The scope of carbon elements in historic Archaeology is far larger than I thought at first. I recently assisted with the excavation and analysis of a lumber mill machine shop excavated in advance of a bypass around Sandpoint Idaho. After the second bad fire at the mill a second machine shop was built and the old one was converted into a battery shop to service electric vehicles for the yard. The industrial use of electric vehicles in fairly well ventilated contexts like this surprised me. Apparently arc lights were also used extensively for industrial lights after they were less common elsewhere. I think that arc lights depend on DC current so that may be another reason for their eventual rarity, as well as the work of maintaining them. Some of the carbon (carbon/graphite?) rods we recovered had partial brand names. One of the brand names was "Electra", doing a Google search was frustrated by the overwhelming number of "Carmen Electra" hits. Doing a Google Book search and setting the parameters for "total download" only, helped by eliminating almost everything after 1920. I found Google Books ability to pick out ads could be very useful as well. The patent search is very useful particularly in looking at parts of things; however, I also have had some success looking at manuals and trade journals for the things as they were actually marketed and used.
Another curiosity was finding a graphite/carbon composite disc that was part of a starter motor. The ability of these discs as initially poor conductors which improve their conduction under pressure made them useful to eliminate the hard jerk on a motor when the power is first turned on. They were apparently arranged on rods balanced across from one another in such a way that power was directed through them to the electric motor; as they turned the centrifugal force of their rotation compressed them and improved their conduction so that they increased the power going to the motor slowly. I am not sure if this is still common in such machine tools as lathes or mills.
Google Books has digitized many manuals from the turn of the century (19th to 20th) which can be very useful. The uses for carbon/graphite in personal medical devices ("Power Belts") is particularly interesting to me, as well as the whole realm of medical batteries in the 19th century. I think that these devices must have been much more common than I realized in the past but that they can be very hard to ID in the field or the lab. just looking at the number of them being offered in medical catalogs seems to suggest that they were very successful. DOES ANYONE HAVE A COMPLETE "POWER BELT"?
________________________________________
From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of scarlett [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, November 25, 2010 10:28 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Mystery object, East Africa
As one of the editors for Identifying American Artifacts, published by
Left Coast Press, I would be very, very interested to work with
someone on this topic. It could make an excellent MS Thesis, for
example. The archaeological community is sorely in need of a guide to
formed carbon elements, in both batteries and arc lamps.
Sarah- for now, however, here are some clues that Lydia might be able
to cite:
http://www.google.com/patents?as_q=battery+carbon&num=30&rview=1&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_pnum=&as_vt=&as_pinvent=&as_pasgnee=&as_pusc=&as_pintlc=&as_ptype=11&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=1800&as_maxm_is=1&as_maxy_is=1920&as_drrb_ap=q&as_minm_ap=1&as_miny_ap=&as_maxm_ap=0&as_maxy_ap=
[This is a google patent search for keywords "battery" and "carbon",
but restricted patents issued between 1800 and 1920. The pictures
will help her.]
Cheers,
Tim
On Nov 24, 2010, at 9:01 AM, Doms, Keith wrote:
> Good morning,
> Sorry for the delay, I have been in the field. I actually came across
> about ten of those blocks stacked together with the anode terminal.
> The
> paper container had rotted away. Unfortunately it was part of a
> project
> that was never finished at my former place of employment. I never
> got a
> chance to research it. I would check patent records for batteries
> from
> about 1900.
> Sears and Montgomery ward catalogs from that time are selling
> batteries,
> mostly to power door bells. Some batteries are illustrated but not
> their internal structure. Sorry I can't be of more help.
>
> Keith
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
> Sarah Croucher
> Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 2:44 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Mystery object, East Africa
>
> Dear Keith,
>
> Thanks so much for the information. It's super helpful - a couple of
> other
> people also suggested that it is part of a battery, so it seems more
> than
> likely. I don't suppose you know of any references to any of these
> artifacts
> that are in press? It would be really useful to both Lydia and I if
> there was a
> report or other publication of some kind we could reference for our
> battery
> related artifacts.
>
> Many thanks,
> Sarah
>
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: "Doms, Keith" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Mon, 15 November, 2010 8:35:48
> Subject: Re: Mystery object, East Africa
>
> I have encountered something very similar but the core is some highly
> compress black compound not solid metal. I believe that it is a
> segmented battery core. The thin plastic appears to help hold the
> material together and keep its shape.
>
> Keith
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
> Sarah Croucher
> Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2010 5:35 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Mystery object, East Africa
>
> Dear List-members,
>
> I'm sending the following from Lydia Wilson-Marshall, a PhD student at
> the
> University of Virginia. She sends the following:
>
> I have a mystery artifact that I was hoping you could help me
> identify.
> I
> recovered what I think may be an early 20th-century battery or
> battery
> part at
> Awamthoya, a late 19th to early 20th century Giriama homestead. The
> artifact
> was found in a STP, so stratigraphy is unclear. It may be modern and
> not
> relate to the occupation, but I think it is more likely to be from
> the
>
> occupation--Awmathoya was abandoned 1910-1920ish. Its metal core is
> encased on
> the edges in a type of flexible plastic (bakelite? celluloid?). It
> may not
> even be a battery, perhaps part of a weapon? I'm more than a little
> lost on
> this one.
>
> ***
>
> The site in question is located near the Kenyan coast, but I have also
> found an
> artifact which appears to be the same at a site on Zanzibar. If anyone
> would
> like to see a picture, you should be able to access one at the
> following
> link:
> https://wesfiles.wesleyan.edu/home/scroucher/Archaeology%20pictures/IMG_
> 5241_reduced.jpg
>
>
> Feel free to send replies to me off list at [log in to unmask] I
> will also
> forward any replies on to Lydia.
>
>
> Many thanks,
> Sarah Croucher
>
>
>
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