Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I, Point Types

by James W. Cambron; David C. Hulse

FLAKING: The presence of many hinge fractures on blade faces indicates much of the flaking used to shape the blade and hafting area may be the result of the baton method of percussion flaking. Some secondary flaking appears along the edges. The plane striking area on the basal edge indicates manufacture from a blade. Many examples in the Tennessee Valley are made of Ft. Payne chert.

COMMENTS: The type site is the Canyon Diablo Site of Tamaulipas, Mexico (Mahan, 1955). An example was found with a mammoth near Mexico City. The illustrated example is from Hulse Site 32E, Limestone County, Alabama. Examples are usually found on the same sites as Lerma Rounded Base, but may be somewhat earlier as is the case with the Mexican examples although not with Rounded Base Texas examples. At the Quad Site (Cambron and Hulse, 1960a) an example reworked to a drill was recovered from Stratum III in association with Big Sandy I, Dalton, Crawford Creek, and other points. An early Archaic to transitional Paleo association is suggested.

LERMA ROUNDED BASE, Termed "Lerma" by MacNeish (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962): A-55

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: This is a medium to large sized, lanceolate point with rounded base.

MEASUREMENTS: Some measurements of 52 examples from 27 sites in the Tennessee Valley (Soday and Cambron, n. d.) follow: length—maximum, 99 mm.; minimum, 51 mm.; average, 80 mm.: width—average, 28 mm.: thickness—average, 9 mm. The illustrated example is 90 mm. long, 30 mm. wide, and 9 mm. thick.

FORM: The cross-section is usually biconvex but may be somewhat flattened or plano-convex. The blade is usually excurvate but may be nearly straight beyond the hafting area. Some examples may be beveled on one side of each face beyond the hafting area. The distal end is acute. The hafting area may be rounded or broad-pointed. The basal edge is thinned, except for the striking platform of the basic blade, on many examples. This leaves a plane area on part of the basal edge.

FLAKING: A combination of broad shallow flakes and short hinged flakes were used on many examples to shape the blade and hafting area. Secondary flaking is usually present along the edges. The plane striking area on the basal edge indicates manufacture from a blade. Local materials are usually employed. Many North Alabama examples are made of Ft. Payne chert.

COMMENTS: The point was named Lerma Rounded Base by Cambron to distinguish it from Lerma Pointed Base. The type is a variant of the Lerma point as defined by MacNeish (E. C. Mahan, 1955). The illustrated example is from Hulse Site 37E in Limestone County, Alabama. Examples from Texas are illustrated by Suhm and Jelks (1962) with an estimated age of 2000 B. C. to 1000 A. D. Others from Texas were described as Archaic and illustrated by Bell (1958). At the Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962) one example was recovered from Level 1 of Zone D, which is an indication of pre-Archaic or early Archaic association at this site. The presence of one example each from Levels 8 and 9 at the University of Alabama Site Ms 201 in Marshall County, Alabama, indicates an early Archaic association. Three examples were found in Stratum II at Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Waters, 1961), indicating an early to middle Archaic association. Evaluation of this evidence and observations indicate a possible existence of from transitional Paleo to middle Archaic times.