Radiocarbon Evidence Relating to Northern Great Basin Basketry Chronology

Abstract

Adovasio et al. (1986) described Early Holocene basketry from the northern Great Basin as "simple twined and undecorated." Cressman (1986) reported the presence of decorated basketry during the Early Holocene, which he characterized as a "climax of cultural development" in the Fort Rock Basin in Oregon. These contrasting interpretations are the product of relatively small basketry assemblages reliably dated to the Early Holocene from this area, as well as the questionable recovery context of some critical specimens. We report on the direct AMS dating of a number of basketry specimens central to this issue. Early Holocene basketry from the northern Great Basin does include decorated and complex structures; however, since most of the dated specimens fall toward the end of the Early Holocene, the evidence presented here does not provide definitive closure to the issue.