FORM: The cross-section is usually biconvex; rarely, plano-convex. The shoulders are usually tapered and may be expanded. The blade is excurvate; the distal end, acute. The hafting area is usually straight-stemmed but the stem may be expanded or contracted with a straight or, rarely, excurvate basal edge. One example could be described as having shallow side notches. About one-fourth of the original series have lightly ground bases.
FLAKING: One or (usually) both faces are shaped by oblique-transverse flaking. Retouch is minimized since the oblique flaking, in most cases, carries from the blade edges to near the center of the face and occasionally almost forms a median ridge. The transverse-oblique flaking is similar to that seen on the faces of some Angostura, Scotts-bluff and Brown Valley points and Cape Denbigh artifacts illustrated by Wormington (1957). This flaking technique was also used on some late neolithic Danish daggers (Bordaz, 1959).
COMMENTS: The point was named for the Elk River Site on Elk River in Limestone County, Alabama. The illustrated example is from Hulse 38E (Quad Site), Limestone County, Alabama. The type was listed in the depth distribution charts at Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Waters, 1961) in the middle-Archaic stratum (10 examples) and Woodland stratum (two examples). An illustration was listed as Provisional Type 2, expanded stem. Two examples of Elk River points from Perry Site, Lu 25, on Seven Mile Island in Lauderdale County, Alabama, were used to illustrate the high art of flint flaking (Webb and DeJarnette, 1942). Examples from Levels 8 and 9, Zone A, at Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962) indicate a late Archaic association. Examples were recovered from Zones A, B, C, and D at Flint River Mound, Ma 48 (Webb and DeJarnette, 1948a). At Little Bear Creek, Ct 8 (Webb and DeJarnette, 1948b) six examples were recovered from the five-foot level and one from the six-foot level. This again indicates a middle- to late-Archaic type. Since most of the associations in the North Alabama—South Tennessee area are within the shellmound period, this type very likely appeared before 5000 years ago. It is probably not associated with the western point types with similar flaking.
ELORA, Cambron (Cambron and Hulse, 1960b): A-34
GENERAL DESCRIPTION: The Elora is a medium to large, thick, broad, stemmed point with unfinished base.
MEASUREMENTS: The 12 cotypes (including the illustrated example) which provided the features range in measurements as follows: length—maximum, 71 mm.; minimum, 53 mm.; average, 61 mm.: shoulder width—maximum, 57 mm.; minimum, 35 mm.; average, 43 mm.: stem width—maximum, 22 mm.; minimum, 20 mm.; average, 20 mm.: stem length—maximum, 15 mm.; minimum, 8 mm.; average, 12 mm.: thickness—maximum, 12 mm.; minimum, 7 mm.; average, 10 mm.
FORM: The cross-section is biconvex. Shoulders are usually rounded and tapered but may be horizontal or, rarely, expanded. The blade is usually straight; rarely, excurvate or incurvate. Some examples are finely serrated as a result of retouching along the blade edges. The distal end is usually acute; rarely, broad. The hafting area consists of a thick, contracted stem with side edges that are straight or incurvate and a basal edge that is usually straight but may be excurvate. The crudely finished stem base found on most examples often has an intentionally broken appearance. Removal of one or more flakes usually results in a relatively broad, flattened basal edge.
FLAKING: The flaking used to form the blade and hafting area is broad, shallow or deep, and random. Fine, sometimes steep, regular retouching along the blade edges accomplished by removal of alternate flakes from each face sometimes results in fine serrations. The shoulder and side edges of the stem may show some secondary flaking. The basal edge is usually unfinished but may show a little retouch as broad flakes were struck off or perhaps intentionally broken off to form a more or less flat stem base edge.