Glossary Series – Beaver River Sandstone

By Angela Younie on April 21, 2022

Beaver River Sandstone is a stone used for flintknapping that was found in two major quarries near Fort McKay in northern Alberta. It can appear in all shades of grey and brownish grey, with small embedded crystals of medium to dark grey quartz (called “inclusions”). Depending on where it was quarried, it can range from fine- to medium-grained. Pieces of this material with red on the edges appear to have been intentionally heated, to make them better for flintknapping.

Technically, the material is classified as a “silicified orthoquartzite sedimentary lithic material” – which is probably why the name Beaver River Sandstone – or BRS – is much more popular. We like this better too. It has also been called Beaver River Silicified Sandstone (BRSS), Beaver Creek Quartzite, Muskeg Valley Silicified Limestone (MVSL), and Muskeg Valley Microquartz (MVM).

Beaver River Sandstone collected from northeastern Alberta
The reddish coloring may indicate that these pieces were heat treated.

Related Posts

 

By Megan Williams

March 8, 2023

Elsie Jury

International Women’s Day In celebration of another International Women’s Day, Ember Archaeology would like to share the life and accomplishments of another impressive archaeologist, Elsie McLeod Murray Jury. Known for being a trowel blazer in the understanding of historical archaeology in Ontario, Elsie Jury worked at many archaeological sites across the province and helped to

Keep Reading

By Andreas Korsos

March 6, 2023

Voyageurs in the mist

a voyageurs adventure David Thompson was one of the most prolific 19th century surveyors and an integral piece of Canadian history who voyaged tens of thousands of kilometers on foot and by canoe! Although never having received credit in his lifetime, Thompson is recognized as one of the most influential surveyors of the fur trade.

Keep Reading

By Fallon Hardie

February 3, 2023

Lanceolate Bifaces of The Interior Plateau, BC

Spear Points in the Forest In the summer of 2022, archaeologists Braedy Chapman and Fallon Hardie conducted archaeological impact assessments (AIA’s) on emergency wildfire rehabilitation developments. These developments were constructed to manage the spread and impact of wildfire throughout the Interior Plateau of British Columbia. Long stretches of forest have been scraped or bladed to

Keep Reading