"The archaeologist/(flintknapper) is usually interested in stone tools as one way of interpreting the past, while most of the modern nonacademic knappers are more interested in efficiently producing fine stone work."---1994, John  C. Whittaker, "Flintknapping," p. 61.
    "Modern flintknapping can be fancifully pictured as a tree with two roots. The first of these is the interest of academic archaeologists in understanding stone tools, and the second, the craft tradition of knappers who make stone tools for curiosity, fun and profit."---2004, John  C. Whittaker, "American Flintknappers," p. 34.

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14 POINTS FROM 1 HIGH RIDGE CHERT NODULE

   This flintknapping project was organized by Brian Wrage. All fourteen points were made from one High Ridge chert nodule. Having everyone working from the same piece of stone is a good way to display several different flintknappers works of art. The collection is a great "curiosity" -----fun to look at.

    These points were made from a nodule that  measured about 18 inches (45.7 cm) long. It was collected near St. Louis in Missouri. About a third of the nodule was colorful and that was the part that was used for the project. 

    The nodule was sawed into slabs with a rock saw to save material. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been possible to produce this many points. Doing it the traditional way, the nodule would have been fractured into a few large flakes prior to shaping them into bifacial preforms. Doing that would have meant loosing quite a lot of material from within the nodule.

"REFERENCES"

1994, Whittaker, John C., "Flintknapping: Making & Understanding Stone Tools," p.61.
2004, Whittaker, John C., American Flintknappers: Stone Age Art In The Age Of Computers," p.34.
Personal communications with Brian Wrage.

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