Flaked Stone Basalt Technology in the Northern Sierra Nevada of California

UC Merced Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology Title Flaked Stone Basalt Technology in the Northern Sierra Nevada of California Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/17p95410 Journal Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology, 22(2) ISSN 0191-3557 Author Edwards, Stephen W Publication Date 2000-07-01 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California REPORTS 361 Flaked Stone Basalt Technology Martis stages and chronology, portraying Martis in the Northern Sierra Nevada as a unique contrast to earlier and later assem of California blages by its abundant, large basalt bifaces. Martis is also characterized by a variety of pro STEPHEN W. EDWARDS jectile points, assumed by their relatively large Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Regional Parle, size to be dart points. Berlceley, CA 94708. In recent years, considerable discussion has emerged regarding characterization of Martis as A replicative experimental study was car a complex or a tradition (see Neuenschwander ried out with the intention of elucidating the [1994] and Ataman et al. [1999] for a history of best technological strategies for producing Middle Archaic basalt projectile points and the discussion). Recent interpretations (e.g., El bifaces. This work led to an appreciation of ston 1986a; Kowta 1988) tend to depict Martis as the difficulties of working with Sierran ba merely a name referring to possibly unrelated as salts, as well as an admiration for the skills of semblages, unified only by their use of basalt and Middle Archaic knappers. The study shows that, despite the technical challenges, expedi a Middle Archaic technology. ency was not the sine qua non of Middle Ar It is not the purpose of this report to review chaic technology in the northern Sierra Nev characterizations of the Martis Complex, but ada, and provides insight into regional ar rather to elucidate basah flaked stone technology, chaeological assemblages. with special reference to the Middle Archaic of the northern Sierra Nevada. The bulk of such DURING the Middle Archaic in the northern basalt-based assemblages in this region have, at Sierra Nevada, basalt' was heavily favored as the one time or another, been assigned to Martis, al raw material for flaked stone artifacts. Basalt is though basalt was also employed, albeit to a les abundantly available in bedrock outcrops at many ser degree, both earlier and later (Ritter 1970; locations, and quarry sites of considerable extent Elston et al. 1977; Jackson 1999). The nordiem occur at some of them. The period of maximum Sierra Nevada Middle Archaic assumes special use of basalt seems to have ended at around A.D. significance because convincing evidence exists 500, probably coincident with the introduction of that the people responsible for the creation of the bow and arrow. After this time, assemblages such assemblages were also responsible for most are dominated by chert, and obsidian is in greater or all of die complex petroglyph arrays diat fre- evidence as well. Heizer and Elsasser (1953) quendy occur in the same region (Elsasser and first gave the name Martis to the major basalt- Gortner 1991; Foster et al. 1999). Hereinafter, based assemblages in the northern Sierra Nev for simplicity's sake, northern Sierra Nevada ada. Since then, numerous additional assem Middle Archaic basalt assemblages will be re blages have been assigned to the so-called Martis ferred to as Martis. Complex, mostly at moderate to high elevations To understand basalt technology, replicative from the Lake Tahoe region to the Feather River experimentation is necessary. Previous replica country of Plumas County (Johnson 1980). A tive sttidies (e.g.. Noble 1983; Duke 1998a) few lower elevation sites are known, such as CA- made progress in the elucidation of technostrate- NEV-15 near North San Juan in Nevada County gies implied by Martis assemblages, and many (Elsasser 1960). Basalt assemblages classified as archaeologists working in the northern Sierra Martis occur on both sides of the Sierran crest Nevada have experimented with knapping basalts and into west-central Nevada (Elston 1986a). (e.g.. Rondeau 1980; Bloomer et al. 1997; D. Elston (1986b) presented a summary of tentative Stevens, personal communication 2000). How- 362 JOURNAL OF CALIFORNIA AND GREAT BASIN ANTHROPOLOGY ever, the relative intractability of basalt for biface corded, along with notes on strategy and results. manufacture has discouraged experimentation This work was combined with a literature re that would be extensive enough to test a diversity view, a study of collections housed at Tahoe Na of knapping strategies. Knappers accustomed to tional Forest, and an examination of artifacts in obsidian or chert find their skills tested to the known surface scatters, especially at Alder Hill/ limits by basalt. Perhaps the most serious obsta Prosser Lake and at four sites in the Lakes Basin cle is the cumulative damage to joints (fingers, area. hands, wrists, elbows, shoulders, and neck) "Refined" refers to a projectile point or bi caused by a sustained program of percussion and face with relatively straight edges in edge view, pressure of this demanding material (cf. Callahan symmetrical plan form, fairly symmetrical cross and Titmus 1999). Despite such limitations, and section ("camber"), near absence of steps, and even though further experimentation is needed, an organized flake scar pattern. It may be thick replicative studies reported here shed light on or thin but, all else held equal, thinner is more assemblage variability and typology. refined. "Cmde" bifaces or points tend to have Originally introduced to the art by Glynn the opposite of all these attributes. An "expedi Isaac, eminent African prehistorian then teaching ent" projectile point is a cmde one. Expedient at the University of California, Berkeley, the points with a minimum of flake scars—most of author has been a knapper since 1976. Initial them noninvasive so that the desired flinctional interest was in the African Lower Paleolithic and shape is achieved with a minimum of effort- the analysis of large bifaces (Edwards 2001). should theoretically prove more common in areas Authentic replication entailed experimentation where raw materials are more coarse. with many raw materials, but especially basalt, one of the two most widely used materials in TECHNOLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS Africa (the other being quartzite). More recent Martis knappers were highly skilled at work ly, the author turned his attention to Martis tech ing with basalt, as illustrated in Elsasser (1960: nology, and over a period of four years, a num Plate I), Neuenschwander (1994:Figs. 3 and 5), ber of Martis replicas were attempted. The hope and here in Figure 2. Any knapping session in was to learn as much as possible about the tech basalt is always problematical at the outset, given nological skills and strategies reflected in Martis the difficulty of the stone. Nevertheless, Martis flaked stone assemblages. knappers achieved complete control of attributes sufficiendy often that it is clear they equaled in APPROACH AND DEFINITIONS skill the best modern knappers. From 1997 to 2000, extensive replicative ex Raw material quality differs dramatically be periments were conducted using basalt collected tween Martis quarries. The basalt of Oakland at Alder Hill/Prosser Lake in Nevada County, Pond in Plumas County, California (Bloomer and California, and at several sites in the Lakes Hall 1998), is the finest of all; the various grades Basin/Gold Lake area of Sierra County (Fig. 1). distributed around Gold Lake/Lakes Basin/ Using a variety of techniques, cmde and refined Church Meadows (including Oakland Pond) are bifaces were replicated, as well as expedient and generally finer grained and glassier dian sources refined projectile points, in both fine- and coarse near Tmckee, Squaw Valley, and Lake Tahoe in grained basalts. Four different kinds of percus- Nevada County and Placer County (Davis 1958; sors were used, including antler baton, wood Duke 1998b; Ataman et al. 1999). Some archae baton, hard hammerstone, and soft hammer stone. ologists employ the whimsical term "basidian" The time required for each replication was re for the former sources. REPORTS 363 Fig. 1. Selected geologic sources of basalt in the northern Sierra Nevada, including sites mentioned in the text. Map courtesy of Craig Skinner. Workability is drastically different between were of material from distant sources, although the basalts in these areas. Lakes Basin basalts Alder Hill, Watson Creek, and Sawtooth Ridge are far more controllable; outcomes of percus sources were much closer (see Fig. 1). sion are more predictable and pressure flaking is Some of the raw materials that look like ba far easier. Consequentiy, bifaces/projectile points salt at Martis sites may not be basalt at all. Ma manufacmred from Lakes Basin basalts tend to terial from presumed Martis surface sites along have more regular flake scar patterns, both in Bowman Lake Road in Nevada County was sub replicated and aboriginal samples. Nevertheless, mitted to Steven Shackley at the Archaeological even with relatively coarse, step-prone Alder X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry Laboratory at Creek basalt, Martis knappers frequently attained the University of California, Berkeley. On the thorough control of attributes, including perva basis of trace elements, this black, aphanitic, ba sively regular flake scar patterns and perfected salt-like rock appears to be rhyodacitic (S. cambers and planforms. The superior knappabil- Shackley, personal communication 1999). How ity of Gold Lake basalt partially explains why ever, assignment to rock type on the basis of Ataman et al. (1999) discovered that about 35% trace element XRF is problematic (C. Skinner of the projectile points from Martis Valley sites and S. Shackley, personal communication 1999). 364 JOURNAL OF CALIFORNIA AND GREAT BASIN ANTHROPOLOGY Fig. 2. Examples of refined dart points from an excavated assemblage at Lakes Basin Campground, Plumas National Forest. From Neuenschwander (1994), published with permission of Peak and Associates, Sacramento, California.

Load more