PIPE MANUFACTURE ON THE PLAINS AND EXPERIMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY: NOT JUST BLOWING SMOKE

Abstract

Several types of smoking pipes have been manufactured and used by native North American peoples throughout later prehistoric and historic times. Although substantial information exists on the styles of these pipes, very little is known about their methods of manufacture. This paper examines one particular style of pipe, the Florence Pipe, associated with the proto-Wichita Great Bend peoples. A block of Minnesota pipestone was manufactured into a pipe using stone tools replicated after those found in the Robb Collection from central Kansas. This archaeological assemblage was proposed to have been used in the manufacture of Florence pipes, which was confirmed through use-wear analysis of the collection. The steps and labor requirements for the creation of Florence pipes are illuminated in this paper in a way that cannot be accomplished through archaeological analysis and use-wear analysis alone.

Keywords:

• experimental archaeology
• pipestone
• use-wear analysis
• Florence Pipe
• Great Bend Aspect

Notes

1 Note, based on the times for sawing alone, this is not a one-weekend activity.

2 Using endscrapers to scrape pipestone is reminiscent to nails on a chalkboard, or in other words, very unpleasant.

3 Special thanks to the Geology Department at The University of Tulsa, specifically Dr. Bryan Tapp, for providing the sandstone.

4 This was unfortunate as the authors feel that a functioning bow drill would have been most useful in this stage of the pipe making process.

5 Based on the amount of pipestone dust created during our experiment, we recommend doing this activity outdoors.

6 Felicia Hammons is a graduate of Wichita State University, and has an unpublished paper on this topic titled “Use of Red Pipestone Powder as a Pigment: An Experiment in Archaeology”.

7 For more information about the work of Al Monroe, see http://www.matoska.com. While we initially contacted Kim Tali through his website (http://www.catlinite-pipe.com/), we are saddened to learn that he has since retired.

8 A quote from Tali, received by email, that the authors identified with for the pipe drilling process: for drilling, Tali uses “lots of water, lots of sand and mostly a lot of bad words (LOL) especially knowing [he has] an electric drill that can do the same job in seconds” (Tali, personal communication 2011).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sarah N. Chandlee

Correspondence to: Sarah N. Chandlee, 7 Gawler Court, Mont Albert, Melbourne, VIC, Australia 3127. Email: [email protected]

Collen A. Bell

Colleen A. Bell, University of Tulsa, Department of Anthropology, Harwell Hall, 800 S. Tucker Drive, Tulsa, OK 74104

Timothy Lambert-Law de Lauriston

Timothy Lambert-Law de Lauriston, The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Faculty of Science, School of Geography, Archaeology, and Environmental Studies, Origins Centre, Room 006, Private Bag 3, Wits, 2050 South Africa