Customer Reviews

The Official Overstreet Identification and Price Guide to Indian Arrowheads 10th Edition (Official Overstreet Identification & Price Guide to Indian Arrowheads)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Bob Overstreet may or may not be an expert on Indian arrowheads, but he is THE expert in collecting amd organizing photographs and accurate information about them. I have excavated, collected and lectured on Aborginal artifats for many years. The late Greg Perino was probably the last word in "arrowheads", but Mr. Overstreet's work is much more popular, less technical and much more available. Plus I know he used Greg Perinos work to gain facts. I have read or reviewed most books on the subject and like I said above, This is the book to buy no matter what your level of interest.

10th edition is like the last 9 editions. But it does have an array of every type variant, albeit many, many variants that really are subjective at best. But as many collectors know. the book has ridiculous price estimates. And as a long time collector/dealer my biggest beef about many of the editions, and I can personally 100% say/witnessed that many of the points are not authentic and only make it into the book to increase their "provenance" and individual value. But that said, the book is on type variations for you and not whether the specimens are actually authentic or not. So its really a catch 22. Many people have made it a popular arrowhead book, unfortunately are the same people that think they have a dozen authentic Clovis points(a rare Paleo, high valued arrowhead) they bought at their local flea market.

Outstanding book for those (like me) who do not authenticate points but want to learn about the various types. Includes informative articles on the archaeology of certain points. Lots of beautiful color panels of points arranged by age, in addition to the B&W photos in the identification pages.

That's right. Wait just a darn minute and examine what you are looking for in an arrowhead book. Know what you are getting into. Some say that this book is the worst while others say it is the greatest. Both may be true. If you have every arrowhead book printed and every edition of those books, you might have a problem being entertained by anything. If you are a collector or seller, you might complain about the lack of fresh material or strange pricing from edition to edition. However, if you are not concerned with pricing...you will not find a better reference book as full of points as the Overstreet Guide. No other book shines a light on as many artifacts. Now, I use this for point shape reference while researching my next knapping exercise. This is my first Overstreet edition and it is 100% new material every time I pick it up.

I see only a tiny little minor gripe...Not enough color (but that is a gripe with most books). Many publishers feel that color will not move many more books. I agree, but I do like color and feel that it should be the norm these days.

All in All...a better 'total package' book does not exist and the Overstreet Guide is the book at the top of my collection!

Chris

Overstreet 10th edition of his Arrowhead book is extemely useful for identifying arrowheads from various parts of America. This should be the primary use of that book for any collector in my opinion. The color photograps are quite good as are most of the B&W photos. However, I feel Overtreet's price values for arrowheads are a bit extreme in many cases depending upon the type of point or age of the point. I feel that it's these overrated prices that causes some unscrupulus people to "pot-hunt" and rob mounds, graves, and archeaological sites in an attempt to find one of those over priced points to sell on eBay or at an artifact show. Don't get me wrong, I like artifact shows but the prices there can be the same (or worse) as in Overstreet's book. Plus one should consider where have some the nicer pieces actually come from, if they are even authentic? Any dishonest dealer can give you a good song and dance. The average collector can't afford the inflated prices for the nicer or older points. Only the elite collectors/dealers can.
I'm also troubled by the book cover and binding in that if one uses an Overstreet Indian Arrowheads book very often it soon falls apart. For a thirty dollar book you'd think the publisher would put a more sturdy binding and cover on the books. One must be careful with Overstreets books and take care of them in order for them to last. If one does they can also become quite collectable in themselves as the first two editions of Overstreets Indian Arrowheads are going for upwards of $75.00 or more on eBay. My other gripe is there is not enough color photos of the artifacts and I would hope to see more color photos all through the book in future editions.

I am not a professional arrowhead collector by any means but I enjoy learning about them and have been fortunate once in awhile to come across one. This book is excellent for the purpose of learning about the different kinds of arrowheads, lance points, knives, hand axes etc. It includes history of points. There is a choronological gallery of color points in the front, the rest of the photos are in black & white and the book is sectioned into regions to make it easier to learn what is most likely to be found in your area. For those inclined, it also includes what to look for as a collector and the estimated value of your point/s etc. I like this book!

I understand that there is a community that feels compelled to possess pieces of history, and this guide is aimed towards these people. "Excavation" involves more than just wretching a few prehistoric trinkets out of the ground with a shovel; it involves painstaking efforts to both systematically dig and methodically record the process in notes. The Overstreet Guide adds little to our understanding of the past while encouraging looting of archaeological resources. There are better sources of the academic nature, notably Noel Justice's "Stone Age Spear and Arrow Points of the Midcontinental and Eastern United States", that bring more to the table than just pretty pictures and price tags.

Year after year these books are published with the same poor quality binding and paper. Even more disappointing is the same pictures and descriptions are reprinted in each volume. It appears that a variant point or two are added to "justify" a new printing. Don't waste your money. It's 98 percent old and 2 percent "new".

Book goes on with its next edition of way out of line pricing, and xerox quality photos. does nothing for the field of collecting, except make new collectors think they have something worth a fortune. Whereas many of the pieces photographed are questionable authentic at best!

This bood is very informative and helps you research as well as find the worth of each item. I love it!