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It was June 13th 2008 and we had five inches of rain in Greene
County, Missouri. My wife and I were driving home late that afternoon
and passed by a field that looked like a great place to hunt. I made the
comment “I think I’ll go hunt that
site tomorrow. Maybe there might be a Quartz Bannerstonelying out there
just waiting for me to pick it up?” My wife let out a little laugh.
She said “Well if this a bannerstone there, you
won’t find it. All you ever find is the gnarly beat up stuff.” I
chuckled at her comment, and knew right then I had to hunt it, hoping to prove her wrong. You never know what might show up in
a field you’ve
never hunted before.
I arrived Saturday morning around 9:30 and the field was one very muddy
mess. I began my search. After 15 minutes of walking I was very disappointed.
I had not spotted a single flake to indicate any habitation by ancient
man. I made a turn and started back up the hill. Then, not 5 feet in front
of me, I saw clear evidence why I needed to hunt this place. Laying there
fully exposed was a Clovis point. It was pointing east, so the sun caused
the flute hinge to cast a small shadow. Not wanting to believe my luck,
I thought to myself “Surely that’s just a leaf or perhaps broken chunk of rock lying on top of
the point.” I then bent
down to pick up my first Clovis in over 30 years of hunting.
It is a perfect Clovis. It’s not large, measuring 2 5/8” long and 1 1/8” wide. But it seemed huge that day. Paleo man had fashioned it from a stunning piece of Banded Jefferson City Chert. I flipped it over and over in my hand. I just needed to confirm it was indeed a Clovis. I balled it up in my fist and headed back. As I drove home I kept it in my hand. I just couldn’t believe my luck!
I arrived home and laid it down in front of my wife. I had a big grin, and could tell she was quite surprised at my find. I said to her “How do you like your crow dear ?”