Transactions of the Regional Archeological Symposium for Southeastern New Mexico and Western Texas: 2011 Page: 81
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Permian Basin Projectile Points Stylistic Comparison
Robin G. Wakeland , M.Ed.
2011 except for public domain images
Abstract
Over 200 projectile points in the Bureau of Land Management Carlsbad field office
remain uncataloged, representing a wide range of time and styles. The author sorts them by
shape into established categories ranging north through New Mexico into the 4-corners region
as well as southern Colorado. Archaic through basket maker. Vivid color images present a
sculptural dimension not conveyed in archaeologists' field drawings.
Biography - Robin G. Wakeland is a commercial artist in Albuquerque, NM. She has
had a number of presentations, publications, and exhibits in both archeology and art. She has
a BFA in sculpture at the University of North Carolina (1972) and a M.Ed. at the College of
Santa Fe, NM (2009).
Archaeologists have made comparisons between artifacts from the Permian Basin and
those in northern New Mexico and extending into southern Colorado and northwestern Arizona.
These correlations have been mostly limited to the archaic time period. However, lithic projectile
points collected at the Bureau of Land Management Carlsbad field office show similarities
during the later, basketmaker period between these disparate regions based on style, shape and
form. Typically basketmaker refers to 1-700 C.E. (Seaman 1983:10). The BLM lithics were
collected without any date or other cultural information. Lithics from the southwest are usually
retrieved in scatters precluding any date being established.
Archaic pan-regional cultural connections in the southwest were expressed by
archaeologists in 1967. Similarities in projectile points shape and form were found between the
pre-Pueblo southwest "and adjacent cultures, particularly in eastern New Mexico, west Texas,
central California, and the adjacent portions of the southern Great Basin. However, at present
most of these are considered to reflect a generally comparable Archaic base, coupled with the
action of limited specific historic diffusion. The long term developmental continuity
characteristic of the internal structure of the Picosa [pre-Pueblo] materials is absent or
considerably attenuated outside the Southwest as defined above", Irwin-Williams (1967:455,
446). Seeking cultural connections, a stylistic comparison of points spanned Trans-Pecos,
northern New Mexico (Upper Rio Grande and Oshara) and Cochise cultures (Elyea and Doleman
2002:17-18).
A standardized lithic categorization, or typology, based on details such as base, shoulder,
stem, and blade forms; cross sections; and sloping, abrupt, rounded, oblique or extended
shoulders; basal grinding (or lack of) was developed (Irwin-Williams & Tompkins 1968:Fig. 6,
Burchett 1994). Because the digital images do not consistently show such 3D and manufacturing
details, and the site reports only sporadically record them, this comparison is based only on the
shape and forms evident in the digital images from the BLM.
Dating lithics with typologies and/or styles is problematic. Often because of scatter and
shallow to non-existent depth (maximum 20-30 cm.) projectile points cannot be used to date a
site (Seaman 1993:166). However, projectile point dates derived from buried artifacts,
81GOP
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Transactions of the Regional Symposium for Southeastern New Mexico and Western Texas: Index to Volumes 1-57 [1965-2024] (Book)
Index to the proceedings of the regional archeological symposium including separate lists by subject, title, author, and volume along with subject categories, a map of regions, and Texas county abbreviations.
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Robertson, Pinky. Transactions of the Regional Archeological Symposium for Southeastern New Mexico and Western Texas: 2011, book, 2012; Midland, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1661492/m1/87/?q=+date%3A1945-1972: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Southwestern Federation of Archaeological Societies.