Stone Indian arrow heads

[xtrema312]

I have a collection of stone arrow and spear points.  They were all found by my family on the farms over they years with the last added by me.  These are who know how old, but all original Indian artifacts.  After seeing some of the knapping work on this site I am wondering if they have much value given it is probably impossible to tell and artifact from a newly knapped point.

[Al Dean]

Thier value to me is that my grandfather, a farmer and mountain man in Montana collected them for years.  Otherwise, not much.

[adeeden]

They have value, and you can tell modern nappings from old native ones normaly by the patina thats on the old ones.

[Jon Stewart]

Todd the guys that were at the K-zoo expo can tell new from old.  As far as value, priceless to you as they were handed down from your family to you.  I have arrowheads that I have found and will pass them down to my kids and grandkids hoping that they will continue to pass them down.
Each one is a one of a kind  point or spear head.

A good web site for arrowheads is paleo planet.  they have an archeological section on there also.  Post pictures and there are people on there that will tell you the name of the point and the tribe that is came from.

Hope this helps.

[xtrema312]

Great info thanks.  I want to mount them in a display case and put them on the wall sometime.  I have been planning to do that for many years, but never get to it.  I am looking for a case now.  That and seeing the knapping being done got me wondering about the subject.  Of course the value is mostly sentimental, but I was wondering if it was possible to tell a modern head from a true artifact.  It would be fun to have a key to tell the head types as part of the display.  I will check out that site.  Thanks again!

[Mudd]

Patina can be added to rock with very little effort, then the telling gets tougher.

I think its kind of amazing that after you've viewed the work of a particular knapper that it gets fairly easy to pick out his/her work even when hidden among the "real deals" in a tourista stores' display case. I also found out the hard way that the store doesn't like that much...lol

I tried to find out for my own peace of mind whether they were upset because they maybe purchased it as a real artifact or because they were knowingly try to sell a fake as a real artifact.

In my attempt to smooth things over before being asked to leave their store I told them that what they had was actually something really special because the rock that those particular points were made of was actually older when the points were made than the age of the rock that was used  at the point in time the originals were made.

I'm not sure he saw the humor in my point...lol

Oh well, I was done shopping at that store anyway.

I haven't been back there either. I didn't want to shop at a place that might knowingly try to rip someone off.(that's about as close to the benefit of my doubt that I could muster.)

God bless,Mudd

[twitchstick]

I think the value of something that came from family would out weight any dollar value. I'm sure someone would pay just look at the blackmarket on artifacts but thats a bad route in my opinion. I know all the heads my family has gather and been past down will stay in the family. Some of it was donated to museums but what is left we can't get agian. Most of our family farm went to the National Park service.

[Danny Rowan]

Actually, native american artifacts can be quite valuable to a collector. Be careful though, in a lot of states it is illegal to remove them from where they are found. Also a collector would want proof that they are artifacts so you would have to have them inspected by an expert in the field who would issue a paper stating they are true artifacts.

[hawk4570]

Their are some people in our area that make their living finding and selling originals but I can not tell the difference except that the ones I found as a kid most have piceces broken off. Some of these can be worth a great deal. Those are from people here before the Indians.

[Jon Stewart]

Like mudd said, the patina on the rock is a good start.  New points have new breaks on them whether is on the edge or step fractures in the body.  Points found in the fields and on the desert are "usually"  old.  Although I suppose some wise guy could salt the ground with new points.

Good place for show cases is Micheals crafts store.  They have frames with hinges on them.

[Ragnarok Forge]

True native arrow heads and spear points can have very high values.  You would need to check state law about selling them.  Here in Washington it is illegal unless you can show proof they were picked up prior to a law we have the requires them to be left where they lay.

All modern knappers either do or should mark their heads with a scribe with their name or mark and date on modern heads.  This keeps the modern easily seperated from the ancient and allow archeologists to use the true native work for their research and tracking of native cultures.

[JEJ]

"In my attempt to smooth things over before being asked to leave their store I told them that what they had was actually something really special because the rock that those particular points were made of was actually older when the points were made than the age of the rock that was used at the point in time the originals were made."
 :confused:  

Am I the only one who thought of Abbot and Costello doing the “who’s on first” routine after reading Mudd’s post? (Good one Mudd)                

if its a good intact piece it might get 3-4 hundred bucks, if its raer it might be even more,. and yes they do sell for thousands-depending on point type and raerness..

[xtrema312]

Here are some of my heads.

 
 

[Keefer]

No money can ever fill the excitement I get at the moment I first spot a stone point laying untouched by hands since the last flight it took before it was found with my eyes! When I was young this was my favorite hobby to do after a good steady rain in the early spring was to walk the freshly plowed fields...I would have the worst stiff neck from looking down for several hours a day...Every once in a while I would get this feeling something was watching me and I would stop look around and see a deer or a fox standing at the woods edge looking my way...

[twosheds]

Keefer, I also spent much of my teenage years walking and staring at the ground. I have quite a collection that I would never sell. Artifacts are priceless to me.

[poison arrow]

I as well have a bunch of Indian arrowheads. Mostly from New Jersey. My Great Grandfather use to walk the feilds after they were plowed. All kinds of sizes and stone types. I found a few I added to the collection as well as my Father and His Father. They have more sentimental value to me but that did not stop me from finding what they would be monitarily worth. Not a whole lot.

[Northwoods]

for ballpark prices on arrowheads you can refer to the overstreet identification and price guide to indian arrowheads. by the way, this is also a very useful guide to see the wide variety of stone points and tools used in the past and a good guide for beginning knappers to use to study point shapes and notch styles.

Ted

[xtrema312]

My favorite is the last single head.  It is the best one I have found and perfect.  Found it in the pasture in a dusting area laying there in the dust just like some carefully set it down there.  The horse did most of the work.

I also have what I think is a stone axe head and some kind of other stone pounding tool.  I don't have those here at the house.

[J.Williams]

I have a decent collection of artifacts,mostly points,I've found myself in this area.No interest in selling them,these aren't worth much anyway because they're so common(Levannas,Orient fishtails etc.)it's just cool to find them.Everytime I find one I wonder what the guy was like who made it and did he take a animal or person with it.Cool stuff!