From other regions of the Americas, there are other suggestions of early
man and ancient cultures. J. L. Giddings’ Palisades culture, on
mountainside benches of Cape Krusenstern, Alaska, north of Bering
Strait, may be old. It appears considerably older than the Denbigh Flint
Complex, south of the Strait, which may go back from 4,500 to 5,000
years.[86] And in South America early man is represented at such sites
as El Jobo, in Venezuela;[87] an unpublished radiocarbon date from this
region is rumored at about 16,000 years.
The coming decade should bring further refinements in radiocarbon
dating, as well as the development of newer techniques such as the
Rosholt “uranium-daughter” products and obsidian hydration measurements.
With or without the aid of these dating methods, livelier activity of
archaeologists south of the border should soon give us more information
about early man in Latin America.
THE MORE IMPORTANT SITES OF EARLY MAN
The listing on the three next pages, which goes no further than 1948, is
not exhaustive. There is room for argument over a number of the finds;
but the arrangement of the materials in columns provides a rough
perspective. The sites are listed in order of discovery. The symbols
indicate one or more occurrences:
Occurrence of the saber-toothed cat, tapir, giant beaver, or extinct
armadillo is not indicated. Finds that seem problematical or not
definitely associated with other finds are shaded. Sandia points were
found with the five extinct mammals indicated in the Sandia cave and
below the Folsom.
Human Bones
{SK} skull
{PS} part of skull
{CB} a considerable number of bones
{FB} a few bones
Artifacts, Fires
{SB} a skeleton or the major parts
{C} Clovis and other early fluted points
{F} Folsom
{FP} Plainview, Scottsbluff, and other parallel-fluted points
{OP} other types of point
{CC} charcoal
{MS} milling stone
{P} pottery
{R} rocks thrown by man
{HS} horn and shell objects
{BF} bone and flake tools
{BT} bone tools
Extinct Mammals
{M} mammoth or mastodon
{EB} extinct bison
{S} sloth
{EC} extinct camel
{EH} extinct horse
{ES} extinct South American mammals
*An asterisk within brackets indicates shading in the diagram.
Date Place Human Artifacts, Extinct Mammals
Bones Fires
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