Someone the other day asked about the “starfish” emblem that I stamp on my flutes and what it represents.
Its not a starfish. However, it is something that I have been involved with scientifically for years. The stamp, laser engraved, is taken from a 1953 vintage USGS Professional Paper called “Lower Tertiary Crinoids from Northwestern Oregon.” The image is of the articulation face of one of the columnals of this species, Isocrinus oregonensis. I have been studying the paleoecology of the type locality since 1970, and had to wait for the science to catch up. I published a paper on it last year finally in a peer reviewed journal published in Germany. Google “Casey Burns” and “crinoid” and you will see links to the paper.
Crinoids are a distant relative of starfish and can be seen as something like a filter feeding starfish upside down on a stalk roughly. They are pretty amazing. Close relatives of this organism live in the deep ocean. Most of the time these echinoderms are sessile. The arms have muscles but the stalk lacks muscles. It does have something called “mutable collaginous tissue” that allows the stalk to change its shape - and when its shape is “idea” the animal can then change the chemistry and lock the shape. However, they have been seen to drag themselves around starfish fshion by their arms, use their arms to swim or aqueously “hang glide”, and recently, run along the seafloor:
see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V_px48dob8 This one is a very close relative to the ones I use for my stamp. The long thing dragged behind is the column and the articulation surfaces of the plates are the design.
You must be referring to the Scallopini Oregonpsychosis, which is actually a distant ancestor of the seafood we all know and love so well. Casey might correct me, but I think this was chosen due to the fact that it contains much less mercury than its contemporary descendents.
Great flutes, and I’m thoroughly enjoying my large-holed standard!
When did you start stamping? I have one of your small-handed flutes that I got second-hand. When I returned it to you for tuning you said it was one of your earlier efforts, and I’ve noticed since that it has no maker’s mark or number upon it.
BTW, I ran into a young lady at a session on Saturday who I hadn’t seen in quite a while. She let me know that she was about to take delivery of a new CB small-handed flute herself. She was convinced to buy one after trying mine some time ago. In fact, my flute has evinced so much interest amongst the small-hand handicapped here in the DC area that I probably should be on commission
You got some fine praise from her for both your helpfulness and your timeliness, too.
There once was a time when I would have lightheartedly recommended a daily glass of mercury, just to keep one’s sanity, but I have since learned that there really could be some fool who could take such humor seriously. Therefore, please disregard what I have just said.
-I’ve no crinoids, so my Burns flute headjoint will suffice. An uncle prospecting Wyoming for minerals many, many decades ago found piles of prehistoric bones frequently in scrublands, sometimes an eohippus jawbone or titanothere vertebra stacked up like a butte, friable soils washed away from around it and the petrified remains a harder tableland. Imagine visiting an uncle and being awarded a sabre-tooth cat skull chunk or a vertebra from some proto-modern animal. Insanely cool for a 12-year old.
-Casey, you’ve the heart of a 12-year old. I mean that in the best possible way, and you make nice instruments!
