Blackwater Draw Museum
In 1926 archeologists discovered artifacts near Folsom, NM that indicated that humans had been in the new world twice as long as previously thought. Then in 1932 artifacts and projectile points were found at Blackwater Draw near Clovis, NM. This second exciting discovery pushed man entry into the Americas back another 1000 years to 13,500 years ago. This discovery evolved into the Clovis First hypothesis stating that the Clovis people were the first humans to enter the Americas. This hypothesis was vigorously defended for decades. But sites such as Meadowcroft Rockshelter in Pennsylvania and Monte Verde in Chile have begrudging been accepted as evidence that migrations to the Americas preceded the Clovis people.The Clovis people hunted the mega fauna including the mammoth.
A Mammoth jaw showing their four teeth used to grind up vegetation.
Each Mammoth gets 5 replacement sets during their life time. When the 6th set is ground down to nothing, they would die of starvation.
These bifacial pressure flaked points with concave flutes running up from the base define the Clovis culture.
They were attached to spear shafts and used to kill Mammoths by thrusting up through the soft under belly.
Five thousand years later the Mammoths and other mega fauna had disappeared from the Americas. Some anthropologists think because of over hunting by the Clovis people. The Folsom people were now hunting bison. Their projectile points were smaller and thinner so they could pass between the bison's ribs.
Mammoths are basically elephants. Poking one in the underbelly ("soft" is not really an appropriate word to describe a couple of inches of elephant hide) is not a terribly good idea: won't kill him, and won't put you in good terms with him.
ReplyDeleteYou'll end up dead in a rather unpleasant manner...
Anthropologists who think that mammoths were hunted to extinction by spear-wielding primitive people do not know much about elephants and about hunting. That the occasional mammoth was hunted (and not scavenged, or finished up when found stuck in a mudpit, which happens quite regularly with elephants) is quite certain, but it was definitely not a routine affair, and people would die whenever groups of hunters went for it. Nothing like seeing your friends smashed to a messy pulp to temper your enthusiasm...