Sickle Haircut, Liang Qi, Dong Village, China

History
Americas
The sickle has been discovered in Southwest America with a unique structure. These sickles are said to possibly have originated from the Far East. There is evidence that islanders in the Pacific had for cutting grass “sickles made of a sharpened animal shoulder blade”. The artifacts found in present day Arizona and New Mexico resemble curved tools that were made from the horns of mountain sheep. A similar site discovered sickles made from other material such as the Caddo Sickle, which was made from a deer mandible. Scripture from early natives document the use of these sickles in the cutting of grass. The instruments ranged from 13 to 16 inches tip to tip. Several other digs in eastern Arizona uncovered wooden sickles that were shaped in a similar fashion. The handles of the tools help describe how the tool was held in such a way so that the inner portion that contained the cutting surface could also serve as a gathering surface for the grain. Sickles were sharpened by scraping a shape beveled edge with a coarse tool. This action has left marks on artifacts that have been found. The sharpening process was necessary to keep the cutting edge from being dulled after extended use. The edge is seen to be quite highly polished, which in part proves that the instrument was used to cut grass. After collection, the grass was used as material to create matting and bedding. The sickle in general provided the convenience of cutting the grass as well as gathering in one step. In South America, the sickle was used as a tool to harvest rice. Rice clusters were harvested using the instrument and left to dry in the sun.