Copper-Tipped Awl
• Approximately 10 cm long
Native people prized metal for its qualities for tool making. Even native copper, a very soft metal, is harder than bone and less brittle than stone. In Maine, Native people probably acquired copper by trading with people who had access to it locally. We know that some native copper came in from the Great Lakes, for example. After European contact, copper, brass and iron became available and people quickly switched to using it for making arrowheads, awls, knives and so on.
The copper tip of this awl is long gone – it may have broken off when the tool was used. All we can see now is the staining from copper salts.
Using a technique called x-ray fluorescence (XRF), archaeologists can differentiate native copper from European copper or brass. Native copper is very pure, while trade copper contains traces of lead and silver. Copper artifacts from this site were tested and their pattern indicated they were all pure native copper.
Although the copper tip of this awl is long gone, we can still see the staining from copper salts.