A Game String and Rabbit Stick Cache from Borrego Valley, San Diego County

Abstract

This report describes a game string and rabbit stick discovered cached together in the Borrego Valley of San Diego County. Perforated ceramic discs forming parts of the game string inspire the speculation that similarly shaped objects, including the so-called "spindle whorls" recovered in coastal southern California sites, functioned as procurement technology. Experimental archaeology does not support the hypothesis that the game string, along with the attached discs, functioned as a bola. Ethnographic notes on game strings and curved throwing sticks are also presented.