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In July 2014, an avocational surface collector chanced across a partially exposed Chinese votive sword behind roots in an eroded bank of a small stream in Georgia. The 30 cm artifact is possibly a one-of-a kind find in North America and is another example in the growing list of seemingly out-of-place Chinese artifacts suggesting Chinese travel to North America in Pre-Columbian times. The exquisite sword has preliminarily been identified as being fashioned in Lizardite and has surface features indicating it is very old. It is hoped that future testing will confirm the type of stone, and determine the source, since Lizardite deposits exist in both eastern and western hemispheres. Answers to the when, who, and how questions remain uncertain. An

A recently discovered artifact in Northern Georgia is a testament to the importance of religious art in the spiritual lives of the area’s ancient Indigenous residents. What can such an oddly placed find tell us about the culture from which it came? Might its uncanny resemblance to serpent effigies found in Aztec culture indicate about the reach of ancient cultures in North America? Serpent’s Creation Sculpted in Georgia Conglomerate, the exquisite 7.8 pound (3.53 kg) piece shows that the sculptor exercised great care in its execution. When asked how long such a piece would take to complete, distinguished Chicago wildlife sculptor Walter Arnold shares that “if he stuck with it”, it could have been completed in 1 ½ weeks, but

History is sometimes slow to share its secrets, but it did recently for a rural Jackson County man while he was clearing an area of his property. As a longtime resident and avid artifact collector, he quickly realized he had found another unique piece to add to his collection of atypical North Georgia artifacts. Jackson County and the surrounding area is rich with archaeological sites located along ancient pathways and waterways flowing to the Chattahoochee River, which traverses the length of the State on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. One nearby unique site that illustrates the ancient history of the area, is a rare structure composed of four earthen concentric circles, the largest being nearly 100 yards (91.4

An artifact recovered from a hilltop site overlooking the Delaware River in Eastern Pennsylvania, along with other artifacts recovered during a ten-year investigation reveals there is much to be learned about the history of the region. The white Kaolin clay vessel serendipitously appeared one day in 2013 outside the entrance of a ground hog hole according to the property owner and researcher. With a professional background in art restoration, pottery and pigments, the type of clay and unique design features caught her attention as something atypical for the region. As she explained, “Kaolin clay is quartz based and void of impurities, while Native American earthenware pottery used natural muds and pigments from their geographic vicinity” and that “pottery of the

“It was just lying there” the finder explained as he recalled the moment and the previous two years of inquiries to understand what it was, along with his frustration of not knowing how it ended up in his garden. Afterwards, and with a look on his face that he expected me to have all the answers, asked, “How do you think it got here?” As with other such Chinese in appearance artifacts found in North America without supporting contextual information, I could only respond that there are multiple possible explanations A more informative answer came from the Burke Museum in Washington State, responding to the finder's earlier inquiry and photograph. Paraphrasing... we don't know what it is, but similar objects

On the afternoon of April 22, 1784, Jordan Clark and Jacob Bankston two men traveling from Virginia, ventured onto what was considered by many as sacred grounds. The site was located along the North Oconee river in present day Jackson County, Georgia. The Natives of the area referred to the site as “Yamacutah”. Yamacutah was first written about in the book “The Early History of Jackson County Georgia” originally published by W.E. White March 1914. Much of the book is dedicated to earlier writings of G.J.N. Wilson a native of Jackson County. Several notable treasures of these earlier writings are the names of the tribes, or families of Native Americans living throughout the immediate area, along with original names for