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About the Tlingit Fighting Pick
In
September 2003, Sealaska Heritage Institute received an object believed
to be an old Tlingit fighting pick discovered in the early 1950s in the
village of Kake. The pick was found by Lloyd Davis during a construction
project and later presented to SHI by Davis' son, John Davis.
The artifact is made of stone and measures 16 inches (41 cm) in length and varies in width from 2.25 inches (5.5 cm) in the middle, to .5 inch (1.3 cm) at its ends. It weighs 5 pounds, 9 ounces. SHI is trying to determine the age of the artifact and the type of stone used.
SHI asked Native elders, museum personnel and academic experts to view the artifact and to consult with the institute about the object’s potential historical use. Two theories have emerged: Some experts have suggested the object was a tool most likely used for digging and that it is most similar to a grooved adz. Most of the consultants, though, are suggesting the object is a weapon, sometimes known as a “slave killer.” After exhaustive research, SHI is inclined to believe the artifact is a sub-type of slave killer known as a “fighting pick,” similar to one exhibited in Edward L. Keithahn’s 1962 “Stone Artifacts of Southeastern Alaska” (page 74).
The size and shape of the artifact also support the theory it is a fighting pick. Most other types of “slave killers” have smaller stone blades, which were hafted onto handles. The artifact received by SHI has a larger stone blade, and its hexagonal cross section, flat top and central ridge fit the shape of other known fighting picks. According to one source, the Tlingít fighting pick is most similar to a Lower 48 Native American “tomahawk.”
Artifact Discoveries
and Associated Laws
The club was discovered during a construction project in the early
1950s in the Village of Kake, on
Kake Kwáan land.
Most laws that today would cover such artifact discoveries were
not in place in the 1950s when this object was discovered.
If this same scenario were to happen today, numerous federal and state laws would dictate several events that would need to happen, but it all depends on who owns the land the object is found on. If something is found on private land, there are no laws or legislative requirements for what has to happen with any artifacts found. When an artifact is found on federal or tribal land, federal laws take effect.
For more information about how federal laws affect archaeological discoveries on federal and tribal lands, visit http://www.cr.nps.gov/linklaws.htm
When artifacts are found on state land, Alaska state laws would take effect. For more information on how state laws affect archaeological discovers on state land, visit http://www.dnr.state.ak.us/parks/oha_web/index.htm