Pre-Columbian, Mexico and Northern Central America, Maya Territories, Late Classic, ca. 550 to 900 CE. Two eccentric chert flints shaped into bizarre shapes, as their name implies. The larger is slightly bird shaped, with a thicker point as the neck and three slightly smaller points rising out from the rectangular body forming the wings and tail. The smaller flint is thin and more peculiar in shape, with fourteen rounded spikes radiating outward from both sides, and reminiscent of a bat's outstretched wings. Chert flints are made using percussion, striking them with other stones; the process required to get a fine point requires great training and skill. These chert flints are both grey with faint hints of pink and cream. These types of flints were carved not as weapons, but as interesting forms, used for sacrificial and ceremonial purposed by the Maya, and are often found as offerings in caches inside of stone monuments and other architectural features. Size of larger: 5.5" L x 3.18" W (14 cm x 8.1 cm); smaller: 2.4" W (6.1 cm)

Provenance: inherited collection from late brother 2019, Holly Springs, North Carolina, USA

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#157180

Larger flint repaired with a hairline fissure across the reattached point. Natural stone striations and light mineral deposits on both.