I guess it’s appropriate that a guy from Little Rock drove to the Hill Country to chip little rocks. Even though it is a more than 16-hour drive, John Miller thinks it is worth it.
I spoke with Miller last fall when he called Club Ed to ask about taking our flintknapping class.
“Flintknapping has been a hobby since I was a little kid,” said Miller, who works as an archeologist with the Arkansas Highway and Transportation department. “I’ve always been interested in experiential archeology.”
Miller had read about Woody Blackwell in the New Yorker magazine. Blackwell is the internationally-known knapper who teaches the Club Ed flintknapping classes.
So Miller decided to combine business and pleasure, and took his first trip to the Texas Hill Country to take Blackwell’s class. Given Miller’s professional archeology status, one wonders whether the hobby is a stress reliever or intellectual pursuit.
“It is a little of both,” he said. “In my work, I analyze stone tools. So knowing how to make them can give you a little bit of an edge when analyzing the real thing. But it's also therapy - knapping is a pretty cheap relief for letting off steam after work.”
In his work with the Arkansas transportation department, Miller’s job is to go in and conduct archeological surveys before the construction of roads. Depending on his results, the department can proceed with building the road, or send in a team to do further research. Miller’s interest in other primitive crafts, including pottery, metals, and woodworking, gives him a useful perspective on making that decision.
“When you know more about the makers, and when you can make them yourself, it gives you a little more insight into the collections you analyze.”
Expert Blackwell understands both the appeal the lithic arts hold for modern men and women.
“I think there may be genetic component,” Blackwell said. “It's something our species has been doing for 2.5 million years. For a lot of guys - me included - when we find our first arrowhead, it becomes a passion. We have to find more, collect them, then figure out how they were made. Everybody who knaps has the same story.”
In his class, Blackwell teaches the basics of flintknapping. That includes learning what kinds of material work, how to remove flakes, and basic safety. At the end of the day, everyone goes home with a finished point.
For his more experienced students, Blackwell will share his secrets. “I hate to teach them my style, because it’s not necessarily the best, it’s just my style. Basically I show them advanced techniques, then turn them loose.”
Miller, meanwhile, enjoyed his knapping trip to Texas.
“I just saw the course online, and I have been meaning to get down that way, anyhow,” he said. “I know central Texas is loaded with all kinds of good rock, and I’ve worked some of it before. I always thought the hill country was an interesting place to visit, so I thought I’d come down and spend a week poking around, picking up rock and taking a class.”
“Besides, it was a good chance to try out my camper.”
XXX
Expert flintknapper Woody Blackwell will teach Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Flintknapping on Saturday and Sunday, April 24 and 25, at the Tivy Education Center. For information or to sign up, click www.clubed.net, or call 830-895-4386.
Club Ed is the Community Education program of the Kerrville Independent School District. Each year, we offer more than 400 classes throughout the Texas Hill Country, along with online courses, business and individual training, and after-school and summer camps. Comment online at clubedcomments.blogspot.com, or follow us on Twitter @clubedtx.
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