Heartbreaker Axe Find Outing.

[questor]

I hunt this stretch of shoreline several times per year when other opportunities are limited. This was a mid August hunt here in Northern Iowa. This area pretty much teases me with signs of promise, but seldom coughs up a good find. This hunt went a bit better than most for here. But yet, still could have been better as you'll soon see.

I usually hunt a stretch of cow trails along this lakebank on my way out to the main areas. My first find as seen below came out of a portion of these trampled trail areas. Luckily wasn't broken via heavy hoofs. Looks to be a mostly used up Adena/Dickson class of point.






Below is the same point in the hand, but looking behind back down from the direction I had just came from along cattle trails. My walking stick on the ground points to the spot of the recently made find.

(Sidenote: I made a broken hardstone find right about in this same area several years ago that I'd sure like to have some opinions on. I will post it in an upcoming follow-up thread.)





So as to give you viewers a sense of the site settings that I was hunting on this day, is this shot of a stretch of the bank that I am hunting out on the farthest point of land jutting out into the lake itself. The tree grove off in distance is where the first point was found, here again looking back from the direction I had previously come from.





While hunting out on the point of land itself, I encountered this promising site along the shoreline mixed in with the shoreline rock debris. Look closely towards bottom center of pic for your first view of the axe find, somewhat hidden in amongst the rocks.





Below is a closer up look at the In-Situ axe find. This is the best made specimen I have found in quite a long time. So was quite painful to see the missing chunk of bit.





Axe removed and shown with other finds from the hunt. A decent scraper had also just been found up on top of the bank.





One edge of axe is nicely grooved out for hafting wedge. The termination of the point of land is shown in the background here, which is close to where this find was just made.





This last shot gives a sense about a unique aspect about this axe. It appears to me that it was continued to be utilized after having been broken. Hopefully that feature can be seen here effectively. Their is a pecked and ground down zone that rolls over the edge of the original sharp-edged breakline. This worked down area has been fairly well smoothed over the sharp line of breakage. So in a way, is actually a complete specimen after all! At least by my account. But then again, whatever activity this may have been, it could have very well led to the breakage in the first place!

[drdave514]

That's not a broke. That's a damaged whole!

Nice finds. Good to see others getting this awesome weather.

[Tdog]

Man, that is a killer find by any account. Thanks and congrats. I spotted it in the "first view"!

[questor]

That's not a broke. That's a damaged whole!

I like your angle of approach to this one drd. I can live with that version quite well.

Man, that is a killer find by any account. Thanks and congrats. I spotted it in the "first view"!

Thanks and congrats yourself T-dog. Well done...I, um, spotted it in THE very first - 'first view'.

[Wichita]

While it is a heart breaker, it is still an outstanding find. I would settle for that any ol day!

[Steve Valentine]

Even damaged that is one heck of a nice Axe Mike. Shame the bit was damaged but I can see what you mean about it still being used. I'd say that spot will yield you a killer one day if you are persistent.

[rmartin]

Iowa has some of the nicests axes to be found. Great find regardless of its condition.

[neralich]

Sweeeet!!! Cool in-situ with it laying exposed with all the other rocks like that!

I agree, it looks like it seen continued use!

[Justin L. Dickerson]

Man oh man would I like to find me an ax!!!!
Awesome finds!!!

[questor]

While it is a heart breaker, it is still an outstanding find. I would settle for that any ol day!

I was content going out of there that day Wichita. This axe is still the best find I have pulled out of their to date in my opinion. There was one other quite nice maul though too.

Even damaged that is one heck of a nice Axe Mike. Shame the bit was damaged but I can see what you mean about it still being used. I'd say that spot will yield you a killer one day if you are persistent.

Steve, stay tuned for the follow-up post to this one. The broken piece that I mentioned briefly as a sidenote, might just be part of a mind blowing piece if I can somehow get lucky enuff to score the rest of it.

Iowa has some of the nicests axes to be found. Great find regardless of its condition.

rmartin - Thanks, I'm happy with it. Most of the axes I find around here have been well used and even abused one could say. Your Avatar pic shows some true greatness in their own right.