Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Ancient Clovis Points of New Mexico

"A gorgeous pair of quartz crystal Clovis points." "The apparent and not infrequent co-occurrence of Clovis spear points with the bones of extinct animals — notably including mammoth, mastodon, bison and other Ice Age beasts...." Puget Sound Clovis - Washington State. "Charismatic Clovis bifaces from the Richey-Roberts/East Wenatchee site. Source: umt.edu. Yes, these are real." "Clovis spearpoints, named for Clovis, N.M., where they were found among the bones of mammoths, represent the epitome of North American Stone Age weaponry. They tend to be large, finely crafted and made from high-quality flint. Although they were long thought to be specialized mammoth-killing weapons, new research suggests they were more like general purpose Boy Scout knives. If Clovis points were specialized tools designed specifically to kill big-game animals such as mammoths and mastodons, then the special kinds of flint used in their manufacture along with the exquisite craftsmanship simply might have been practical necessities for producing a reliable instrument used to kill big game. It also is possible that the special qualities of Clovis points were due to ritual practices the makers believed would help to ensure the success of high-risk hunting ventures." "One of the most exotic raw material used by Stone Age cultures in North America was Quartz Crystal. Although rare, examples of tools and fluted spear points made of crystal have been discovered on Clovis culture sites across the United States. The Clovis point pictured above is laying on top of a percussion flaked piece of mammoth bone from the Lange-Ferguson mammoth kill site. This Clovis point is one of three examples that were discovered in the Fenn cache. This point has multiple channel flakes removed from each side. It is made of smoky quartz crystal and measures 3 3/8 inches (8.5 cm) long."