Plate 24. Prehistoric artifacts recovered from Feature 20 including, top row: jasper chipping debris and a unifacial scraper (center); bottom row: untyped ceramic sherds.
NEW CASTLE COURT HOUSE PLAZA NEW CASTLE, DELAWARE 4.0 ARTIFACT ANALYSIS personal communication, August 5, 2004). Archeological work at Old Fort Western (OFW) in Maine, used as a location for <strong>of</strong>f loading supplies from deep-draft vessels for supplying Fort Halifax, also recovered a large number <strong>of</strong> straight pins that had been stored toge<strong>the</strong>r. Additional accounts from <strong>the</strong> "store" at OFW indicate that pins were purchased in bulk for pinning documents (with some pinned documents still extant). The Deshler-Morris House served as a federal government structure in <strong>the</strong> mid-1790s, and straight pins were recovered from <strong>the</strong> excavations near exterior doors (Crozier 1978) 4.4.7 SLEEVELINKS A set <strong>of</strong> gold sleeve or cufflinks were recovered from EU 13, Level 6B. The links are circular is shape, domed in pr<strong>of</strong>ile, with an applied floral design in <strong>the</strong> center. A backmark <strong>of</strong> “WA” conjoined within a square stamp is also present (Figure 11). Inquiries to Winterthur Museum suggest that <strong>the</strong> shape, pr<strong>of</strong>ile, and mark are not <strong>of</strong> American manufacture and that <strong>the</strong>y may be English (Donald Fennimore, personal communication, June 2004). The Metalworks Department at <strong>the</strong> Victoria and Albert Museum provided several additional pieces <strong>of</strong> information. The links are very similar to a set excavated at Bury St. Edmunds in England that probably dated to <strong>the</strong> “late seventeenth century” (Jonas and Nissenson 1991:10). The backmark is not illustrated in Grimwade’s London Goldsmiths, 1697-1837 (1991). However, fur<strong>the</strong>r investigation into <strong>the</strong> marks <strong>of</strong> pre-1697 London smallworkers is continuing (Richard Edgcumbe, personal communication, August 2004). 4.4.8 WRITING SLATE A number <strong>of</strong> writing slate fragments, in addition to slate pencil fragments, were recovered from <strong>the</strong> terrace deposits on <strong>the</strong> east side <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> plaza. From this fragmentary assemblage, three were found to contain scratches with two <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se bearing recognizable markings. A slate fragment from context 41 was scratched with a letter “T” on one side. A second fragment from context 150 was found not only to contain an incised letter “A”, but also a stylized drawing <strong>of</strong> a figurine (possibly a snowman) with a top hat and a what appears to be a flounced skirt. 4.5 POLLEN ANALYSES As part <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> field investigations at <strong>the</strong> <strong>Court</strong> House pollen samples were collected from several <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> archeological features. Samples were analyzed by Dr. Dorothy Peteet, an Adjunct Senior Research Scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO) and affiliated with <strong>the</strong> Biology and PaleoEnvironment Department at Columbia University (Appendix II). Fourteen samples were collected by JMA archeologists; <strong>of</strong> this number five were subjected to pollen analysis (Table 10). Table 10. Summary <strong>of</strong> Pollen Samples Sample Description Analyzed Designation (yes/no) P-1 EU 1, Feature 15, East ½, bisection No P-2 EU 4, Feature 23, Level 5 No P-3 EU 8, Feature 20, Level 5, 1.67 ft. below datum No P-4 EU 8, Feature 20, disturbed level, 2.85 ft. below datum No P-5 EU 8, Feature 20, base <strong>of</strong> Level 5, 2.92 ft. below datum Yes P-6 EU 8, Feature 20, Level 7, 3.1 ft. below datum No P-7 EU 8, Feature 20, Level 7, 3.64 ft. below datum Yes 75
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