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BONE ARROW POINTS

CAHOKIA MOUNDS AREA
MISSISSIPPIAN CULTURE
ILLINOIS
A.D. 850 TO A.D. 1,500
PAGE 1 OF 2 PAGES
COPYRIGHT OCTOBER 31, 2004 PETER A. BOSTROM
Shark tooth effigy bone Cahokia point.
CLICK ON PICTURE FOR LARGE IMAGE
BONE POINT---CAHOKIA MOUNDS SITE---ILLINOIS

    This very well made bone Cahokia point was carved into the shape of a shark tooth. It has straight-sides with serrated edges and a very deep concave base.  It was found many years ago by a man who had stopped his car along side the road and was walking over to ask directions from a farmer working in the field. This point measures 1 3/4 inches (4.5 cm) long and 3/4 inch (2 cm) wide.

Bone points abstract picture.

BONE ARROW POINTS
CAHOKIA MOUNDS SITE & SURROUNDING AREA
MISSISSIPPIAN CULTURE
ILLINOIS

    This article illustrates and describes sixteen rare examples of bone arrow points from the Cahokia Mounds site and surrounding area. The bone points illustrated here represent a large percentage of the "complete" examples that have been found in the Cahokia area. The artifacts are housed in the Illinois State Museum collection, the Gilcrease Institute in Tulsa Oklahoma and several private collections.

    "Bone arrow points are rare and are only found in small numbers on a few sites."---1985, Gregory Perino, "Selected Preforms, Points and Knives of the North American Indians," p. 40.
    "Bone arrow points probably were made as early as the first flint arrow points."---1985, Gregory Perino, "Selected Preforms, Points and Knives of the North American Indians," p. 40.
    "The use of bone and related (organic) materials----was almost universal among Indian tribes,"---1912, Frederick Webb Hodge, "Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico," p. 159.

Archaeologists excavating mound 34 at Cahokia.
EXCAVATING MOUND 34 AUGUST 13, 2002
JUST EAST OF MONKS MOUND SEEN IN THE BACKGROUND

    Over the years, Mound 34 has been surface collected and excavated by collectors and archaeologists. This mound dates to about 1200 A.D. and it's considered to be a place where rituals were once being performed. This area has produced some of the most exotic artifacts ever found at Cahokia. A sharks tooth war club was the most "exotic" artifact found there. Two or more bone arrow points have also been reported to have been found there.


BONE ARROW POINTS
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

    Many archaeological sites only produce artifacts made of stone. The more fragile organic materials like antler, bone, ivory, shell or wood often do not survive. This is especially true the farther back in time you look and the conditions under which the artifacts lay. Excavations at Cahokia Mounds have produced important discoveries of artifacts that were made of organic materials. Many of them were only poorly preserved but quite a lot of them are found in perfect condition. Some of the rarest artifacts ever found on the Cahokia Mounds site are the arrow points made of bone.

Shark tooth effigy bone Cahokia point.
CLICK ON PICTURE FOR LARGE TRIPLE IMAGE

BONE POINT
CAHOKIA MOUNDS SITE
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
PRIVATE COLLECTION

    This very finely carved and ground bone Cahokia point is believed to have been found many years ago on the Cahokia Mounds site. It is probably as thin as any examples that have ever been found. Although rare, this point represents the more common "un-notched" style of bone points that have been found on the Cahokia Mounds site. This point appears to have been made to look like a sharks tooth. It has very straight edges that are serrated plus a fairly deep concave base. This point may be made of deer bone and it measures 1 7/16 inches (3.6 cm), 5/8 inch (1.5 cm) and 1/16 inch (1.1 mm).

     The Mississippian people who were living at Cahokia Mounds between 1200 and 500 years ago were making projectile points out of bone and antler. If the cache of hundreds of antler arrow points that were found in Mound 72 is any indication, they were making antler arrow points in great numbers. But for all the years that farmers, collectors and archaeologists have been retrieving artifacts from the Cahokia Mounds site only a single handful of bone arrow points have been recorded. The antler arrow point cache that was found in Mound 72 was found in very poor condition. Only one or two examples were recovered.

Four bone Cahokia points.
PHOTO CREDIT LARRY KINSELLA
BONE POINTS
CAHOKIA MOUNDS SITE
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
GILCREASE INSTITUTE COLLECTION

   These four bone Cahokia points are believed to have been found several years ago on the Cahokia Mounds site. They represent three different design styles of bone points from this area. All of them seem to be made to look like sharks teeth or at least have strong sharks teeth design traits. Like straight serrated edges and concave bases. Even the double-notched point has a deep concave base.

     Although there have only been a few bone points discovered at Cahokia Mounds, it is surprising how many different style variations there are. This article illustrates sixteen bone points that represent a large percentage of the known complete examples from the Cahokia Mounds area. Within this group there are at least five different style variations, which seems remarkable for such a small number.

CONTINUE ON TO PAGE TWO

"REFERENCES"

1912, Frederick Webb Hodge, "Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico," p. 159.
1985, Gregory Perino, "Selected Preforms, Points and Knives of the North American Indians," Bone Arrow Points," page 40.
1988, Tattersall, Ian, Delson, Eric, Couvering, John Van, "Encyclopedia of Human Evolution and Prehistory," "Bow and Arrow," p.97.

Personal communications with Larry Kinsella.

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