Clay pipe stems. I find them on beaches, near old foundations, and sometimes in the holes of things I am digging while metal detecting. I love finding them and I am always amazed at the quantity of the things lying around. Well, I don't know if it's true, but my friends Ginny and Dave told me that as the pipe stem wore out or clogged with time, the user would just snap off the bad piece and toss it. I guess that explains a few things, ie., the large amount and small size of most pieces. These pics are of Ginny and Dave's collection, which they were kind enough to let me examine and photograph. Note the detail on some and the imprinting, which most often reads "Scotland".
Also, the stems can be dated by placing drill bits into the holes in order to establish the interior diameter. The size of the interior hole determines the date of fabrication. I am including one of many websites that give the breakdown of hole sizes versus creation dates: http://www.bravodigs.org/artifact.html
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