An Unusual Illinois Late Woodland Pipe	by Jacob Waymire
Central States Archaeological Societies 2024 July Journal	Havana, Illinois

This is an excerpt from "An Unusual Illinois Late Woodland Pipe". Read the complete column in the Central States Archaeological Societies 2024 July Journal which can be purchased on-line after March 2025 Two views of the pipe found by the author showing the distinctive body, stem hole and head that extends forward from the body. The right arm moves up on the side and the hand is holding a pipe. The figure appears to be wearing a shawl or robe of somekind. Note the similarity to the nearly identical pipe found in 1935. In July of 2023, the central Illinois region was in a drought. All of the rivers were at the lowest stage that they had been in many years. So my parents (who have hunted artifacts for roughly 40 years) and I decided to go artifact hunting. It turned out to be a great day that yielded five arrowheads plus I discovered a very unique pipe (Fig. 1). These were all found on private property. I wanted to obtain more information on the pipe, so I went over to the Dickson Mounds Museum and visited with Alan Harn. Alan has been doing archaeological research in central Illinois since the 1960s and has authored many books and articles on the subject. Upon seeing the pipe, Alan was surprised and said that he had never seen another like it found in that region of Illinois. He said that it probably dated to the Mid-Late Woodland period. After talking with Alan, my parents recommended taking the pipe to the Illinois Archaeological Society show being held in Jacksonville, Illinois. Perhaps showing it to some of the officers and long time members might reveal more information. At the show I showed the pipe to Ray Fraser and Fred Schlick who referred me to page 219 of the 1986 Central States Archaeological Journal (the 50th Anniversary Journal for the State of Illinois). In that journal was a picture of a pipe that was found by the late Paul Titterington roughly 100 miles downriver from where I found mine. The two pipes shared a ....   Read the complete column in the Central States Archaeological Societies 2024 July Journal which can be purchased on-line after March 2025