Radiocarbon Dating of Technological Transitions: The Late Holocene Shift From Atlatl to Bow in Northwestern Subarctic Canada

Abstract

Precolumbian archaeologists traditionally focus on periods of stability rather than change when constructing regional cultural chronologies. However, the advent of large databases of radiocarbon dates and the proliferation of open-source software environments such as R now allow archaeologists to understand technological transitions with greater chronological precision than has been historically possible. In this study, we employ Monte Carlo procedures, Bayes’ Theorem, the R package Bchron, and IntCal13 to address three chronological topics. We calculate the minimum number of dates required on atlatl and bow technologies to robustly date this late Holocene transition in Subarctic northwestern Canada, analyze previously published dates on organic projectile diagnostics to determine whether bows and atlatls overlapped for an observable amount of time, and estimate the years of calendric time that they overlapped. Results indicate that minimum sample sizes of 29 atlatl and 19 bow dates are required to characterize this particular transition in our study area. Actual radiocarbon dates show that bow and atlatl technologies temporally co-occurred within this region for 174 ± 135 (1σ) actual calendar years. Quantitative analyses such as these open the door to testing hypotheses that explain why and how technological transitions occur within and between (pre)historic groups.

A Multiscalar Consideration of the Athabascan Migration

“…However, results from the Upper Locus of the Klein site suggest that copper technology was already present in the region circa 1250 cal BP, well before the White River Ash east, though the copper materials recovered show evidence of cold hammering, indicating that hot working, characteristic of Athabascan copper work, occurred later in the region (Franklin et al 1981). These results indicate that technological transitions were gradual and well under way by the time of the White River Ash east event, a conclusion supported by recent research in the region (Grund and Huzurbazar 2018; Kristensen, Hare et al 2019).…”

Learning to use atlatls: equipment scaling and enskilment on the Oregon Coast

“…2013; Blitz & Porth 2013; Kennett et al . 2013; Angelbeck & Cameron 2014; Grund & Huzurbazar 2018). This research has drawn on experimental archaeology examining the differences in bow and atlatl accuracy, striking power, suitability for different types of prey, reload rate, production cost and gender-specific use performance (Whittaker & Kamp 2006; Whittaker 2010, 2013; Bettinger 2013; Grund 2017).…”

Power, security, and exchange: Impacts of a Late Holocene volcanic eruption in Subarctic North America

“…Preserved organics in permafrost and ice offer means of directly dating bow technology. Frozen arrow shafts (nocked) and a bow fragment from interior alpine ice patches in Yukon, N.W.T., Alaska, and central British Columbia point to appearance and rapid adoption of the bow after 1200 BP (Andrews et al., 2012a; Dixon et al., 2005; Grund and Huzurbazar, 2018; Hare et al., 2012; Keddie and Nelson, 2005; VanderHoek et al., 2012). Preserved organics from these high altitude hunting sites inform the movement of technologies.…”