Cory is a fan: Desertknapper

Now I know lots people's idea of a beautiful big rock is something like this:

Meh.  It's alright I guess.  My idea is something a little more like this:

Yeah!  Woo!  Rhyolite stone core.  Gorgeous stone, knapped by flint knapper Mark, who lives near the Great Mojave Desert and uses traditional flint knapping methods to create some beautiful pieces such as this on his Etsy shop:

He makes the arrowheads into necklaces as well, and I'm tempted to get one despite not knowing a whole lot about North American archaeology, despite being North American and studying archaeology in North America and taking classes called things like "North American Archaeology".  Hm...

Christmas at the Smithsonian

In 2009 I finished my Masters degree in Palaeoanthropology and Palaeolithic Archaeology at University College London.  I met my husband when I was on excavation in central Spain, and I'm looking forward to a conference in March in Kyoto, Japan, where I will get to present a poster I've collaborated on, on prehistoric hominids and their cognitive abilities.  So when I'm not crafting, a lot of my life is taken up with archaeology!

So when I saw I was getting a lot of Etsy hits from the Smithsonian online magazine, I was thrilled to see my Stone Tool Earrings featured in their article on Hominid Gifts for the Holidays!


The matching ring and necklace have sold, but the earrings are still there!  What a nice Christmas surprise to be somehow associated with the Smithsonian... even if it's not to do with my research!!

Cory