Howdy Rich:  Buckskinners, to this day still, hammer musket balls into squares
 for use as dice.
The dots may be painted or punched on.  Sometimes, they flatten various caliber
 lead balls into
other gaming pieces.  I have often seen flattened asnd unflattened lead balls
 with one or more
holes in them used as weight to help keep down the flap of a hunting pouch or
 haversack.

There will also be odd shaped pieces of lead retained by individiual soldiers
 which are sprues
from the casting process.  Many soldiers had their own rifles, muskets, or
 fowling pieces in a wide
variety of calibers.  The military may supply the lead but the soldier often had
 to cast their own
lead balls.

Smoke Pfeiffer


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Smoke (Michael A.) Pfeiffer, RPA
Archaeologist
Ozark-St. Francis National Forests
605 West Main Street
Russellville, AR 72801
501-968-2354 Ext. 233
[log in to unmask]
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 Absence of evidence IS NOT evidence of absence.