Introduction
Michelle R. Bebber and Christopher B. Wolff

Chapter 1. Hunter-Gatherer Native Copper Innovation in Northwestern North America
H. Kory Cooper, Matthew Pike, and Garett Hunt

Chapter 2. Comparing the Scales of Metal Use Between the Inuit and Dorset (Tuniit) in the Eastern North American Arctic
Patrick C. Jolicoeur

Chapter 3. Hammer-ons in Heavy Metal: Hopewell Metalsmithing Adaptation to Iron Meteorites
Timothy J. McCoy and Catherine M. Corrigan

Chapter 4. Red Metal, Domestic Gods: Prehistoric Copper Use in the Middle Atlantic Region
Gregory D. Lattanzi

Chapter 5. Copper Use in the Lower Southeast North America before Agriculture
Matthew C. Sanger, Shawn P. Lambert, D. Shane Miller, Mark Hill, and Tiffany Raymond

Chapter 6. Miskwabik’s Journey Beyond Minong: The Life History of Native Copper Production Among Archaic Hunter-Gatherers in the Northern Lake Superior Basin
Ryan Edward Peterson

Chapter 7. A Morphometric Comparison of Copper Stem Points and Chert Osceola Points: An Assessment of Artifacts in Light of Evolutionary Experiments
Grace E. Conrad, Stephen J. Lycett, Metin I. Eren, and Michelle R. Bebber

Chapter 8. Re-evaluating Middle Holocene Copper Use, Gender Roles, and Social Organization: Evidence from the Reigh Site (47WN1), Wisconsin
Michelle R. Bebber, James O’Leary, Mark Henry D. Abunda, Tiffany M. Crawford, Charissa Gilbert, Jawbone Ickes, and Nathan Shadron

Chapter 9. Copper- Versus Stone-tipped Dart Relative Functional Efficiency: An Experiment Assessing Penetration Depth into Hog Carcasses by Human Atlatlists
Jonathan Paige, Robert S. Walker, Briggs Buchanan, Robert Berg, Cheryll Berg, Charissa Gilbert, Jacob Baldino, Scott McKinny, Metin I. Eren, and Michelle R. Bebber

Chapter 10. The British Metal Invasion: Iron Use and Its Role in Cultural Changes among the Beothuk of Newfoundland, Canada
Christopher B. Wolff, Donald H. Holly Jr., and Amanda Samuels

Chapter 11. Experimental Archaeology on the Introduction of European Raw Materials in Indigenous Technology: A Case Study on the Beothuk of Newfoundland, Canada
Amanda G. Samuels, Donald H. Holly Jr., Michelle R. Bebber, Metin I. Eren, Scott McKinny, Briggs Buchanan, Jonathan Paige, Robert S. Walker, and Christopher B. Wolff

An Outro: Conclusions on the Indigenous Use of Metal in North America
Christopher B. Wolff and Michelle R. Bebber

From Hard Rock to Heavy Metal

Metal Tool Production and Use by Indigenous Hunter-Gatherers of North America

Edited by Michelle Rae Bebber and Christopher B. Wolff

274 pages, 54 ills., bibliog., index

ISBN 978-1-83695-044-8 Hb Published (July 2025)

eISBN 978-1-83695-045-5
web ISBN 978-1-83695-045-5

Details

“When the editors claim that the book addresses novel questions ‘using cutting-edge methods—including experimental archaeology, morphometric analysis, geochemical studies, and statistical modeling—to go beyond traditional narratives regarding technological development,’ they’re right on target. That’s exactly what the book does.” • Mike O’Brien, Texas A&M–San Antonio

The discovery and development of metals as tool media is a topic of global interest. This phenomenon is generally associated with sedentary, agricultural societies; however, in North America metal use by hunter-gatherer populations began as early as 9,000 years ago and continued into modern times. The regional and cultural diversity of research in this volume contributes to how we conceptualize hunter-gatherer innovation, technological proficiency, and complex decision-making in the past. Readers are challenged to reconsider long-held assumptions about how, when, and under what conditions metal became a part of humanity’s story.

Michelle Rae Bebber is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Michelle specializes in experimental archaeology and co-directs the Kent State University Experimental Archaeology Laboratory. Her research involves early metal technologies, ceramic production and function, and projectile weaponry. Michelle’s current projects are focused on North American copper use, the biomechanics of weapon systems, and the human aesthetic experience.

Christopher B. Wolff is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University at Albany in New York. Prior to teaching he worked in the Repatriation Office of the National Museum of Natural History in D.C. His research is primarily in the American Northeast, particularly Newfoundland and Labrador, with a focus on environmental interaction, architecture and lithic technology. He has published dozens of articles and book chapters on those subjects. Dr. Wolff is currently the editor of the journal Northeast Anthropology.

Subject: Archaeology Anthropology (General) Cultural Studies (General)

Area:

BISAC: SOC003000 SOCIAL SCIENCE/Archaeology; SOC071000 SOCIAL SCIENCE/Technology Studies; SCI104000 SCIENCE/Indigenous Knowledge & Perspectives

berghahn New York · Oxford

Contents

From Hard Rock to Heavy Metal

Metal Tool Production and Use by Indigenous Hunter-Gatherers of North America

Edited by Michelle Rae Bebber and Christopher B. Wolff

Subject: Archaeology Anthropology (General) Cultural Studies (General)

Area:

Home -> Title

Contents

From Hard Rock to Heavy Metal

Metal Tool Production and Use by Indigenous Hunter-Gatherers of North America

Edited by Michelle Rae Bebber and Christopher B. Wolff

Subject: Archaeology Anthropology (General) Cultural Studies (General)

Area: