Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas

by Jennifer Raff

the origin of Clovis is the Debra L. Friedkin site in Texas, which contains a series of occupations dating from the late Archaic through pre-Clovis levels dated between 15,500 and 13,500 years ago. These pre-Clovis levels expose a fascinating sequence: stemmed points in the lowest levels, then directly above them in levels dating to about 14,000 years ago somewhat crudely shaped projectile points that were made using similar methods to Clovis points but don’t have their distinctive fluting. Directly above those were Clovis points. And in each level, we can see that people were also making other kinds of tools in very similar ways: scrapers for removing hair from hides, blades for various cutting tasks, and choppers. Archaeologist Michael Waters thinks that these sites contain the clues to the evolution of Clovis: the pre-Clovis tools (which have been classified as the Buttermilk Creek complex) are the technological ancestors of the Clovis tools. “I see broad connections between Clovis and pre-Clovis sites,” he told me. “The early sites show that biface, blade, and osseous [bone tool] technologies were present before Clovis across the Americas. It is from these technologies that Clovis could emerge.”