NO. TO SECOND REPORT ON FOLSOM COMPLEX ROBERTS IQ 



of 2 mm, and one with a length of 60 mm, ])rea(lth of 23 mm and 

 thickness of 4 mm. 



The preponderance of broken specimens found at most sites has 

 been pointed out by numerous writers. In the 1935 series from the 

 Lindenmeier site the situation remains unchanged, as 87 percent of 

 the points are only fragmentary examples. In general this condition 

 may be attributed to the brittleness caused by the fluting. The removal 

 of the longitudinal flakes from each face so thinned the points that 

 they became extremely fragile. At the present site, however, two 

 other factors must be considered, namely, that many points were 

 broken in the making, and that the collection contains specimens 

 which were never completed. The purpose of the grooves is not 

 known, although a number of explanations have been made to account 

 for them. It has been suggested that the fluting was to facilitate 

 hafting, the split end of the shaft fitting more snugly into the grooves 

 than it would if the point had a convex basal surface. Other inter- 

 pretations are that it was to improve the penetrating qualities, to 

 permit the head to break off in the animal, to allow the head to slip 

 out of the foreshaft, to promote bleeding, and to reduce the weight. 

 No doubt a number of such ideas influenced the development of this 

 typical feature. The most important, however, in the opinion of the 

 present writer pertain to the quality of penetration and the hafting. 



The method of shaping and chipping Folsom points was discussed 

 at some length in the previous report and need not be described in 

 detail in this paper." It will sufifice to say that the evidence from the 

 recent work substantiates that of the preceding season and corrobo- 

 rates conclusions drawn from it. These conclusions were that the 

 points were first shaped, then the channel flake was removed by in- 

 direct percussion applied to a nubbin or small " seat " left in the 

 center of the concavity when the base was chipped. Finally, the edges 

 were retouched. The 1935 material adds one significant factor, how- 

 ever, which was suggested by the earlier specimens, but the evidence 

 was not conclusive enough to warrant its mention in the preliminary 

 report. This factor is that the tip was left in a roughly rounded state, 

 not pointed, until after the channel flake was removed. Its shaping 

 constituted a part of the secondary chipping by which the edges were 

 refined. Several specimens in the new series definitely show this to 

 have been the practice. Two examples, both broken into several 

 pieces in the process of manufacture and tossed aside uncompleted, 

 clearly demonstrate the feature. 



Roberts, 1935, pp. 18-21. 



