DIGITAL MUSEUM
Explore our online museum with interactive tours, videos, and artifacts.
Mano a Mano
Handstone, granitic
Weight: 392.32 grams
Dimensions: 91mm x 63mm x 51mm
This smooth stone is called a mano. To an untrained eye, this may look like just an ordinary rock, but in fact, manos were most commonly used for food preparation. This particular mano was recovered from the San Diego area and would have been used for crushing seeds and other types of plant material.
How do archaeologists know this is a mano and not just an ordinary rock?
Manos are generally recognized as artifacts based on their polish, scratches and lines otherwise known as striations, and any flattening that has occurred due to use. These features help archaeologists piece together the larger picture of how, when, and where stone tools, like manos, may have been used.
Try imagining that you have never seen or used a fork before. What features would help you determine its use and function?
Tools of the Past
Percussing tool, volcanic
Weight: 164.78 grams
Dimensions: 56mm x 53mm x 44mm
This small but mighty stone was once a tool that helped to shape other stone tools! Hammerstones like this one were often chosen for their hardness and size. In a process known as knapping, hammerstones were used to chip flakes off of other stones to achieve the desired shape, size, and function that was needed.
Take a close look at every dent, worn out edge, and smooth surface. These physical attributes are clues to its long history of use and its connection to some of California’s first people.
If you had the chance to use a hammerstone, what would you try to create with it?
Ever heard the phrase “straight as an arrow”? Usually, this phrase is used to describe someone that is honest, genuine, and on the right path.
We may never know if this arrow shaft straightener was honest and genuine, but it did help shape arrows that would stay on the right path! These tools were used to gently straighten wood or reeds to make arrow shafts that would fly true to the direction they were fired in. This process would aid in the successful hunting of many small and large mammals such as deer and rabbits.
What are some of the challenges you might face if you didn’t have the tools to successfully hunt for food?