Material · lithic
Hematite
North America — Southeast, North America — Eastern Woodlands
Hematite is iron oxide, ground into plummets, celts and cones in the Late Archaic Southeast and Ohio Valley, notably at Poverty Point, and powdered as red ochre pigment in burials worldwide. It is heavy and takes a high polish. Hematite celts and plummets are collected in the Southeast and Midwest.
| Kind | lithic |
|---|---|
| Regions | North America — Southeast, North America — Eastern Woodlands |
Sources
Hematite occurs in the Iron Mountain district of Missouri, the Lake Superior iron ranges, the Ozarks, the Appalachians and the Ouachitas, and in oolitic ironstones across the world. Nodules and concretions of workable size were collected from stream beds and outcrops rather than mined.
Identification
Hematite is steel grey to black with a red streak, very heavy, and polishes to a metallic lustre; oxidised surfaces are reddish brown. Soft, earthy varieties are red ochre. It is easily distinguished from stone by weight.
Substitutes and fakes
Hematite plummets and celts are ground on modern wheels and sold as ancient; genuine pieces show pecking under the polish and hand-drilled or grooved attachment. Modern polish is mirror-uniform.
Elsewhere
- Wikidata: Q103223
- Wikipedia: hematite
Cite this article
Stratum Study. "Hematite" (Material). Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21. https://stratum.black/study/materials/hematite. Accessed 2026-09-21.
@misc{stratum-hematite,
title = {Hematite},
author = {{Stratum Study}},
howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/study/materials/hematite}},
year = {2026},
note = {Material article, Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21; sources: stratum, wikidata, commons. Accessed 2026-09-21.}
} Citations carry the pack version and the article's as-of date so they resolve to the same text later. The facts themselves belong to the sources listed below; cite those for the science.