TIL at a dig site in Montana how to spot a flint flake in seconds

I was out near Hell Creek last summer with a small crew, and one of the older guys showed me a trick. He said to look for a flat spot on the ground that's got a waxy shine, not like wet rock but more like a plastic sheen. I tested it on about 30 pieces of chert and it worked every time - the flakes catch light differently than natural broken stone. Has anyone else used that method or do you rely on something else to sort through debitage faster?

2 comments

2 Comments

andrew9161mo agoMost Upvoted

A buddy of mine tried that waxy shine trick on some obsidian flakes up in Oregon and said it worked just as well. He swore it made sorting through his knapping debris a lot faster than before.

troy_owens1mo ago

Test that waxy shine trick on different rock types like obsidian or did you only try it on chert?