JEFFERSON CITY, MO, MAY 25, 2022 – Have you ever watched a survival show and thought, “I wonder how I would handle that situation?” Well, here is your chance to find out! Whether you’re lost in a forest, a guest on “Naked and Afraid,” or preparing for the zombie apocalypse, you could use some help learning how to make stone weapons and tools. The best way to obtain that knowledge is by taking a flint knapping class and First Missouri State Capitol State Historic Site just happens to be hosting one on Saturday, June 11.
Join instructor Larry Kinsella, who has been flint knapping for more than 42 years and has made replicas for Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site in Illinois, the Illinois State Museum, the University of Indiana, Southern Illinois University, the Discovery Channel and many other museums and universities throughout the country. Kinsella combines his archaeological expertise with his flint knapping experience to offer his students a rare perspective on earlier cultures.
Knapping is the shaping of flint, chert, obsidian or other conchoidal-fracturing stone through the process of lithic reduction to manufacture stone tools, make strikers for flintlock firearms or produce flat-faced stones for building walls and flushwork decoration.
The class runs from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 11 and costs $35. For more information and to register, call 636-940-3322.
First Missouri State Capitol State Historic Site is located at 200 S. Main St. in St. Charles. For more information about this event, call 636-940-3322.
For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.