Sprayberry Rock, stone bowl preform, Sandy Plains, Cobb County, Georgia 2
Like most isolated petroglyph rocks in Georgia, Sprayberry Rock is not in-situ. It was moved a hundred feet or so to accommodate a new bank building, in 1984.
There are three prehistoric feature types on the rock. Only one of these features can be associated with a time period. During the Late-Archaic Period (5,000-3,000 years B.P), steatite or soapstone outcrops were quarried to produce bowls and other vessels. Soapstone bowls were traded all over the eastern and mid-western U.S. In Georgia, the bowls were often carved with tools fashioned from diabase (a very hard volcanic rock from instusive dikes found from Atlanta eastward). There are at least seven soapstone bowl preforms or bowl scars ( where a bowl was actually made and removed) on the rock. One preform was in the later stages of completion when abandoned.
The last two prehistoric features can't necessarily be associated with the Late-Archaic Period. Cupules are a poorly understood feature. In some cases they appear to have a utilitarian purpose and are often referred to as nutting holes. In other cases one to several hundred cupules were placed on isolated rocks or outcrops and appear to have no apparent function. Seldom are they arranged in a recognizable pattern. Cupules that appear to have a utilitarian purpose are often on outcrops near streams. It is thought they were used in the processing of nuts and acorns. This activity probably occurred from the Archaic and well into the Woodland Peroid, and possibly later. In come cases, cupules are considered an art form. There are over a dozen cupules on Sprayberry Rock. Their meaning or use is unknown.
The third type of prehistoric feature on Sprayberry Rock is petroglyphs. This is considered an art from. There are at least three images of concentric circles concentrated on one end of the boulder. There are various interpretations on the meaning of concentric circles. It is impossible to determine at which point these circles are produced. If they are associated with the bowl quarrying they are quite old. Concentric circles appear on other isolated petroglyph rocks in Georgia.
I have never seen an archaeological report on Sprayberry Rock. I have no idea if artifacts were recovered before it was moved. For more information: www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/...
Sprayberry Rock, stone bowl preform, Sandy Plains, Cobb County, Georgia 2
Like most isolated petroglyph rocks in Georgia, Sprayberry Rock is not in-situ. It was moved a hundred feet or so to accommodate a new bank building, in 1984.
There are three prehistoric feature types on the rock. Only one of these features can be associated with a time period. During the Late-Archaic Period (5,000-3,000 years B.P), steatite or soapstone outcrops were quarried to produce bowls and other vessels. Soapstone bowls were traded all over the eastern and mid-western U.S. In Georgia, the bowls were often carved with tools fashioned from diabase (a very hard volcanic rock from instusive dikes found from Atlanta eastward). There are at least seven soapstone bowl preforms or bowl scars ( where a bowl was actually made and removed) on the rock. One preform was in the later stages of completion when abandoned.
The last two prehistoric features can't necessarily be associated with the Late-Archaic Period. Cupules are a poorly understood feature. In some cases they appear to have a utilitarian purpose and are often referred to as nutting holes. In other cases one to several hundred cupules were placed on isolated rocks or outcrops and appear to have no apparent function. Seldom are they arranged in a recognizable pattern. Cupules that appear to have a utilitarian purpose are often on outcrops near streams. It is thought they were used in the processing of nuts and acorns. This activity probably occurred from the Archaic and well into the Woodland Peroid, and possibly later. In come cases, cupules are considered an art form. There are over a dozen cupules on Sprayberry Rock. Their meaning or use is unknown.
The third type of prehistoric feature on Sprayberry Rock is petroglyphs. This is considered an art from. There are at least three images of concentric circles concentrated on one end of the boulder. There are various interpretations on the meaning of concentric circles. It is impossible to determine at which point these circles are produced. If they are associated with the bowl quarrying they are quite old. Concentric circles appear on other isolated petroglyph rocks in Georgia.
I have never seen an archaeological report on Sprayberry Rock. I have no idea if artifacts were recovered before it was moved. For more information: www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/...