Errett Callahan

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Errett Callahan (December 17, 1937 – May 29, 2019) was an American

flintknapper, and pioneer in the fields of experimental archaeology and lithic replication studies
.

Early life

Errett Callahan was born in

Boy Scout that he was first exposed to the skills and techniques that the Native Americans used to survive in the outdoors.[1]
His father, who was also his Scoutmaster, played a large role in this, not only imparting his technical knowledge, but also instilling a sense of self-reliance and independence that would shape Errett’s outlook his entire life.

Callahan attended

painted landscapes
for three years and then taught art at a prep school for another two.

Graduate studies

In 1969 Callahan enrolled at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, where he studied painting and modern art. He received his Master of Fine Arts in 1977. Callahan soon realized that there was very little money to be made in painting and decided to devote himself to his love of primitive technologies.[1]

Callahan attended

Powatan
Confederacy was the culmination of years of experimentation and research into the lifeways of the Powatan people.

Academic career

While at Catholic University, Callahan served as an instructor of

Powatan
Confederacy.

Flint knapping and experimental archaeology

Callahan first began

Woodland traditions of the Americas with another five years spent deciphering the technologies of the European Mesolithic, all the while voluntarily restricting himself to replications of prehistoric forms. Not content to stop there Callahan spent the next twenty years of his life working his way through the complex stone technologies of the European Neolithic
. Only after that was Callahan ready to start his work on the Post Neolithic and Non-Traditional technologies where he was once again in uncharted territory, working by trial and error to produce forms that had never been seen before.

Ethics in experimental archaeology

Along with his work in the technological aspects of the field of experimental archaeology, Callahan worked tirelessly to promote ethical research and documentation among fellow experimental archaeologists.[3] Modern forgeries passed off as prehistoric artifacts have been detrimental to the field. Callahan spoke out against such practices, encouraging flint knappers around the world to sign and date all of their production. Callahan also championed authentic and scientific reconstructions, which he defined in his article What is Experimental Archaeology?,[4] as reconstructions which are successful, functional units undertaken with the correct period tools, materials, and procedures and which are scientifically monitored. In this statement, Callahan urged other flint knappers and experimental archaeologists against using modern replica tools such as copper billets to reproduce stone tools instead of the traditional bone and stone hammers used throughout prehistory. Callahan also said in the statement that without proper documentation of the techniques and processes there is no real experiment. With Callahan at the forefront of experimental archaeology, the field of replication studies gained acceptance throughout the academic community.

Northern Europe

In 1972 Errett received a call from

Land of legends (Sagnlandet Lejre), in Lejre, Denmark.[1] Hansen had founded the center in the 1960s as an experiment in Denmark’s past. Until Hansen contacted Callahan, the center had dealt mainly with Denmark’s Iron Age. With Callahan’s help, the center pushed back the time periods represented to the Neolithic and Mesolithic. Callahan first traveled to Denmark in 1979, where he conducted a conference that dealt specifically with the archaeology of the area. At the conference he set up a small knapping area where he engaged Danish archaeologists and raised awareness in experimental lithic technology. He returned to Denmark in 1981, this time spending seven months at the Lejre Experimental Centre conducting research into the techniques used to produce the stone tool kit of the Neolithic Danes, including the Neolithic Danish dagger, a highly advanced stone knife originally made to copy the forms of the Bronze
daggers being produced in northern and central Europe at that time. Through his research Callahan was the first experimental archaeologist able to reproduce the daggers using traditional techniques. He later compiled his work done in Denmark to be published in a book.

Along with his work in Denmark, Callahan was part of ongoing research into the Swedish Mesolithic and Neolithic as well. His replication study of Middle Sweden’s Mesolithic and Neolithic

Uppsala, Sweden.[2]

Piltdown productions

Upon his return from

Piltdown, England. Callahan first used the Piltdown name in 1974 in a comic strip he drew for Experimental Archaeology Papers, or A.P.E..[1] In the comic strip he presented a humorous look at the life of a caveman. Callahan wrote two more installments of the comic for the A.P.E. and then for the Newsletter of Experimental Archaeology. During this period, he was also producing documentary and instructional films dealing with various aspects of primitive technology as well as beginner flint knapping kits and tool reproductions that he was sold to universities, colleges, and hobbyists around the country. Callahan produced several catalogue editions that contain not only his stone tool and instructional materials but a good deal of his philosophy and ethical stances towards the field of flint knapping.[1]

Two of the more unusual items to be found in Callahan’s Piltdown Productions inventory are his nontraditional obsidian knives and his obsidian scalpels. The nontraditional obsidian knives, which Callahan began producing in quantities in 1984, were made with the same traditional tools as are his prehistoric replications, but in a variety of shapes and sizes that are not based on any known prehistoric typology.[3] Callahan originally began his work on nontraditional forms out of a desire to break out of the restrictions of traditional stone knife reproductions. His knives won many awards and have often been featured in Blade magazine.

While his nontraditional knives were a way for Callahan to step outside the restrictions of the prehistoric typologies, his obsidian scalpels were a way for him to provide a service to mankind.

University of Michigan Health System
who have done extensive research using scalpels produced by Callahan.

Society of primitive technology

Throughout the 1980s the fields of experimental archaeology and lithic replication studies endured some harsh criticisms in the United States from various members of the academic community.

fire production
.

Cliffside workshops

In 1987, Callahan began his Cliffside Workshops as a means to impart the knowledge he learned throughout the years about flint knapping and primitive technology to students and enthusiasts from around the world.[1] Callahan taught the workshops at his Lynchburg, Virginia home, hosting five to ten students at a time. The workshops, which were held in the early summer and fall, mainly covered flint knapping techniques, though Callahan would cover any number of topics associated with the primitive technologies he was well versed in if the students were interested.

Retirement

Upon retiring from flint knapping, Callahan compiled his thirty years of research into the lithic technologies of Scandinavia into one publication. He continued to mentor and instruct students in flint knapping and other primitive technologies at his Lynchburg, Virginia home, as well as occasionally writing articles for the Bulletin of Primitive Technology.

Death

Errett died on May 29, 2019, after complications from Parkinsons.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Callahan, Errett: Personal Communication, September 25, 2007
  2. ^ a b c Watts, Steve (Fall 1997). "The Fire Watchers: a Tribute to Errett Callahan". Society of Primitive Technology Bulletin. 14.
  3. ^ a b c d Callahan, Errett (1999). Piltdown Productions Catalog #5. Lynchburg, Virginia.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ^
    OCLC 40545399
    .
  5. ISBN 9789150606232
    .
  6. ^ "Honorary doctorates - Uppsala University, Sweden". www.uu.se (in Swedish). 9 June 2023.
  7. ^ "Surgeons use Stone Age technology for delicate surgery". The University Record. 1997-09-10. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
  8. OCLC 40545399
    .
  9. ^ "Obituary of Errett Hargrove Callahan Jr". Diuguid Funeral Service & Crematory. Retrieved 10 June 2019.

External links

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