Tracing Paleoindian Projectile Point Diversity in the American Southeast

Summary

Paleoindian projectile points occur in high incidences in the American Southeast, and compared to other regions in the East, the Southeast has the greatest projectile point diversity. One effective way to understand this diversity is by tracking broad-scale morphological variation in suites of point traits to build cultural lineages. In this paper, we take a more trait-specific approach. We trace changes in projectile point design to understand the evolution of specific point attributes that were under selection. Through this approach, we explore when and where certain aspects of point design were adopted, what traits were linked or co-adopted, and how these traits may have influenced point function. By tracing changes in specific technological design elements, we hope to identify some of the social and adaptive processes that resulted in such high regional point diversity.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20927