National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior
National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior
Southeast
Archeological
Center
 
Tallahassee, Florida
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The Salt Springs Site: An Ancient Shoreline Revealed (Cont'd)

Figure 6. a) possible Paleo point. b) possible Paleo thumbnail scraper. c-h) Archaic points. i) possible Archaic preform.

Figure 6. a) possible Paleo point.
b) possible Paleo thumbnail scraper.
c-h) Archaic points. i) possible
Archaic preform.
In addition to the modified plant remains, recovered evidence of human activity include, stone flakes, stone scrapers, and stone points. The Christmas tree-shaped points are known to date to the Middle Archaic Period (7,000 to 5,000 years ago). Two rare stone tools, a point and a thumbnail scraper, were found below the others and may date to the Late Paleo/Early Archaic period (9,000 to 8,000 years ago) (Figure 6).

Bone was present across the shoreline and include large and small fragments from turtles, fish, alligator, snake and deer. In places, deer bone was very abundant and many deer bones were found to have been modified by human actions. Pointed pins and awls made from the leg bones (metapodials) and points made from the tips of antlers were present. Many bones were scored and cut, revealing that they were in the process of being made into tools. A possible tubular whistle made from a bird leg bone was also recovered. (Figures 7c-7e).

Figure 7. a) shell adze. b) shell cutting tool (with hafting hole). c. bone whistle. d) bone pin. e) cut deer antler.

Figure 7. a) shell adze. b) shell cutting
tool (with hafting hole). c. bone whistle.
d) bone pin. e) cut deer antler.

The ancient shore also yielded shell tools (Figures 7a and 7b). Most of the tools were made from whelks—large snails found only along the Atlantic Ocean shores some 50 miles to the east. The distance to the source of these shells suggests that inhabitants at Salt Springs traveled to or traded with people who lived along the coast of Florida. Three large whelk tools had holes punched in them to accommodate hafting of handles and their tips were sharpened to facilitate cutting. Undoubtedly, these shell axes were the type of tools used on the numerous wooden logs recovered with cut marks. A portion of the outer whorl of a whelk shell shaped into an adze was also recovered.

Throughout the dig, hardened feces from either humans or alligators (it is difficult to tell the difference without specialized analyses) were also recovered.


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