Spokeshave

Also called Notched flake, Notch, Concave scraper

SpokeshaveAbout 13,000 years ago to the historic period: spokeshaves occur in Late Paleoindian Lusk complex assemblages (about 8,300–7,500 B.P.) on the northern Plains (Peck 2011), in an Archaic Skidmore phase camp and a Woodland Newtown phase rockshelter in Kentucky (Pollack 2008), and on sites of all periods (Boen and Williams 2022)Paleoindian to Protohistoric

Key facts

Age: About 13,000 years ago to the historic period: spokeshaves occur in Late Paleoindian Lusk complex assemblages (about 8,300–7,500 B.P.) on the northern Plains (Peck 2011), in an Archaic Skidmore phase camp and a Woodland Newtown phase rockshelter in Kentucky (Pollack 2008), and on sites of all periods (Boen and Williams 2022)
Cultural period: Paleoindian to Protohistoric
Material: Chert and other fine-grained flaking stone; often made on a flake or a broken tool of whatever stone was at hand.

Description

A spokeshave is a flake tool whose working edge is a rounded, concave notch rather than a straight or convex edge. Most are ordinary flakes or broken tool fragments with a single semicircular notch in one edge; some carry two or more notches, and the notch may be paired with scraping edges elsewhere on the same piece (Morrow 2016; Boen and Williams 2022).

The notch was made by small retouch flakes struck from one face along a short stretch of the edge, giving a steep, even, concave edge. In side-scraper terms it is a concave scraping edge, which is why analysts often treat spokeshaves as a variety of side scraper (Morrow 2016). The working margin is usually smooth and regular and may show small step fractures from use (Boen and Williams 2022).

Archaeologists interpret spokeshaves as woodworking tools, drawn along a round stick to shave and smooth it, and associate them in particular with making tool handles and the shafts of darts and arrows (Boen and Williams 2022). The size of the notch therefore tends to match the stick being worked. The key trait is a deliberately retouched, half-round notch in the edge of a flake.

Size

More information needed.

Distribution

Found across North America on sites of every period, usually in small numbers. Reported from Paleoindian sites on the northern Plains and from Archaic and Woodland camps and rockshelters in Kentucky (Peck 2011; Pollack 2008).

Additional information

Identification tips: Look for a smooth, half-round notch with tiny, even retouch scars on one face, and for polish or step fractures inside the notch. A notch with jagged, irregular scars may be accidental damage, not a tool.

Similar types: Albany Spokeshave is a named Paleoindian tool of east Texas; Texas Beyond History describes Albany tools as highly variable scrapers, both bifacial and unifacial, whereas a spokeshave is any flake with a worked notch. Side Scraper has a straight or convex edge, not a concave one. Notched projectile point bases have paired notches on both sides of a stem and were made for hafting, not for working.

Naming: Also called notched flake, notch or concave scraper; Kentucky reports list "spokeshaves or notches" together (Pollack 2008).

Dating evidence: Spokeshaves are not diagnostic of any period; Boen and Williams (2022) link them with making handles and projectile shafts.

Similar types

Types that are easy to confuse with the Spokeshave stone tool.

Sources

Boen, Renee M., and Roger R. Williams. 2022. Identifying Chipped and Ground Stone Artifacts Found in South Dakota and Adjacent Regions. South Dakota State Historical Society, Archaeological Research Center, Rapid City.history.sd.gov (opens in a new tab)
Morrow, Toby A. 2016. Stone Tools of Minnesota. Wapsi Valley Archaeology, Anamosa, Iowa, for the Minnesota Statewide Survey of Historical and Archaeological Sites. Chapter 4, Chipped Stone Tools: Side Scrapers.mn.gov (opens in a new tab)
Peck, Trevor R. 2011. Light from Ancient Campfires: Archaeological Evidence for Native Lifeways on the Northern Plains. AU Press, Athabasca University, Edmonton.aupress.ca (opens in a new tab)
Pollack, David (editor). 2008. The Archaeology of Kentucky: An Update, Volume One. State Historic Preservation Comprehensive Plan Report No. 3. Kentucky Heritage Council, Frankfort.heritage.ky.gov (opens in a new tab)
Texas Beyond History. 2001. Stone Tools of Texas Indians: tool gallery, Red River Knife and Albany Tools. Texas Archeological Research Laboratory, University of Texas at Austin.texasbeyondhistory.net (opens in a new tab)

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