File
Gallery Location
Not on View
Maker
Euro-Canadian (Fur Trade)
Medium
Iron
Geography
Ontario, French River, Grand Parisien Rapids
Date
c. 1730-1850 AD
Period
Colonial (1700-1850 AD)
Dimensions
30.8 x 2.3 x 0.8 cm
Object number
962.258.23
Collection
Department
Art & Culture: Archaeology of the Americas
Description
This single-pointed file with a half-round cross-section (also known as cabinet style) was recovered from the French River (Grand Parisien Rapids) in 1962. It displays some stamped writing (likely a maker's mark containing an "I" on the heel/tang). The current interpretation for these objects is that they sank to the bottom of the river during canoe accidents. In the fur trade context, such items were both used by fur traders, and traded to Indigenous individuals and communities in exchange for furs and food.
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