Sherry Hill find, Doe River valley, Carter County, Tennessee
This once fully natural pebble was recognized to have a strong resemblance to a bird by someone in Stone Age prehistory. Mimetoliths are naturally occurring rocks which resemble other objects known to the viewer. A psychological phenomenon described by Bustamante, et al. as the "PAH triad" may be responsible for stimulating the desire of someone to make modifications to the stone, transforming it into an artifact in the strict sense. This stone has been modified to add an eye, which disambiguates the bird form enough to make it a "real, living bird." This animation, a kind of rectification of serendipitous finds, is seen on many postings on this blog and may be thought of as a defining characteristic of this forsaken art modality.
Stone was chipped away on the under belly of the bird, the symbolic source of eggs, to create a sharp tool edge, as is seen in this earlier example in flint from Licking County, Ohio, where the bird's belly is also a sharp edge. For the maker of this artifact the power to slice, to cut into something, is regarded as strong as the force of life itself and analogous to the power of the symbolic cosmic egg as represented by a bird's belly.
Amateur archaeologist Sherry Hill also identified an exquisite bird figure worked around a gemstone like eye inclusion which was featured in an earlier posting on this blog.
Side 2 with tool edge visible along the bottom of the bird
Stone removal along the belly and tail of the bird created a sharp edge suitable for use as a tool
The "bird/tool" as it is optimally held for use (click photos to expand)
Carter County, Tennessee
Licking County, Ohio
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Sulldorf, Hamburg, Germany, Mousterian bird figure, archaeologist Walther Matthes, ca. 1960. (source originsnet.org)
Seventeen years ago, I became obsessed with the "stones" on my property. I could spend one hour and find hundreds of 'bird' shaped stones. These ranged from an inch to five feet! Everything on my property was shaped in this manner. I even collected five banquet size tables stacked with rocks that were carved the same exact manner. Each had a 'foot' as I describe it.. That made every stone stand. And each has an eye. You can imagine almost 20 years ago, my only research was Clovis..which did not fit. I found stone tools. My dog also brought back a human bone that I immediately threw away. I was only a young mother and had no idea the consequences of that find. I found a rock with a petrified chickens foot in it that still contained the skin. Every Boulder on my property was in the shape of a bird. Every tiny stone was also shaped the same way. I tried and failed to find someone that would listen or look at the the thousands and thousands of stones that were identical! However no one would acknowledge that it was anything other than my imagination if it were not a Clovis Tyoe Arrow Head. What I was finding was stone'. After many years of finding incredible artifacts on only 5 acres of land, I lost that property to a bank scandal. I have recently moved into a large mountainous region only 2 miles from my previous discoveries. I simply made a trip down the creek and up the mountain... And the stones I discovered are Identical! I even found a stone that was quite clearly what I describe as a self portrait, Mother Nature cannot explain what I found. It also cannot explain my fascination with finding them. I can spend just hours on any given day and fine the exact same artifacts in the hundreds. It has been 15 years since I have researched this. I always knew it wasn't native Americans... But something MuCh Much Much older. My property even contained prints in limestone, water spouts.. And so much more I don't even remember. I am convinced beyond doubt that someone was here.. in Tennesee.. long before the Native Americans.. and almost certain I can prove it.
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