Dave,
You didn't specify whether the cartridges are spent or still fully loaded.
Do you just have lots of crimped cartridge shells, or are they complete
cartridges with the bullets still in them?
If the bullets are missing, have the cartridges been fired? (I.e., do they
have firing pin indentations?)
If your specimens are crimped shells (sans bullets) but the cartridges
were not fired, Mark Branstner may be on the right track with his
suggestion that somebody was salvaging lead and/or powder from a large lot
of old ammunition. Considering that mining often involves blasting,
salvaging the powder might have been a sound business decision, especially
if the cartridges were purchased at discounted prices for obsolete or
surplus ammunition. If lead was commonly used in mining operations and old
bullets could be smelted and used for new purposes, such a purchase of old
ammo would make even more sense.
Allen Dart, RPA, Executive Director
Old Pueblo Archaeology Center
PO Box 40577
Tucson AZ 85717-0577 USA
520-798-1201 office, 520-798-1966 fax
Email: [log in to unmask]
URL: www.oldpueblo.org
------------------------------------------------------------
The only thing that I can think that would explain such a finding ... is
somebody salvaging lead and/or powder from a large lot of old
ammunition
>Interesting. I found a few on a site in North Carolina that had
>been punctured with a knife blade. I can't think of any obvious
>explanation for your situation either! I'd love to hear if you find
anything out though.
>Paul G. Avery, RPA
>Senior Archaeologist
>MACTEC Engineering and Consulting
>9725 Cogdill Road
>Knoxville, TN 37932
>Direct: (865) 218-1069
>Main: (865) 588-8544, Ext. 1169
>Fax: (865) 588-8026
>________________________________
>From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY on behalf of David Legare
>Sent: Thu 1/7/2010 3:45 PM
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: cartridges
>I'm afraid that I don't have any photos. Almost all of the hundreds of
cartridges in virtually every caliber were affected. They were all
subjected to pressure that either put them out of round or
>flattened them from about 2/3 of the way from the base to where the
bullet would have been seated. There aren't any clear tool marks that
would make me say it was done with pliers. A rock would have done as
easily. There were two exceptions that were one 50 caliber pistol
cartridge and all of the very small (less than 1 cm long) 22 caliber
cartridges. We didn't see any in the rest of the cartridges on the site
that hadn't been treated like this.
>--- On Thu, 1/7/10, Smoke <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> From: Smoke <[log in to unmask]>
>> Subject: Re: cartridges
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Date: Thursday, January 7, 2010, 1:12 PM
>> Have a photo or two?
>> On Thu, Jan 7, 2010 at 1:52 PM, David Legare <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
>> > I have a large number of cartridges at a historic mine
>> site in southern New Mexico. The primary occupation of the
>> site is from around 1903 to 1911. These cartridges are of
>> a very wide variety of calibers. they were all
>> identifiable 30-30, 30-06, 44-70, 45, etc. The question
>> concerns their treatment. Virtually every one of them was
>> found crimped in almost exactly the same place on the
>> cartidge. Anyone have any idea what this behavior is?
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> --
>> Smoke Pfeiffer
>> In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one
>> useless man is a
>> shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a Congress.
>> -- John
>> Adams
>> Proud member of the Angry Mob!
--
Mark C. Branstner, RPA
Historic Archaeologist
Illinois Transportation
Archaeological Research Program
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
209 Nuclear Physics Lab, MC-571
23 East Stadium Drive
Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: 217.244.0892
Fax: 217.244.7458
Cell: 517.927.4556
[log in to unmask]
"I hope there's pudding" - Luna Lovegood (HP5)
"If you only have a hammer, every problem looks like a nail"- Anonymous
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