PAGE 1
CACHE OF 2 LARGE NOTCHED BIFACES
OLIVE BRANCH SITE
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
EARLY ARCHAIC
EST. 9,500 PLUS YEARS AGO
PAGE 1 OF 2 PAGES
COPYRIGHT AUGUST 31, 2003 PETER A. BOSTROM

PHOTOS CREDITS, LIZ KASSLY AND RICHARD MICHAEL GRAMLY, PhD.
DR. MIKE GRAMLY & TWO LARGE NOTCHED BIFACES
& JASON NERALICH HOLDING HIS DISCOVERY

OLIVE BRANCH SITE
ALEXANDER COUNTY, SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

    Taking a break on a hot August 2003 day soon after the discovery of two large notched bifaces on the Olive Branch site. Dr. Mike Gramly is contemplating what are probably the largest Early Archaic "notched" bifaces ever found during a scientific excavation in the Mississippi Valley.
   The picture on the right show the discoverer of the Neralich cache, Jason Neralich. He is holding the larger of the two bifaces. The Mississippi River is in the background

Neralich cache abstract picture.

TWO NOTCHED BIFACES &
THE OLIVE BRANCH SITE
EARLY ARCHAIC PERIOD

   The Olive Branch site is an Early Archaic site that's been the focus of an archaeological program for a number of years by Dr. Richard Michael Gramly and volunteers. The site is mainly represented by the Dalton culture and dates to well over 9,500 years ago. Other Early Archaic points that have been found above the Dalton zone include Agate Basin, Hardin Barbed and corner notched "Thebes-like" points. The Olive Branch site has been known as a source for Stone Age artifacts by the local people ever since a right-of-way was sold in 1899 to a railroad company and tracks were laid through the property. In 1986, when the site became threatened by artifact diggers, Dr. Gramly organized the current and ongoing archaeological program to gather as much information as possible about this important site.
    The recent discovery of a cache of two large notched bifaces at Olive Branch was a significant find. Their size, shape and the fact that they were stained with red ochre signifies they were probably items used in a ritual context. No bones were found in the feature.

   "The Neralich Cache appears to have been interred within a small pit. The bifaces were enveloped in red-tinged soil suggesting that they may have been wrapped in ochre-painted robes, matting, or some other sort of pliable covering. The absence of human bone, calcined or otherwise, indicates that the bifaces are not grave offerings. A more likely explanation for this spectacular pair of blades is that they are sculptures representing ancestral men and women. They may have embodied the spirits or ghosts of the Very Early Archaic folk who resided at the Olive Branch site." ---Richard Michael Gramly, PhD.

    " Since 1986, archaeological excavations at the Olive Branch site at Thebes Gap on the bank of the Mississippi River have laid bare an important stratified sequence of archaeological deposits." ---Richard Michael Gramly, PhD.

Olive Branch excavation, August 2003.
PHOTO CREDIT LINDA BOLLENBACH
EXCAVATION AREA
THE OLIVE BRANCH SITE---AUGUST 2003

CACHE OF 2 LARGE NOTCHED BIFACES
OLIVE BRANCH SITE
ALEXANDER CO., SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

   The picture above shows a portion of the Olive Branch site as it looked in August  2003. On the 19th, two very large notched bifaces were discovered during the excavation. The cache was found by Jason Neralich and is now referred to as the Neralich cache after the finder. The bifaces are impressive for their size and artistic design (manufacturing skill) and were apparently intended for some type of ritual use.

Largest of the two Neralich cache notched points.
CLICK ON PICTURE FOR LARGE TRIPLE IMAGE

LARGE NOTCHED BIFACE
OLIVE BRANCH SITE
ALEXANDER COUNTY, SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

PRIVATE COLLECTION

   This is the largest of the two large notched bifaces that were discovered during the August 2003 excavation on the Olive Branch site. It is probably the largest Early Archaic corner notched point ever found during a controlled scientific excavation and may in fact be the largest ever found in the Mississippi Valley. This point was probably never used domestically because of its size, style and the fact that it was found in a red ochre stained cache. These characteristics place it outside the parameters of "normal" functioning tools. It is made of Burlington chert and measures 11 inches (27.9 cm) long and 4 1/2 inches (11.4 cm) wide. There is one "hump" in the center that measures 11/16 inches (17 mm) thick but most of this biface is less than 1/2 of an inch (12 mm) thick.

    The Neralich bifaces were found in a level assigned to the Early Archaic period estimated to be more than 9,500 years old. Dr. Gramly believes they may represent some of the earliest notched points in this period and appear just above Dalton and Agate Basin points.

CONTINUE ON TO PAGE TWO

"REFERENCES"

1985,  Perino, Gregory, "Selected Preforms, Points, and Knives of the North American Indians, Vol. I," Thebes, pp. 376, 377 &  378.
1995, Gramly, Richard Michael, "VI. The Olive Branch Site: The Initial Archaic Period In Southern Illinois," p.62.
2002, Gramly, Richard Michael, "Olive Branch, A Very Early Archaic Site On The Mississippi River."
Personal communications with Mike Gramly.
Personal communications with Larry Kinsella.

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