Thursday, July 21, 2016

Did Women and Children Exist in Prehistory?

"The archaeological record tends to preserve stone tools rather than perishable remains,  such as this split-twig figurine found in Dolores Cave, near Gunnison, Colorado." Image Courtesy of Sapiens and the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (A1291.1).
"The archaeological record tends to preserve stone tools rather than perishable remains,
such as this split-twig figurine found in Dolores Cave, near Gunnison, Colorado."
Image Courtesy of Sapiens and the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (A1291.1). 
June 15, 2016.
Stephen E. Nash, of SAPIENS, has written a thoughtful article about the importance of including women and children in archaeological interpretations of the past.

"I have long been troubled by archaeological research on Paleoindian North America, where Clovis, Folsom, and other projectile-point styles, dating from about 13,000 to 9,000 years ago, are analyzed as if no other technologies existed. Part of this emphasis on projectile points is a function of preservation—whereas kill sites, hunting camps, bones, and stone tools are reasonably well-preserved across the American West, Paleoindian campsites are rare, and perishable remains (e.g., nets, baskets, clothing, shoes, etc.) are even rarer..."

To read the full articleclick here.

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