Preliminary Results from the Certain Site: A Late Archaic Bison Kill in Western Oklahoma

Abstract

Five separate arroyos with bone bed deposits along the north bank of a canyon, a secondary processing area, and the recovery of additional bison bone in an arroyo on its south side, make the Certain site the largest Late Archaic bison kill in the southern Plains to date. At least three sequential bison kills that seemingly occurred in late fall are contained in the deeply buried deposits. This eastern Plains periphery site’s similar comer notched dart points, identical geomorphic setting of ail bone deposits, and radiocarbon assays suggest site use during the Late Archaic/Woodland transition, ca. AD 300.