wet ferns on the first day of June, the rainy cold beginning of Meteorological Summer.

The first may be just a "modern" creation, stones piled to make some wide modern pathways, the rows of stones looking scant, slim and sloppy as if they had possibly been "harvested" in the last couple hundred years maybe:

I'd been by this one before and I didn't stay long to look, continued on along fairly level ground. I got off the path when I saw some sizable stones visible sticking up above the ferns, just before the drop down to a very large swamp:

The entire set will end up on my Flickr page, as the opportunity or insomnia arises. Some of the other stonework, some possibly related to the cranberry bog below these mounds, is already up here: http://nonnewaugfalls.blogspot.com/2015/06/turtle-and-more-in-rain.html

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