Georgia tektites or georgiaites are small glassy meteorites of uncertain origin. We know that they fell to earth in a meteor shower about 34.5 million years ago and are very rare. They have been found in about 17 counties in east central Georgia. Only about 1700 georgiaites have been found, and their average weight is about 8.0 grams. They look glassy black when on the ground, but when held up to the light, they are a translucent drab olive-green color. Being of glass composition, they have conchoidal fractures when chipped. They have a specific gravity of about 2.4 and a Moh’s scale of  hardness of approximately 6.5.

    The technique for finding Georgia tektites is similar to that of finding Indian artifacts. Choose a freshly plowed field that has recently had a good rain. The rain is necessary to wash the dirt off both the artifacts and tektites. A dark or cloudy day is better than a bright sunlit one, as it decreases the contrast and shadows. It is best to keep the sun at your back while walking. Sunglasses and a brimmed hat are needed to keep the glare out of your eyes. A long sleeve shirt will also provide some protection from the sun. Wear comfortable shoes, as your feet and legs will be tired even if you are in good physical condition.

    As an indication of their rarity, it requires about 160 miles of walking to find one tektite, estimating that it takes one hour to hunt one mile of ground.  Every hour of walking will usually result in some sort of an Indian artifact being found. Consequently, Georgia tektites are about 160 times more difficult to find than an Indian artifact.

    I had a discussion with some of my colleagues concerning whether the Indians could or would have used tektites as a lithic resource for artifacts. We decided it was not likely for two reasons. One, they are so rare and limited in their distribution that they probably would have been unknown to the Indians. Two, the underbrush was so dense that even if one were present, it likely would never be found.

    Then on December 29, 1974, it happened. I was just finishing walking on my 13th field trip to the Georgia tektite strewn field. The sun was on the horizon and ready to set. I was with one of my astronomy students, Joseph Huertas. We decided to make one last sweep of the field. Just ahead in the furrow I was walking, I saw a corner fragment of what looked like artificial glass. I picked it up, and it was a 5.83 gram Georgia tektite. The specimen was 30 x 27 x 6 mm and shaped like an Indian thumb scraper. As I looked closer, I realized that its leading edge had been worked by an Indian to make this edge sharper for scraping. This decision had to be reached cautiously as farm implements can cause chipping which looks quite similar. A closer look showed a second edge with slight working by an Indian. Since the scraper-shaped tektite had one flat edge, the Indian had to do only a minimum amount of chipping to convert it into a classic thumb scraper. So we know one tektite artifact existed. The find site was near longitude 83d 15’ 30.”0 W. and latitude 32d 21’ 40.”0 N. Since there were no roads in the area at that time, it is likely that this scraper never moved any significant distance from its original find site, and it was in the heart of Georgia tektite country.

    About 1980, an experienced Indian artifact and tektite hunter, David Higgins, was searching a probable Indian campsite about 4 miles south of Gary, Georgia. Gary is a small unincorporated community in Bleckley County. This area had a significant number of artifacts over an area of many acres. He found a tektite which had been worked extensively by the American Indians. This specimen has a weight of approximately 11.2 grams. Its dimensions are approximately 38 x 30 x 10 mm. Its color is classical drab olive-green and contains no major bubbles or inclusions. While the majority of the tektite artifact had been chipped into a scraper or some other type tool, much of the original surface is still intact. This specimen was submitted to the University of Delaware for electron microprobe analysis. The analysis gave the following composition in weight percentages of metal oxides.

Table 1

                        1. SiO2......................81.5                     5. CaO........................0.45

                        2. Al2O3....................10.8                     6. Na2O......................0.9

                        3. FeO........................2.1                      7. K2O........................2.6

                        4. MgO.......................0.9                      8. TiO2........................0.45

    Of the approximately 1700 known Georgia tektites, about 6 are believed to be associated  with the Indians either by being worked or by the location of their discovery. It is also interesting to note that of the many thousands of  known Texas tektites called “bediasites,” not a single documented case is known of a Texas tektite being used to craft an artifact. Perhaps we can change that and bring to light more Georgia or Texas tektite artifacts. Should you have one or  know of one, feel free to contact me at 215 Osage Dr., Indian Harbour, Florida 32937. Such an artifact would be among the rarest Indian artifacts on earth. It may not be an impressive artifact, but it could be very important on a number of levels.

    In closing I would like to thank Dr. B. P. Glass of the University of Delaware for his electron microprobe analysis of the Georgia tektite artifact.

REFERENCES

Povenmire, H.

1997, Tektites-A Cosmic Paradox,  Scott Publishing Company. Cocoa, Florida.  

Povenmire, H.

1975, “A Georgia Tektite Worked by Local Aborigines,” Earth Science, Sept.-Oct., p.241.

© 1990 C.S.A.S.I. Last modified:
January 31 2004