Native Groups — Mississippian Tools

Mississippians were very resourceful, transforming stone, wood, and bone into a variety of tools. Often these materials were utilized in their natural form with little modification.

People have been mixing naturally occurring pigments, such as ochres and iron oxides, for thousands of years. The Mississippians were no different. A variety of pigments were used to create face and body paint, and to decorate other natural materials, such as buckskin, rawhide, bone, and wood.

Closeup image of worked mixing stone. It is a somewhat rounded stone & semi-pointed edge w/ hollowed out bowl on top. Stone is 1.8 inches long and 1.5 inches wide. — This small stone may have been selected for its naturally occurring divot that was modified into a deeper depression. The convenient size and shape would have been perfect for mixing pigments and applying paint with the tip of a finger, a small brush, or stick.

Courtesy of: William Brigham Collection
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1.5 inches high and 4 inches long oval dark gray granite cobble. Depression at center of both sides. One side may have been polished smooth. — Nutting stones have been in use since the Archaic period. The shallow indentations on both sides of this stone were created from repeated pounding to break open nut shells.

Donated by: Greg and Carol Koos
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Photo of a bone shaped into a carving tool. 1.5 inches wide and 5.5 inches long. — This piece of bone has been made into a pressure flaking tool used for shaping flint and other types of stone. It was not uncommon for skilled Mississippian flint knappers to have a full set of knapping and leatherworking tools made from bone, including awls, pressure flakers, and even sewing needles.

Courtesy of: William Brigham Collection
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Photo of a brown lanceolate shaped flint stone. 2 inches wide, 5.5 inches long. — Using knapping techniques, flint was shaped into knives used for a wide variety of purposes including hunting, cooking, and leather-working.

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Photo of a white colored stone shaped into an awl for poking holes into material. 1 inch wide, 2.2 inches long. — Awls (drills) were used as early as 12,000 BCE for punching holes through animal hide or wood. This tool was created and used by Mississippian people.

Courtesy of: William Brigham Collection
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Hoes

The Mississippian people used a variety of stones for making hoes. The two shown here are made from Mill Creek chert, a fine-grained sedimentary rock specific to Southern Illinois. They used Mill Creek chert for other tools too, as it is extremely tough.

Mussel shells were used by the Mississippian people to create a variety of tools, including hoes, scrapers, and spoons. Shells were also shaped into gorgets (armor-like coverings worn over the throat), beads, and pendants.

Small hoes were first created during the late Woodland period, roughly 1,400 years ago. Used for cultivating corn, the Mississippian people continued to make and use hoes.

Large hoes, like this one, were created as early as 1,200 years ago, and used as recently as 500 years ago.

Hoe blade made from a mussel shell. Found at the Noble-Wieting site.

Courtesy of: Illinois State Museum, Springfield

Photo of a brown stone shaped into a hoe blade. 5.2 inches wide, 9 inches long. — 722.245

Photo of a white colored stone shaped into a hoe blade. 3.5 inches wide, 5.5 inches long — 722.244

Stone Axes

Native cultures have used stone axes for a wide variety of tasks, including harvesting timber; shaping, splitting, and cutting wood; preparing food; as weapons; and for ceremonial purposes.