One of the things I enjoy most about this hobby is process of trying to figure out the 'who, when and why' of a particular site. The picture in my head is constantly evolving and being refined with each new artifact and with new sites, the picture can look very different at the end of the day than it did at the beginning. Such was the case this weekend when I revisited a coastal site I discovered last year. Having previously found two Rossville points, a potsherd and broken gorget with very little in the way of flakes or waste material, I assumed I was looking at a mid to late Woodland camp. That all changed as soon as I stepped out of my kayak and found what I suspect is a much earlier base. While I am not yet 100%, I suspect it may be a loosely defined New England Hardaway-Dalton type. It has a deep basal concavity, with very slight corner notching and grinding to the lateral basal edges... made from an extremely fine grained quartzite (weathered brown but tip break appears to be more of a smokey color). If I am correct, that leaves me with a 7000-8000 year gap that I need to work out...lol! I managed to find a few more pieces of the puzzle before the day was over.....a couple woodland pieces and what is likely an older Neville point (stem is broken, but the correct size). From left to right.... Nevile(?), Fox Creek, Levanna, ???, Qtz stemmed point, Squibnocket Triangle
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Second trip to a new site, much older finds....
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Either Hardaway-Dalton, or Hardaway Side Notch on that old base, Garrett. And I would nor rule out Hardaway Side Notch, even if just one notch that I can see. These would both be the New England versions, of course. Either way, a great find! JMO...Rhode Island
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I was hoping you would see this today Charlie. I immediately made the connection to your point when I found it. There is only one notch, but the other ear is ground or otherwise damaged to the point where it could have been erased.
Does Boudreau's expanded typology talk about NE Hardaway lithic preferences?
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No, he does not mention lithic preference for Hardaway Side Notch, but he only included 15 examples. Those are made from quartzite, argillite, rhyolite, and possibly one chert example. Most of the Hardaway-Daltons are rhyolite and quartz. Your find is in that family group somewhere I'm certain.
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People inhabited a good area just like we would for thousands of years . We were not the first people in Malibu Cal the NA were and there are signs of them everywhere .
So multigenerational camps or areas like today would be part of life but you know that . I found a Clovis base in woodland camp . But it’s always littered with early flake tools-and knives .
I would imagine they were not much different then we are . Good water and food supply .
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Garrett, this rhyolite Hardaway-Dalton is in the Robbins Museum. It's the largest example in Boudreau's guide, at 73mm long, or 2 7/8". Some of Boudreau's examples have pronounced basal concavities, like your base does, some not so much, like this example. Recurved ears are common as well, which is a feature that makes the classic Hardaway point from North Carolina so attractive, IMHO. And the really shallow side notching jumps off the page to me, where the type is concerned. I like the quartzite on your find as well, I'd keep an eye on the erosion at that spot, and check it as often as you're able. The one Early Archaic beach site we had gave us quite a few early pieces because of erosion over a few years period, and the degree and extent of erosion made frequent visits worthwhile.
Rhode Island
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