Talk: Recent Research on Clovis Cache.
Speaker: David Kilby, PhD, Archaeologist, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Applied Archaeology, Eastern New Mexico University
Location: Kit Carson Electric - 118 Cruz Alta Rd, Taos
One of the most striking features of the Clovis period is the enigmatic caches of tools these people left behind over 13,000 years ago. These collections range from a handful of artifacts of a single type to literally hundreds of items of diverse form. Some are associated with red ocher or other exotic items. Two such caches were discovered at Blackwater Draw, including the first one ever identified. Past interpretations of caches include burial offerings, material storage, and safety measures taken as groups explored and colonized the New World. Regardless of their function, caches are unique among archaeological assembles in that they provide a window into working toolkits of Pleistocene hunter-gatherers. Given the increasing number of caches discovered or identified in collections, I believe that caching can be considered a regular part of Clovis strategies that merits focused attention. Their diversity in form and content suggests that they served more than a single purpose. This presentation will present the results of investigating over 20 potential Clovis caches toward understanding their distribution, their functions, and their potential uses for furthering our understanding of Clovis adaptations.
Dave's Bio:
I am an archaeologist focused primarily upon the early prehistory of North America. Though my research is largely oriented toward understanding the Paleoindian archaeological record of the American West, my broader interests range into other time periods, and into the associated fields of quaternary geology and ecology. I became an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Eastern New Mexico University in 2008 after having received my PhD in Anthropology from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque that same year.
My academic interests include lithic artifact analysis, geoarchaeology, hunter-gatherer ecology, Paleoindians, and Southwest prehistory. In pursuing these interests I have had the opportunity to work throughout the United States as well as Mexico, Costa Rica, and Guam. I have enjoyed fieldwork and research at some of the classic western Paleoindian sites, including Blackwater Draw, Murray Springs, Mockingbird Gap, Folsom, and the Rio Rancho Folsom site, as well as Boca Negra Wash, Deann’s Site, Demolition Road, Nall Playa, and others including the newly identified Beach cache in North Dakota.
My current research is focused on Clovis and Folsom archaeology of the American West, Southwest and Plains. My dissertation research consisted of an investigation of Clovis caches where I systematically compared cache assemblages to those of Clovis kill and camp sites towards interpreting their roles in Clovis economy and landscape use. This research continues. In addition, I am currently investigating a number of archaeological and geoarchaeological aspects of Blackwater Draw Locality No. 1, the Clovis site, and have directed the ENMU Archaeological Field School there for the past two years. You can find more information about Blackwater Draw by following the links provided below.
