Gunflint or strike-a-light
- Title:
- Gunflint or strike-a-light
- Collection:
- Selections from the Cornell Anthropology Collections
- Donor:
- Prof. Emeritus Robert Ascher, one of the principal excavators
- Date:
- ca. 1800-1850
- Site:
- Cumberland Island,Camden,Georgia,United States
- Location:
- Cumberland Island,Camden,Georgia,United States
- Country:
- United States
- ID Number:
- Anthr1983_002_0002_01
- Old Catalog Number:
- 983.2.2
- File Name:
- Anthr1983_002_0002_01.jpg
- Culture:
- antebellum
- Work Type:
- gunflints
firesteels - Materials/Techniques:
- stone
flint (rock) - Subject:
- slavery
georgia
plantations
georgia
georgia - Measurement:
- 20 x 22 (millimeters)
- Description:
- Irregular, roughly triangular or heart-shaped piece of flaked flint. The flint is light grey to white with slight reddish flecking. This piece was originally identified as a gun-flint (Ascher and Fairbanks 1971: 13-14), and it may have begun its working period as such, but in its present form it appears to be better described as a "strike-a-light", a piece of flint used with a fire-steel to start fires.
- Bibliography:
- Robert Ascher and Charles H. Fairbanks, "Excavation of a Slave Cabin: Georgia, U.S.A." Historical Archaeology 5 (1971), pp.3-17.
- Archival Collection:
- Georgia Slave Cabin archaeological collection
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- The images in the Collection 'Selections from the Cornell Anthropology Collections' are protected by copyright, and the copyright holders are Cornell University Library and the Department of Anthropology. Physical artifacts from the Cornell Anthropology Collections were photographed by Cornell University Library in 2012-13 for inclusion in this image collection. Cornell is providing access to the materials for research and personal use. The written permission of any copyright and other rights holders is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use that extends beyond what is authorized by fair use and other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.
Cornell would like to learn more about items in this collection and to hear from individuals or institutions that have any additional information. This collection is funded by an Arts and Sciences Grant to Frederic W. Gleach, Curator of the Anthropology Collections. Please contact him for more information about this collection, or to request permission to use these images.