DID OLOF OHMAN MAKE IRON "FROM SCRATCH?" (Not Likely.)

I spent most of August 11, 2011 at Runestone Park getting a feel for the land, and I noticed a storm had uprooted two trees very near where the Kensington Rune-stone was found.  It seemed odd to me that the trees ended up not toppling over in the direction of the wind, and I was trying to figure this out when I saw what appeared to be a reddish-colored small rock in the bottom of the largest hole made by the storm.  The object was made more evident because of the late-day sun angling into the hole.  I bent over to pick the rock up and quickly discovered that it was made out of metal...most likely iron, in my mind. Supposing that the object might be an important artifact, I took a couple of photos and returned it back into the hole exactly as it had been, angling downward from 15" to 18" below the surface of the upheaved ground.  I took another photo.  Fearing that the object could be stumbled upon by someone else without regard for history, I placed two small clods of dried earth over the object to hide it from view until the proper authorities could come to take care of it.  Then I took another photo of that, too. The following morning, August 12, 2011, I stopped by the Museum in Alexandria on my way back to the Park and reported my find, and I got the number for the Public Works Department for Douglas County and called and reported my find.  I explained exactly where the object was and that I had covered it over with a couple of small clods of earth.  When I arrived at the Park within an hour or so, two gentlemen from the Surveyor's Office had already arrived and removed the object and were taking various measurements and some photos.  I went to extra lengths not only to preserve the object's provenance as much as possible, but also to protect it from possible theft.  The object was never removed from the site until the proper authorities came to remove it.  Recently, the iron relic was moved from the County Surveyor's office to the Runestone Museum for safekeeping.  I've developed a few opinions about what the object could possibly be, but they're based on my feeling that it is much older than ordinary farm equipment, for example.  I think it is possible the strange object may have been a useful medieval wilderness companion of sorts, perhaps even serving more than one purpose.  It could be a fire plough doubling as a crude side-arm, or perhaps it was used with a chisel.  Where did the metal originate from?  What is the composition?    If I had to chisel many holes into rocks, I would like to have something to hold onto to stabilize and secure my chisel as I whacked away at the rock.  I would not want to hold a chisel in my bare hand.  With a chisel fastened to this tool, my hand would be somewhat protected against the pounding and vibrations.  The thick metal would insulate my hand from vibrations, but it could also just be much easier to hold the chisel and help keep stone chips from flying up into my face.  Think of going on a journey where you may have to carve dozens  of holes into stones.  You may want to carve images and runes, too.  Could this simple hand-tool, as a chisel holder, have made carving images and runes easier, too, for the same reasons mentioned above, for making holes in rocks?  After leaving the scene of the massacre (not disease), the ten men headed back south down the Chippewa River, to then go back inland east a few short miles in order to leave the memorial stone document (Kensington Runestone), dated 1362.  With getting back to their ship alive on their minds at this point, I think the runestone carver may have decided to chuck the iron object at the site of the runestone carving since he did not intend to carve anything else, but rather was in a hurry to get back to "The World."  Like pioneers discarding possessions along their way westward, these ten hardy souls may have decided to discard anything “extra” before leaving the runestone site, which could have included  a handy iron chisel-holder, if ever there was such a thing.  But still, it may have doubled as a crude but effective war-club.  Anyway, if such a hand-tool were purposely tossed away from the spot where the KRS was carved, it could easily have landed exactly where I accidently discovered it 650 years later. By the way, I think Runestone Hill resembles a defensive position such as a medieval moat would have provided.  In essence, the site is a peninsula-island…as described on the stone.  It is a peninsula-like island; a moat-like, defensive island with a beautiful surround-around, watery view.  Long ago geological analysis (Winchell) showed that the water level was likely somewhat higher back in 1362...a ravine NW of Runestone Hill eroded over time, causing the surrounding water levels to drop somewhat.  The runestone was probably carved on-site. I've included here a photo of a medieval"scooping chisel" so that readers can see how the upper handle of the chisel might fit into a chunk of iron.  It's difficult to see, but the handle on the scooping chisel seems to have a triangular-shaped mark on it.  Likewise, the iron object I found has a small shape within what appears to be a die strike on it, but leaving a small square shape on it rather than a triangular shape.  It is my thought that perhaps the handle of a chisel might have fit into this iron piece and then the two might possibly have been bound tightly together with a leather binding.  Just a thought. I've also included on this page the results of two tests I ordered on the object, in order to discover what its metallurgical makeup is.  The tests revealed that the object is mostly iron, but the tests were done on surface chips rather than on a deeper sample, so the results are inconclusive. It may be that the object was intended to be reheated and "carburized" in order to convert pig iron or cast iron into wrought iron or steel.  Apparently iron blooms were a valuable commodity to Scandinavians in medieval times, and research suggests that iron blooms were sometimes left as cult offerings in Iceland.  Apparently, a lot of iron was produced in Norway, central Norway being one of the most important sites for medieval-era iron production.