New York State Museum

Today during our journey we looked at ancient artifacts found from 17th-19th century. I learned that early native settlers created tools using rocks to carve sharp points on them for hunting purposes so they could have a nice meal for their family. Because they didn't have many resources during this time period these settlers lacked proper hygiene including dentistry. In the picture to the left is a bone brush which people of the 18th century would use. One of the first features I notice on someone is their teeth so it amaze's me that there wasn't anything really to help take care of them during this time period. It was sad to see how degraded people's teeth were while looking at the cast of their skull. The bristles of the brush were attached to either bone or a bamboo handle.             

  

Another artifact we saw many of was pipes. Pipes played a huge role during the Native American lifestyle. The picture to the left consists of a tobacco pipe that was reworked and made into a whistle for musical purposes. Whistles like these were established around the year 1650-1700AD and were commonly used during the fur trade. Other pipes were commonly used to smoke tobacco which contained so much nicotine it could have been considered a hallucinogen. This came as a surprise to me because most pipe looking items in todays society are used to smoke marijuana which makes people feel high and a different type of way than tobacco would. 

As time went on I found it interesting how they separated people according to their social status. Only the elite could afford the nice plates with extravagant designs on them. The more color and designs the plate wear had meant the wealthier the person was. If you did not have much money your plate would be plain with no color or design on them. These plates were made out of clay and all of the designs were done hand made. Most plates had a china motif to them because that is where they originated from. I zoomed in on one of the many different drawings to show its beauty.