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6,000-Year-Old Knife Unearthed At Safety Harbor Park

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By STEPHEN THOMPSON

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 16, 2008

SAFETY HARBOR - It started out as a simple plan to erect a pavilionlike shelter at Marshall Street Park.

But it became an archaeology dig.

A city crew erecting the shelter stumbled upon an old rock knife Monday, and archaeologists confirmed Tuesday that it is 6,000 to 8,000 years old, said Brad Purdy, the spokesman for the city of Safety Harbor.

Plans for the shelter were put on hold as various members of the Safety Harbor Museum of Regional History decided to treat the site as an archaeological dig. On their hands and knees in the mud Tuesday, museum staff members were sifting dirt for additional artifacts, said Ron Fekete, director of exhibits.

The 4-inch knife was likely used by the Tocobaga Indians, Purdy said.

"The edges are so sharp," Fekete said. "It's in mint condition." It is made of chert, a type of quartz, he said.

City workers had dug a hole about 31/2 feet deep to make the new pavilion able to withstand hurricanes, said Bobbie Davidson, director of operations for the museum. Rain fell on the pile of dirt left off to the side, exposing the knife, which caught the attention of a city worker Monday, she said.

After the workers found the blade at the park at 300 Marshall St., they washed it with water at a fountain, Purdy said. It was then they realized it might be an artifact. A call was placed to the museum.

"We didn't know what we had," Purdy said. "When they realized what they had, they got on the phone."

Specifically, they called the curator of archaeology from the Safety Harbor Museum of Regional History, who later confirmed the blade's age, Purdy said.

A trench has been started at the park and is now at least 3 feet deep, Fekete said. The idea is that museum staff members eventually will reach a level of soil that goes back thousands of years and will determine whether there are any more archaeological treasures in the park, he said.

Since the knife was found, museum workers have found a piece of a tooth, but as yet what it belonged to or its age are not known, Davidson said. The museum is expected to ask the city for permission to dig in another part of the park to see whether they can piece together the life of the knife.

Reporter Stephen Thompson can be reached at (727) 451-2336 or spthompson@tampatrib.com.

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