INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY Nancy White - Touro Institute

When did the first people arrive in America and what were they doing? The peopling of the
Americas is a hot topic in archaeology. We can go back to the Pleistocene and the article on the
land bridge between northeast Asia and North America, called Beringia, that was exposed when
the sea level was lower due to water being taken up into the ice of the glaciers. Did people need a
land bridge to cross into North America? No, they could have traveled on water or even on ice.
How early did they get here? At least 12,000-15,000 years ago, according to most estimates.
Note the picture of the extent of the glacier (p. 144). There was an ice-free corridor extending
down into the heart of North America, which they could have used to populate the continent. But
they could also have come by a coastal route, hugging the shoreline, which would be more
sheltered, perhaps more moderate in climate because of the proximity of water, and perhaps
more abundant in resources from both land and sea. Archaeologists debate these routes and
timing constantly, and the evidence is tricky since sea level rise would have drowned all the
early sites.
What is Paleoindian culture, and how do we recognize
the diagnostic artifacts? The photo in your book of
Paleoindian projectile points is mislabeled (p. 146);
the two larger ones are called Clovis and the smaller
are Folsom points. They are types that show a large
flute or channel flake running up the middle of the
point. This is very clearly diagnostic of a cultural
tradition seen in the New World only, mostly North
America. For a long time it was thought that the
people who made fluted points were the first
Americans, and they used these artifacts for big-game
hunting. Slightly later Paleoindians made other finely
shaped lanceolate (long, thin) points. The discussion in
the book (p. 152) of the Lindenmeier site in Colorado is one of these classic sites, showing a
bison kill out on the plains. Though some recent evidence supports this view, the picture is far
more complex. Many of the sites yielding the oldest dates are in South America, which appears
counterintuitive, since it would take longer for people
to reach there.
What is preserved at the Monte Verde site in Chile?
Since it is a wet site, preservation is excellent, but the
archaeologist, Tom Dillehay, has had a hard time
getting it accepted because the dates are so early and
there are no chipped stone points. He did find evidence
of wooden structures in a row with common walls,
hearths, wooden tools, bones of large and small
animals such as mastodon and llama, and 42 plant
species, including wild potato and medicinal plants.
The radiocarbon date of 13,000 B.P. was not believed
by many of the famous scientists specializing in
Paleoindian archaeology. Dillehay had to get funds to
bring a bunch of them to northern Chile and show