Stone tools of the Western Native American Cultures

Knapping is the art of making projectile points. Using an antler or stronger rock, Native people would break off parts of rock to get it smaller. They would then flack smaller pieces to make them sharp.

Once a point is finished it is connected to a shaft. This point is 3cmx1cm.

Clovis points were made by some of the earliest, if not the earliest people to come to the New World. Most Clovis points are dated from 10,000-14,000 years ago. They were attached to atlatl dark shafts and used to hunt giant Ice Age animals.

Projectile points like the Clovis point were hafted on to spread and dart shaft and were used for hunting large animals like mammoths.

Arrowheads are small points that range from 1-5cm. They are attached to straight sticks or reeds for hunting animals as big as American Bison to squirrels and ducks.
This point is 2.8cmx1.5 cm and is made of agate. It was used by the Ancestral Puebloans. (700-1130 AD) 

Bows and arrows were used to hunt American bison, deer, and ducks.

This artifact is a bifacial unhafted jasper knife. The size and shape suggest it to be a multiple use tool. Specifically, as a membrane fleshing tool for hides, a general-purpose cutting tool, a plant harvesting tool, and a drill.

This artifact was coarsely knapped out of a high silica river cobble. the rough nature of the piece suggests either a lack of higher silica material, or a lack of experience by the creator. Such a piece was traditionally used for shaping wood, or breaking bone while butchering.

Hunter using a bone axe to help in the butchering process. As a hunter cuts the meat of the animal, they use the bone axe to brake the bone that the knifes can not cut through.

This piece was carved and drilled out of soft slate. Such gaming discs were common among Fremont and Ancestral Puebloan peoples. Individual markings on pieces like this represent personal expression, rather than cultural expression.

This is a loom weight stone carved and pecked out of a volcanic stone. Such stones were used in the loom weaving process by Ancestral Puebloan and Fremont peoples.

Loom weights were used to hold the horizontal stings in place while weaving.

This is a loom weight stone carved and pecked out of a volcanic stone. Such stones were used in the loom weaving process by Ancestral Puebloan and Fremont peoples.

A pump drill is a tool that was used to start fires or drill holes in softer stones or wood. It used round weights, like the loom weights, to help with the momentum of the drill.