There is no doubt that best part of my job as an artifact dealer and author is getting to see and handle so many artifacts from around the country.  The longer a person in this hobby, the more knowledge they accumulate, and the fewer opportunities there are to see and experience types of artifacts they have never come across before. With me, I am always excited when I come across a type of artifact I have not seen before, and today was one of those days when I got to experience that fun side of collecting. 

I agreed to purchase a collection of around 400 points and three stone tools that were all found in the Washington State area from the son of the finders who collected from 1948 to 1968. The gem points were awesome, and included some great examples of Columbia river gems that I could add to our website and our store on arrowheads.com. But when I unboxed the below stone tool, I first thought it was just a grooved maul or net weight that is commonly found in that part of the country - until I turned it over.



From this side, it just looks like a typical maul or weight - but .........................






When I turned it over and saw the other side, I realized it was a highly stylized club head, and boy was this a cool one. I have seen a couple pictures of such items, but until today I had not had the opportunity to handle one close up. 

Here are some other shots from different angles.....









After I got done looking this one over, I knew I had to share some photos of this one here 


Jim Bennett
11-07-08