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1990.15
BI-BEVELED
BONE ROD
EAST
WENATCHEE CLOVIS SITE
EAST
WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON
CAST
#P-26
BI-BEVELED BONE ROD
EAST WENATCHEE
CLOVIS SITE
EAST WENATCHEE
WASHINGTON
WASHINGTON STATE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY MUSEUM COLLECTION
by
Richard Michael Gramly, Ph.D.
This bi-beveled bone rod is the only engraved bone object that was found
on the East Wenatchee Clovis site. Thirteen other similar bone artifacts
were also found on this site where they all lay within a shallow pit. This
bone tool has been expertly fashioned from a section of probosidean limb
bone – perhaps a tibia or femur. The fine incising on both bevels
suggests that this rod was fastened to other rods and that together they
formed an apparatus of unknown function.
Note
that the bevels differ in their angle to the horizontal and also that
their extreme ends define a plane, which is nearly parallel to both long
faces.
BI-BEVELED BONE RODS
EAST WENATCHEE
CLOVIS SITE
EAST WENATCHEE
WASHINGTON
WASHINGTON STATE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY MUSEUM COLLECTION
PICTURE CREDIT MIKE GRAMLY
by
Pete Bostrom
Bone preservation
was very good on the East Wenatchee Clovis site. Clovis artifacts made of bone, antler
or Ivory are rare from this early time period. This site has produced more bone rods with tapered ends than any
other Clovis site. The River sites in Florida have produced the majority
of all Clovis bone and ivory
artifact finds in the United States.
The most unique find at Wenatchee was the cache of thirteen bone
rods made from proboscidean (mammoth) limb bones. Although their purpose
has yet to be proven, several theories have been suggested. Everything
from sled runners, foreshafts and flintknapping tools have been discussed
as possible uses. There was only one engraved bone rod in this cache.
It has engraving similar to a Clovis bone spear point found in
Sheridan Cave in Ohio (a cast of
this point is also available). This bone rod from the East Wenatchee
Clovis site measures slightly over 10 1/4 inches.
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