Knapping and Ochre Staining

I finished out the week with a couple more pieces for the Dorset and Maritime Archaic order.  The knife blade on the right is a Dorset style and would have been the kind of blade hafted into the short antler handle that you can see lying on the table behind it.  Other than that, I finished a knapped stone Maritime Archaic stemmed projectile point based on one found at Port au Choix.  While I finish up the other pieces in the order, I've started layering on the red ochre for the Maritime Archaic pieces.  More layers gives the pieces extra depth and the illusion of age.

The point, barbed fish spear and barbed harpoon head are getting a dry ochre bath here.   A dry dusting of ochre can help age a knapped point, but its not usually enough to cover a polished bone or antler surface.

Here are the same pieces with an oil based coat added to lock in the pigment and bring out the colour in the ochre.  I'll do a few alternating layers of ochre and oil, removing the thicker buildup and particles of ochre between applications until I arrive at the final look that I'm going for.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast