Archaeology is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation, and analysis of cultural and environmental data. Archaeologists study ancient people by analyzing their artifacts, things left behind.

Tool-making has always been an identifying characteristic of "humans". Tools, and advances in tools, provide archaeologists with important data.

Researchers make use of the Law of Association, which states "objects placed in a grave as part of a burial generally consist of things in use at the time of interment".

The artifacts a people leave behind are a key to their technology.

Oklahoma Prehistory   Oklahoma Archaeology   Oklahoma Projectile Points		5000 year old bison skull with a Calf Creek style projectile point embedded in the forehead. Found on a sand bar in the Arkansas River near Tulsa.

Archaeological ages are loosely based on the materials from which a people's tools were made - stone, bronze, iron.

1. Stone Age -
    
   • Palaeolithic Period (old stone age) - characterized by the emergence of primitive man and the manufacture of unpolished chipped stone tools - about 3 million years ago until about 12,000 BC.
      
     • Lower Palaeolithic - Began 3 million years ago and ended about 70,000 BC with the emergence of Neanderthal Man.
        
     • Middle Palaeolithic - Lasted between 70,000 and 40,000 BC
        
     • Upper Palaeoilithic - Began about 40,000 BC and ended around 12,000 BC with the emergence of Modern Man
     
      
   • Mesolithic Period (middle stone age) - characterized by the first appearance of small flint tools which were part of a composite weapon, such as a projectile point or knife blade - from 12,000 BC to 3,000 BC.
      
   • Neolothic Period (new stone age) - characterized by primitive crop growing and stock rearing and the use of polished stone and flint tools and weapons - from 3,000 BC to 2,000 BC.

     The word arrowhead implies direct association to bow-and-arrow hunting. Bow-and-arrow technology did not occur until quite late in North American prehistory. In fact, most "arrowheads" were actually used as spear or dart points. Archaeologists have adopted the more generalized term, projectile point, which applies to all forms of chipped stone projectile tips.

     Typically, spear and dart points are larger, heavier, and more rugged in structure than arrow points. Spears were propelled by a javelin-like throw, while darts were hurled with the aid of an atlatl. The atlatl, a handle-like device that served as an extension to the arm, represented a technological advancement over the hand-thrown spear.

     Arrow points are typically smaller, thinner and better adapted for use with lighter, string-propelled shafts. Their small size and light weight helped to streamline the arrow and increase the accuracy of its trajectory.

     Most projectile points were made from flakes of chert that were struck off a core (1) with a stone or antler hammer (2).

     The blank flake was then shaped by pressure flaking (3), a high precision flaking technique which employed a hand-held punching tool made of bone, antler or wood. The end of the punch was placed at the desired point along the edge of the tool and pressure was applied; then, with a quick sidewards snapping motion a flake was detached from the bottom side of the flake.

     Once formed, the point was sharpened using the marginal retouch technique (4) whereby a series of tiny pressure flakes was removed along the blade margins to create more acute or serrated edges.

    
2. Bronze Age - characterized by weapons and tools made of bronze and widespread trading - from 2,000 BC to 500 BC.
    
3. Iron Age - characterized by the rapid spread of iron tools and weapons - from 500 BC.
    
4. Historical Periods - characterized by written records of historical events.

Prehistoric Native Peoples

• Paleo-American Period (14,000 - 9,000 B.P.) (Before Present)

  The original Paleoindian people hunted large mammals on the plains of North America. However, hunting patterns changed as the animals changed through the ages.

  Projectile points in North America date to about 14,000 years B.P. These "Paleo-Americans" made high quality stone tools. Their projectile points had symmetrical, lanceolate (leaf-shaped) blades that required a high degree of flintknapping skill to produce.

  • Clovis points range in size from one to five inches in length and have been found in association with mammoth remains.
     
  • Folsom points are typically smaller and broader. They ocur later and have been fond with remains of extinct bison.

    Fluted Paleo-American Points

    Non-fluted Paleo-American Points

     
• Archaic-American Period (10,000 - 3,000 B.P.)

  

  Ice Age mammals, such as the mammoth and mastodon, died out about 8,000 years ago. Hunters of the Archaic Period relied on smaller herd animals such as bison, deer, and elk that were better adapted to the changing environment. The people were forced to supplement their diet with locally available plants, coming to be called hunter-gatherers − eventually leading to the development of agriculture.

  • New tools, such as the atlatl, ground-stone axes, and grinding slabs and stones mark the Archaic Period. Although projectile points were still well made, they exhibit a noticeable decline in the level of skill required to produce them when compared to points of the Paleo-American period.
     
  • Fine patterned flaking was abandoned as styles became more numerous and varied. Projectile points of the early Archaic period, such as the Dalton point, are medium to large in size. The smaller side-notched points were almost certainly dart points.

    

  • Pictographs dated to about 7000 B.P. show atlatls with boat stones or banner stones. Theories about the function of these stones range from functioning as balance weight, sound silencers, or performance enhancers, to charmstones used to bring luck to the hunter.
     
  • Toward the end of the Archaic period the climate stabilized, becoming much like it is today. The once nomadic groups were learning to exploit their environment and becoming semi-sedentary in their lifestyle (the beginning of agriculture).  

    Fluted Paleo-American Points

    Non-fluted Paleo-American Points

     
• Woodland-American Period (3,000 - 1,300 B.P.)

  Mound building and improved pottery technology mark the beginning of the Woodland period. Copper was discovered in the Great Lakes area and widely traded in the form of projectile points, awls, and crescent-shaped knives of hammered copper. These items were highly valued during this period because of their rarity. The tremendous amount of work involved to create metal tools meant that traditional tools made of chipped stone, ground stone, and bone continued to be used in great numbers.

  

   
  

• Mississippian-American Period (1,300 - 400 B.P.)
   
  • The Avonlea point is an example of the first true "arrowhead", marking the introduction of bow-and-arrow technology. These points are small to medium-sized, triangular with small side notches, and a straight or concave base. They are made from small, thin flakes and usually show a high level of craftmanship.
     
  • Virtually all prehistoric arrows that have been found in North America (mostly in dry caves and rock shelters of the Southwest) are made of cane, fitted with a short foreshaft of hardwood notched for the arrow point. These cane shafts are extremely light, which explains why such light-weight stone or metal points were attached to them.
    
   
• Historic-American Period (400 - 170 B.P.)

  Stone tools continued to be made and used by Native Americans right up to the nineteenth century. However at the time of European contact in the late seventeenth century chipped stone points were supplemented by small metal points cut from sheets of trade metal and copper kettles. Metal arrow points were lighter, more durable, and easy to make.