I have a vague memory of doing it...or maybe my dad just told us about
doing it.  Of course, it's illegal to deface/deform money... But, they
have machines that make souvenirs out of pennies at amusement parks
(well, they used to; I havent been in ages).

That could explain the 1 totally smooshed casing... But still others,
were just smashed on the cylinder portion...and only partially. But, one
was bent over on itself...and smashed so well to were you can barely
detect where the folded edge is.  But, the heads are squashed on these
examples.

>-----Original Message-----
>From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On 
>Behalf Of David Parkhill
>Sent: Sunday, August 05, 2007 7:22 PM
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: the Kid Factor influence on artifacts (etc)
>
>Ever put a penny on a RR track and let a train run over it? 
>Could be possible. It could make a bang!!!
>DTP
>
>
>At 04:55 PM 8/5/2007, you wrote:
>>The smashed margins are smooth...so appeared to have been done on an
>>anvil...or similar metal...not on an uneven surface.  Cant say that I
>>see individual hammer head blows tho.  Perhaps the one with the mashed
>>head was done so in a vice. ??  But how hard would this be for a
>>kid...or teen...to do (strength)?
>>
>>What's the fun in it. ???  I'm thinking as an escape from boredom. ??
>>
>>Why do kids smash on unburied ordance they find on old military
>>bases...and go Boom?
>>
>>As a kid, my bike pedalling brother aimed the front tire for a ketchup
>>packet on the asphalt of a parking lot...to see if he could hit it.
>>Well, he succeeded...and the HOT SAUCE hit him in the eyes!  Stupid
>>things kids do..
>>
>> >-----Original Message-----
>> >From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
>> >Behalf Of Ron May
>> >Sent: Sunday, August 05, 2007 2:30 PM
>> >To: [log in to unmask]
>> >Subject: Re: the Kid Factor influence on artifacts (etc)
>> >
>> >The answer to your question about flattened bullet shells lies
>> >in the forensics of your artifacts and the context from which
>> >they were recovered. If  you have hammer marks, then you have
>> >the answer. What is the shape of the underside of the shell?
>> >Bullet shells crushed between vehicles (tractors and  farm
>> >vehicles, trucks, and old autos) and gravel pavement should
>> >exhibit small indents from the harder rock fragments (quartz,
>> >for example). If the kid  hammered the shells on a blacksmith
>> >anvil or piece of a railroad tie, the  underside might be
>> >smooth. But how much fun is there is hammering bullet shells
>> >flat? It sounds kind of boring to me. Then again, I once
>> >examined a 1918 vintage  cabin in Libby, Montana in which
>> >cowboys hammered .22 caliber bullet shells into the log ends
>> >just for the fun of it. But just maybe someone cleaned up the
>> >litter on a gravel road and dumped it in the pit (a secondary
>> >deposit with no contextual connection to the shape of the shells).
>> >
>> >Ron May
>> >Legacy 106, Inc.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >************************************** Get a sneak peek of the
>> >all-new AOL at http://discover.aol.com/memed/aolcom30tour
>> >
>