Soapstone artifacts

Luckenback, A. H., C. G. Holland, and R. O. Allen (1975), Soapstone artifacts Tracing prehistoric trade patterns in Virginia, Science 187, 57-58. 

Rare Earth Element Distribution Patterns to Characterize Soapstone Artifacts... 

One important group of lithic artifacts are those made of the softer stones such as steatite. These cultural objects are in general symbolic or decorative objects or are used as containers. These objects reflect an expansion of activities beyond the immediate quest for food. Soapstone is particularly interesting because it occurs in relatively few areas and yet was widely used. Its utility comes from its soft, easily carvable texture and its coeflBcient of thermal expansion which allows heating without cracking. 

Figure 3, Chondrite-normalized rare earth element patterns of soapstone samples from quarries in the Mbe-marle-Nelson County regions of Virginia and in Crete. For the Albemarh-Nelson quarries f — the two lines give the range of 12 samples analyzed, and for the Crete samples (O — O) the two lines define the range of 19 samples. Two artifacts made of soapstone from the Albemarle-Nelson quarries are shown. One — M) is a pot from a habitation site in Cherokee County, NC and the other (A-- A) a pot from a habitation site near the quarry in Buckingham County, VA.

Figure 8, Resource procurement and the utilization of soapstone in the eastern U,S, Sources of soapstone are identified by a letter in a square (0) soapstone artifacts which have REE patterns matching a particular quarry are identified by the letter assigned to the quarry placed on the map at the habitation site (8)...

While it is possible to draw some conclusions with regard to the utilization of soapstone from the four quarries sampled, less than half of the artifacts analyzed originated from these four sources. The similarities... 

Figure 12. Chondrite-normalized REE patterns from quarries and artifacts in Labrador and Newfoundland. Sample N is from the Fleur-de-Lys quarry on the east coast of Newfoundland L from an outcrop near the Viking habitation site at Vanse aux Meadows in northern Newfoundland F from soapstone outcrops in the Freestone Harbor region and M from outcrops of Moore s and Okak Islands on the central Labrador coast. Both E and A are artifacts which represent a group of artifacts having similar REE patterns but for which no quarry of origin has been found.

Figure 13. Chondtite-normalized REE patterns for soapstone from the central Labrador coast. Dashed curves (%--%) outline the range of three samples from the Moore s Island, Okak outcrops (M) and two artifacts made of this soavstone. The Eskimo Island (O) artifact is from a Labrador Eskimo site (historic period) in Hamilton Inlet and the Koliktakik (A) artifact is from a soapstone pot from a late Dorset Eskimo site in the Nain region. A sample of the soapstone outcrop near Vanse aux Meadows (L) is shown (0) along with the Viking spindle whorl (A) made from this material.

The other sample of particular interest was a spindle whorl from what is considered to be a Viking settlement at L anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland (16), A small (20 mg) sample of this unique artifact was provided by Parks Canada. After duplicate analysis of 10-mg samples, the material could be returned to Canada for further testing since INAA is a nondestructive technique. As can be seen in Figure 13, the spindle whorl has a very similar REE distribution pattern to a sample of soapstone collected from an outcrop about a mile from the habitation site (17). 

While some caution must still be used in interpreting how closely samples must match, it is clear that analysis of the REE in soapstone can be used to obtain new information about the utilization of lithic resources. The reasons that this group of elements can identify the source of soapstone are geochemical. Soapstone is a relatively rare lithic resource formed by fairly complex metamorphic processes which leave a "fingerprint in terms of the trace element content. The distribution of material with this "fingerprint will help archaeologists to imderstand the process and pattern patterns of resource procurement. However, the examples discussed above show that it is also important to know age of the artifacts to interpret the geographical distribution patterns. 

The types of variation in REE concentrations expected from a single geological source were studied at the Fleur de Lys quarry in Newfoundland. Although the absolute concentrations varied, the chondrite-normalized distribution patterns remained parallel. Analysis of debitage indicates that most materials worked were from nearby outcrops, but there was some working of soapstone from more distant quarries. Artifacts representing various Eskimo and Indian cultures over the past 4000 years have been analyzed and many have been matched to geological outcrops on the basis of their REE patterns. 

Despite its harsh arctic and subarctic climate, the coast of present-day Labrador has been the home of peoples from several cultural traditions for over 7000 years. Most of the archaeological evidence— the tools and implements left by the prehistoric inhabitants of this area— consists of a variety of lithic (rock) artifacts. The variety of naturally occurring lithic materials utilized indicates that these prehistoric peoples were keen observers of their environment. As in many other parts of the world, the Indian and Eskimo peoples along the Labrador coast found and used the relatively soft, carvable soapstone. Soapstone is a hydrous... 

To show that a soapstone artifact originated from a particular outcrop, the trace element contents of the artifact must match the material from the outcrop. Like most naturally occurring materials, soapstone is some-... 

Over 650 soapstone samples from the Labrador region have now been analyzed. Of these, 400 samples are artifacts from a large number of different sites. The archaeological sites represent an extensive spatial distribution, but they also come from sites representing the different cultural traditions that span over 4000 years of human activity along the Labrador coast. The detailed discussion of these artifacts is not the subject... 

Evidence of plummet manufacture was not observed from survey and test excavations at the quarry (3). There is no evidence for soapstone utilization by other Indian cultures in the area. Although no lithic tools, which are diagnostic of the Dorset culture, were found at Fleur de Lys, the preform morphology observed in the quarry corresponds to finished Dorset vessels in size and shape. Thus the consistent and uniform technology of soapstone extraction observed at Fleur de Lys is assumed to be only that of the Dorset people. Association of artifacts from dated archaeological sites may provide some indication of the length of time that the quarry was in use. 

The so-called pedra sabao ( soapstone ) was extensively used in the nineteenth century in the production of many artistic artifacts in Brazil, such as the statues of the prophets in Congonhas City, in Minas Gerais State, an example of the baroque art of South America. The statues were made by a Brazdian artist, Antonio Francisco Lisboa, called o aleijadinho. Nowadays, the progressive corrosion of the statues provoked mainly by air pollution, is a very serious problem to be solved. 

The name soapstone comes from the fact that the stone is very soft. From a formal point of view, soapstone is a compact form of talcum powder (steatite), the fundamental chemical formula of which is Mg3Si40i6(0H)2. This basic silicate is the softest one on the scale ofMohs. Nowadays, soapstone is used to produce artistic artifacts such as statues as well as utensils such as pottery (Fig. 8.7). Care must be taken in its manipulation, due to its possible inhalation toxicity [3]. 

Allen RO, Pennell SE (1978) Rare Earth Element Distribution Patterns to Characterize Soapstone Artifacts, in Archaeological Chemistry II, (ed. Carter OF) p. 230, Washington, D.C., American Chemical Society... 

---