Rechipped

Modernly altered flint

For those of us who like to buy prehistoric artifacts a big concern we all have(and should have) are rechipped points. Here are some authentic points that, in modern times, someone altered to make them appear undamaged or simply straightening them out to make them more desirable. Some are easy to detect with the naked eye and others are a bit more difficult. I've found that high grade glossy flints such as Flint Ridge are very hard to detect without a UV light and lower grade cherts are often easily spotted with the naked eye or a Jewelers loupe.

The first point up for inspection came from TN. I bought a small group of relics some time ago and while the rest were unaltered solid artifacts this one had been messed with in modern times. The highlighted area in Figure 2 shows where the relic was rechipped. In figure 3 we see a close up of this area under magnification. Notice the difference in the color of the flint compared to the surrounding area. Its important to remember that this discoloration is due to disturbance of patination. Notice how the color differences ends with each flake. If it were color variations in the flint itself and not due to modern rechipping the differences in the colors would not end abruptly with the termination of the flaked areas that are highlighted. In that last two pics we can see metal flakes left over from modern tools. In this case probably an aluminum billet. This point was clearly meant to deceive since there is more dirt packed into the modern rechipped notch then what is found in the other ancient notch or anywhere else on the entire relic. Someone had wanted this point to fool a potential buyer so they tried to cover up the noticeable “bad” area.

FIG.1	FIG.2	FIG.3	FIG.4	FIG.5

Here is a nice authentic Flint Ridge point that has a slight problem. It seems someone decided to put serrations on the point in modern times. Probably to enhance the relics appearance and/or value. This one has traces of copper from a pressure flaker and fresh hinge fractures as well as flint crushing. All of these can be seen in Figure 8.

FIG.6	FIG.7	FIG.8

In FIG.9 well see a Paleo point that has a rechipped tip and a close-up in FIG.10. This point is pretty easy to spot without any magnification. The Side Notch in FIG.11 is a different story. Most of the Base and one notch were evened out to give the point better balance and form and increase its value. This one would be very difficult to spot without magnification and some careful inspection.

FIG.9	FIG.10	Fig.11	FIG.12

The sad thing is that even common field grade artifacts are being altered to try and bring a buck. Here are some pics of common to low grade pieces that have been modernly rechipped to make them appear whole.

Occasionally relics were salvaged by later cultures. The reworked area will still have a disturbed look but under magnification it will also be patinated from being in the ground. You will not see flint crushing or metal marks on the piece if it were prehistorically salvaged. The point below is a great example of this. Notice the patination change of the entire tip area versus the rest of the point.

When looking at points for potential purpose its best to approach things with a good amount of caution. Because of the amount of fakes and rechipped piece flooding the market its better to be safe than sorry.