Handbook of Alabama Archaeology: Part I Point Types Part 21

PROVISIONAL POINT TYPES

This group includes points that are probably extreme variants of named types, unfinished points, and points that have not proven distinctive enough to be recognized as a definite type. As further work is carried out and more materials become available for observation, some named types may be separated from these generalized types as has been done with some of the provisional types originally set up.

Ill.u.s.trations are oversize to show the flaking more clearly.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Small to large sized, straight stemmed points that do not conform with certainty to any of the named type descriptions.

COMMENTS: At Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Waters, 1961) examples from the Archaic Stratum II were slightly larger than examples from Woodland and Mississippian Stratum I. At Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962) this was the most numerous provisional type, and most examples appeared in the upper half of Zone A (Archaic and later).

Provisional Type 1--Stemmed, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-90]

Provisional Type 2--Expanded Stem, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-91]

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Small to large expanded stem points that do not conform with certainty to any of the named type descriptions.

COMMENTS: At Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Waters, 1961) the type was slightly smaller than Provisional Type 1--Stemmed, and examples from Stratum I (Woodland and Mississippian) were slightly longer than examples from Stratum II (Archaic). At Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962) practically all examples were recovered from Zone A (Archaic and later), with most examples from the upper half of this zone.

Provisional Type 3--(See Crawford Creek)

Provisional Type 4--Stemmed Barbed, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Usually small to medium sized, stemmed points, with barbed shoulders, that do not conform to a named type description.

COMMENTS: At Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Waters, 1961) examples from Stratum I (Woodland and Mississippian) were slightly larger than examples from Stratum II (Archaic). Of the few examples recovered from the Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962), most were from late Archaic or early Woodland strata.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-92]

Provisional Type 5--Stemmed and Serrated, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Small to large stemmed points, with serrated blade edges, that do not conform to a named type description.

COMMENTS: Examples are more likely to occur in Archaic than Woodland a.s.sociation.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-93]

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-94]

Provisional Type 6--Unfinished Base, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Usually medium sized points with finished blade and unfinished base that do not conform to any named type description.

COMMENTS: The only two examples recovered from Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Waters, 1961) were from Stratum I (Woodland and Mississippian). The three examples from Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962) were from the upper half of Zone A (Archaic and later).

Provisional Type 7--(See Elora)

Provisional Type 8--Corner Notched, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: A small to large sized corner notched point that does not conform to a named type description.

COMMENTS: Basal edges may be ground and blade edges may be serrated or beveled. Larger examples are usually a.s.sociated with early Archaic cultures.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-95]

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-96]

Provisional Type 9--Side Notched, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: A small to large side notched point that does not conform to a named type description.

COMMENTS: May appear in a.s.sociation with Archaic or Woodland cultural materials.

Provisional Type 10--Eccentric Notched, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: A medium sized, stemmed point with several eccentric notches along the blade edges that does not conform to any named type description.

COMMENTS: This is a relatively rare point. One example was recovered from Stratum II (Archaic) at Flint Creek Rock Shelter (Cambron and Water, 1961). One example of unknown provenience was ill.u.s.trated as type 51 by Webb and DeJarnette (1942, Plate 294-1) from Ct 27. An example was ill.u.s.trated by Travis and Lenser (1960, Fig. 7-G) from the Sugar Creek area of the Tennessee Valley.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-97]

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-98]

Provisional Type 11--Triangular, =Cambron and Waters= (Cambron and Waters, 1961)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: A small to large triangular point that does not conform to a named type description.

COMMENTS: May appear in a.s.sociation with Transitional Paleo and later cultural materials.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A-99]

Provisional Type 12--Rounded Base, =Cambron and Hulse= (Cambron and Hulse, 1960b)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Small to large, rounded base, trianguloid point that does not conform to the description of a named type.

COMMENTS: Examples were recovered from early Archaic through late Woodland strata at Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962).

Provisional Type 13--Notched Convex Stem, =Cambron and Hulse= (Cambron and Hulse, 1960b)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: A medium to large point that usually has a rounded stem with notches in the stem adjacent to the shoulders and that does not conform to the description of a named type.

COMMENTS: A comparatively rare point that may prove to be a definite type, although at present the few examples are too variable to define as a type. An example was recovered from Level 2 (Woodland) of Zone A at Stanfield-Worley Bluff Shelter (DeJarnette, Kurjack and Cambron, 1962).