Americas Go to East Asia Go to Pacific Go to Europe Go to Africa
There is so far no standardization for dividing up these eras/periods/cultures/whatever.
by 10,000 Hunters are in all parts of North America, even at Tierra del Fuego.  Some fishing and gathering populations are large.  The highest average population density north of Mexico is in California where acorn gatherers are so successful that they do not experiment with new techniques.    by 10,000 mxfld
by 10,000 arctodusARCTODUS (short faced bear), in North America from ??, goes extinct. drawing: Dantheman9758

10,800 wikSFB, by 10,000
c. 10,000 BeringiaBERINGIA LAND BRIDGE V from Siberia to Alaska, shrinking from 19,000, is now 600km wide.   NOAA
c. 10,000 iceLAURENTIDE ICE SHEET V, a 2,000 foot tall glacier, melting from 16,000, retreats from North US, allowing New York to raise 150 feet. 10,000 PW 12, wikLIS 7000 TTPC
c. 10,000 CAMELIDS (ancestors of all 7 existing camel families including llamas) begin migrating from Asia to America until 8000 10,000 wikCm
c. 10,000 Columbian MColumbian MAMMOTH V, in North America from at least 1,000,000, goes extinct. drawing: Kiddle

11,000 ielc 10,000 wikCM 11-8000 npsCM
c. 10,000 BORAX LAKE in Lake County, north California occupied.  Cultural deposits will reach over 3m deep. 10,000 wikBL
CONFUSION ALERT!  There is another Borax Lake in San Bernardino County, and one in Oregon.
c. 10,000 Natives at FOLSOM New Mexico have flint spear heads, and hunt a now extinct buffalo. 10,000 MCAW 11-8000 wikFNM
c. 10,000 MESO-AMERICA:  PALEO-INDIAN PERIOD begins until 3500.  1st fully-attested human inhabitants of Mesoamerica are hunter-gatherer groups of the Clovis period.  They leave stone points of spears and arrows. 10,000 shPA, ttco
c.10,000 Rock shelters near Tehuacan Mexico begin continuous occupation. 10,000 mxfld
c. 10,000 megatheriumMEGATHERIUM (giant ground sloth V), in South America from ??, goes extinct in the Quaternary extinction event.  2.1m tall, 6m long, 4536 kg (10,000 lbs). drawing: Sphena- phinae

10,000 wikMgt
c. 10,000 EL INGO, a pre-ceramic site at an altitude of 9,100 feet in Ecuador, shows an OBSIDIAN V workshop and hunting camp site.  TOOLS V are similar to Folsom and Clovis points of North America. 10,000 mxfld
9700 YOUNGER DRYAS Period from 10,900 ends, a 1,000-year-interruption in the higher temperatures prevailing since the Last Glacial Maximum.  BOREAL Period begins until 7500.  Trees that prefer higher temps proliferate.  Dates vary by location. 9700 wikYD 8800 encBrP
c.9600 WEAVING  V, possibly known from the Paleolithic, evidenced by remnants of 6 finely woven textiles and cordage found in Guitarrero Cave, Peru.
See Egypt 9000, Anatolia 7000.
10-9080 wikWv
c.9500 Human BURIAL V first evidenced in the Americas at Upward Sun River site. 9500 Copilot
c. 9500 UPWARD SUN RIVER site in the Tanana River Valley, Alaska is occupied.  It contains the oldest human remains discovered on the American side of Beringia:  a 3 year old child cremated in a hearth, which is then filled in.  The site is then abandoned.  Remains of 2 infant girls are in a layer under the cremated child.  The 2 girls are covered in red ochre and buried together in a pit burial with grave goods, including 4 decorated antler rods, 2 lithic dart points and bifaces.  One of the girls is possibly a 30-week-old fetus; the other is a 6 to 12 week-old infant. 9500 wikUSRC
c.9500 PALEO-INDIAN PERIOD begins in North America until 8000.  It includes Folsom and Late Paleo-Indian traditions, primarily hunters of large mammals. 9500 wikLnd
c.9500 OLD CORDILLERAN culture begins in Oregon and Washington until 5500.  They originated in Alaska, and migrated to a wide area as far as Idaho and the plateaus of California.  Used flaked stone points called "Cascade points". 10-9000 wikOCC 7800 mxfld
c.9500 sandals95 SANDALS made of woven sagebrush bark are preserved at Fort Rock Cave in Oregon.  Artifacts found after initial excavations include projectile points, Λ OBSIDIAN V and stone Λ TOOLS V, and animal remains. photo: Ian Poellet

11-7000 wikFRC
c.9500 LUZIA WOMAN, 1.5 m tall, in her early 20s, dies in Brazil, and is buried in Vermelha Cave, where her skeleton will be found under more than 12m of mineral deposits and debris.  Her skull features resemble those of Indigenous Australians, Melanesians and Negritos of Southeast Asia.  Flint tools are found nearby. 9500 wikLW
c.9400 MASTODONS V in central Chile evidenced by their bones. 9400 mxfld
c.9250 ELEPHANTS: butchered elephants have been excavated in North America. 95-9000 mxfld
c.9230 MarmesMARMES ROCKSHELTER V in southeast Washington state first occupied.  Occupation continues until 1200. photo: pub dom

9230 wikMrR
c. 9200 Paint RockPAINTED ROCK CAVE in the Amazon River Basin in north Brazil occupied  Lowest levels yield charred plant and animal remains and stone Λ TOOLS V, including spear points, suggesting that the earliest visitors are hunter-gatherers.  Paleo-indians use the cave frequently over 1,200 years, leaving fruits, and seeds, including Brazil nuts; fish, birds, reptiles, shellfish, and amphibians.  Lumps of raw pigment and drops of paint have been dated. photo: Blog Amazônia em imagens

9200 wikCPP, '  
c.9000 BeringiaΛ BERINGIA LAND BRIDGE V from Siberia to Alaska, shrinking from 19,000, is now 600km wide.   NOAA
c.9000 ANIMALS:  North American plains still have giant bison, camels, stagmoose, musk-oxen, large cats, mastodons and 3 kinds of mammoths.  Most of these are gone within 1,000 years of man's arrival. 9000 mxfld
There are no PIGS in the Americas until Columbus, 1493.   Copilot
c.9000 PlanoPLANO Culture of North America begins until 6000.  Produces a range of unfluted projectile point Λ TOOLS V collectively called Plano points.  They hunt bison, pronghorn, elk, deer, raccoon, and coyote.  They preserve meat in berries and animal fat, and store it in containers made of hides. map: The Darth Egg

9000 wikPln
c.9000 BASKETS V appear in North America. 8000 wikAPNA
c.9000 Desert Tradition of west North America, is centered in the Great Basin of Nevada between the 2 great mountain chains and occupying parts of Nevada, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon and California.  baskets and milling stones are made.  Food includes small seeds, berries, bulrush rhizomes and nuts. 9000 mxfld
c.9000 Lake Mojave area of south California has kite-shaped points, choppers, drills and scrapers. 9000 mxfld
c.9000 EXTINCTIONS:  Giant short-faced bears, giant ground sloths, and equids go extinct in North America. 9000 wikTop
c.9000 megalonyxMEGALONYX (giant ground Λ sloth), in North America from ??, hunted to extinction, but survives in South America until 8500.  3 meters long, 1,000 kg. drawing: ?????

9000 Copilot, sci, wikTop
c.9000 LINDENMEIER site in north Colorado, the largest known Paleo-Indian Folsom site, contains artifacts of Paleo-Indians who live and hunt in present Fort Collins area.  Artifacts include Λ TOOLS V (spearheads, wedge shaped scrapers), essentially identical to tools of north Paleo-Indians of Alaska.  The tools are used for chopping, slicing and skinning hides of bison.  Broken pieces of tools indicate that they had been used with great pressure. 9000 wikLnd
c.9000 Woolly MWoolly Λ MAMMOTH, in North America from at least 300,000, goes extinct.  Other mammoths continue until 1650. drawing: Kiddle

9000 kpol 3000 lsci
c.9000 HUNTERS spread southward. 9000 TAWH 16
c.9000 AGRICULTURE V begins in Americas, includes chili peppers, avocados, and BEANS V. 9000 wikHAg, 5000 ehAm
c.9000 Fells CaveHUMANS reach south end of South America, evidenced by firepits with broken bones of native horse, sloth, guanaco, and stone and bone Λ TOOLS V in Fell's Cave, Chile.
This was a big deal until bones and charcoal radiocarbon dated to 12,800 (average) were found with evidence of human occupation at Monte Verde Chile.
10,000 PW 12, toah 9000 mxfld
c.9000 DNA associated with North American Clovis culture is found in people from Chile, Brazil and Belize from now to 7000. 9000 lsci
c.8900 iceΛ LAURENTIDE ICE SHEET V
8675 ±95 BUHL WOMAN, age 17-21, 1.57m tall, and in general good health, dies over a quarry near Buhl Idaho.  Her skeleton shows that she ate mostly bison and elk, with some salmon and other fish.  Teeth show: 1. that the meat was cooked,  2. heavy wear caused by sand or grit, consistent with stone grinding or pounding.  Defects in tooth enamel and lines of interrupted growth on her femur indicate periodic malnutrition.  Her right cheek lay atop a pressure-flaked, pointed Λ OBSIDIAN V tool that shows no sign of wear. 8675 ±95 wikBhW
c.8500 Λ AGRICULTURE V:  PERU has tentative evidence of cultivation of grasses, Λ BEANS V, peppers, SQUASH V. 8500 PW 12
c.8225 La Brea WLA BREA WOMAN, age 18-25, 1.5m tall, dies, probably from a blow to the head, and is the only human to be discovered in the La Brea Tar Pits in California.  Teeth show that she ate stone-ground meal. photo: Franko Fonseca

8225 wikLBW 8000 wikLHEF
c.8200 SAN DIEGUITO complex is an archaeological pattern left by inhabitants of southwest US and northwest Mexico.  Artifacts include stone scrapers, large, percussion-flaked bifaces, flaked crescentic stones, Lake Mohave or Silver Lake style projectile points, but no small projectile points or pottery. 8200 wikSDC
c.8000 BeringiaΛ BERINGIA LAND BRIDGE V from Siberia to Alaska, shrinking from 19,000, is now barely crossable, if at all. NOAA
c.8000 ATLATL V is used by hunters in North American Southwest. 8000 wikAPNA
c.8000 MARMES ROCKSHELTER in southeast Washington state, occupied 9230-1200.  Has first human remains.  People hunt elk and deer using atlatls, also hunt beavers, and gather mussels from the river.  Grave goods include beads carved from shells, stone knives, and spear points. 8000 wikMrR
c.8000 mastodonsΛ MASTODONS, in North America from Tertiary period, almost 4,000,000 BP, go extinct. painting: Heinrich Harder

10–7000 wikPI 8000 wikHsS 6000 mxfld
c.8000 SANDIA CAVE on a steep wall of Las Huertas Canyon, on the north side of the Sandia Mountains near Bernalillo, New Mexico, is occupied.  Animal remains may include mammoth, mastodon, sloth, horses, and camels, as well as many mammal and bird species that survived the end of the Pleistocene, but these findings are disputed. 9-7000 wikSndC
c.8000 HISCOCK archaeological site in Byron New York is covered by Lake Tonawanda, formed by runoff from receding glaciers.  More than 13 mastodon tusks have been found at the site, plus paleo-Indian artifacts including flint knappings, stone Λ TOOLS V and fluted projectile points, which were bound to sticks and lances for hunting. 8000 wikHsS 6000 mxfld
c.8000 iceLast glacial period ends, causing sea levels to rise and flood the Λ BERINGIA LAND BRIDGE V, closing the primary migration route from Siberia.  Later arriving Eskimos and Aleuts will come by boat and represent the classical Mongolian race, as contrasted to the earlier original Mongolian stock who came over about 20,000. 8000 mxfld, wikAPNA 7500 kpol
c.8000 Sufficient rain falls on North American Southwest to support many large mammal species – mammoth, mastodon, and a bison species. 8000 wikAPNA
by 8000 North American Indian culture is already divided into 3 patterns: Eastern Woodlands, Desert, West Paleo-Indian. by 8000 mxfld
c. 8000 PALEO-INDIAN PERIOD in North America from 9500 ends.  It included Folsom and Late Paleo-Indian traditions, primarily hunters of large mammals.  ARCHAIC PERIOD begins until 1000, characterized by big game hunting with fishing, shell and plant gathering.  It includes Yuma and McKean traditions.  Hunt small game e.g. deer, antelope, rabbits, and shellfish, gather plants including nuts, seeds, and wild plants.  People move seasonally to hunting and gathering sites.  EARLY ARCHAIC begins until 6000, characterized by sedentary farming. 10-8000 wiki 8000 PW 13, mxfld, wikAP, wikAPNA, wikHA, wikLAP, wikMC 7000 ttco 6000 wikLnd
c.8000 CAMELIDS V, migrating from Asia to America from 10,000, stop. 8000 wikCm
c.8000 Λ BURIALS, often with red ochre, evidenced in North America. 8000 PW 13
c.8000 Ancestral Pueblos, in New Mexico and Southwest US, begin Archaic–Early Λ BASKETMAKER Era.  Pueblo architecture style begins. 9-7000 wikTop
c. 8000 extinctionsQUATERNARY EXTINCTION EVENT, which has been ongoing since Late-Pleistocene, ends.  About 65% of all megafaunal species worldwide go extinct, rising to 72% in North America, 83% in South America and 88% in Australia.  Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia have much lower extinctions than other regions.  Extinct mammals include mastodon, giant ground sloth, woolly rhinoceros, Irish elk, camel, short faced bear, cave bear, cave lion, and sabre-toothed cats.  The mammoth goes extinct in Eurasia and North America, but is preserved in small island populations until c.1650. map: Sandom, Faurby, Sandel, Svenning

8000 wikQEE, wikTop
c.8000 At least 2 morphologically different Paleo-Indian populations coexist in Mexico. 8000 wikPI
c.8000 Mayan Archaic Period begins until 2000. 8000 wikMy
c. 8000 TepexpanOn the shores of former Lake Texcoco in Mexico, TEPEXPAN MAN likely sinks into mud, and dies lying face down with arms under chest and legs drawn up to the stomach, leaving shoulder, back, and hips exposed, which may explain why they are missing.  Remains of 5 mammoths are near the skeleton and associated with Λ OBSIDIAN flakes.  He has a healed fracture on his right ulna, and probably arthritis.  Skull has a brain the size of present-day Indian brains, a solidly built jawline, prominent brow ridges, and a prominent chin. photo: Ryan Somma

8000 wikLHEF, wikTpx
c.8000 Λ AGRICULTURE V:  POTATOS V cultivcated in Mesoamerica
Λ SQUASH V (pumpkins and zucchini) first cultivated in Mexican highlands.  Squash grows ONLY in the Americas until Columbus.
8000 Copilot, wikHAg pre-5000 mxfld
c. 8000 Las VegasPre-pottery LAS VEGAS Culture begins on coast of Ecuador begins until 4600.  People live in small flimsy houses, gather wild foods, hunt deer, fox, rabbit, rodents, weasel, anteater, squirrel, peccary, opossum, frog, boa constrictor, indigo snake, parrot and lizard.  They also fish, practice agriculture, domesticate wild squash and MAIZE V.  They used shell, wood, bamboo, reeds, and bark to make Λ TOOLS V and containers.  32 Las Vegas sites have been identified on Ecuador's Santa Elena peninsula. map: TUBS

8000 wikLV
c. 8000 CHILE:  People wear painted clothing, necklaces, bracelets, carved pendants, and geometrically marked bones, painted green.  They eat prickly pear cactus, alder seeds, tomatoes, plants with rhizomes and tubers such as jiquimas, potatoes, ullucu, and possibly manioc and sweet potatoes.  There is also refuse of many land mammals such as bucks and roe deer, vixcahas, camelids and rodents, and the remains of fish.  Though caves are 60 miles from the ocean, marine mollusks appear, suggesting that they migrated at times to the seashore, probably living in the condensed fog oases called lomas, as the beach land otherwise is dry. 8000 mxfld
c.8000 Wild Λ BEANS V first eaten in Argentina.   See Thailand 8000. 8000 Copilot
c. 7600 CASMA / SECHIN V valley in coastal Peru first occupied by humans. 7600 wikCSc
c.7500 BOREAL Period from 9700 ends.  Trees that prefer higher temps proliferate.  Dates vary by location. 7500 encBrP
c.7480 Old COPPER V Complex in west Great Lakes region begins operating until 1000.  One of the oldest known examples of copper extraction.  Evidence of deep holes chipped into the rock in Ontario, Manitoba, and around Lake Superior.  Widespread copper artifacts, including Λ TOOLS V weapons, and ornaments.  Objects are cold-worked into shape. 7500 wikOCC 7480 wikCpr 4000 wikAPNA
c.7300 Cueva de las ManosCAVE of the HANDS in Argentina shows earliest rock hand paintings.  2 types: A1 (Ochre series) made of ochre and some red; A2 (Black series) mostly black but also some dark purple.  Hunting scenes are also painted at this time.  It acquires over 2,000 hand paintings until it is abandoned 700CE. photo: pub dom

7300 wikCdlM
c.7280 Mummy CaveMUMMY CAVE, a rock shelter in Park County, Wyoming, is occupied until 1580CE.  At its mouth, it is 46m wide, and extends only 12m into a volcanic cliff.  Earliest layers yield a few prismatic stone blades.  That is all until 6500, and no actual mummy until 770CE. photo: Biblio- philesyn77

7300 wikMmC, 7280 wikMmC
c.7200 In the mid-west is a sub-culture called "Modoc", with evidence of mano and metate (stone mortar and pestle).  Another variation is in the Ozarks, Oklahoma and Mississippi. 7200 mxfld
c.7000 BeringiaΛ BERINGIA LAND BRIDGE V from Siberia to Alaska, shrinking from 19,000, is now the BERING STRAIT.  It is now 50km wide.  All crossing is now by boat. NOAA
c. 7000 Pueblo cave PUEBLO Culture:  Early Basketmaker Era begins until 1500.  Nomadic hunter gatherers in the Colorado Plateau, living in easily built homes.  They generally inhabit rock alcoves or live in the open in brush shelters and lean-tos.  Dwellings are made by digging a shallow basin and building a frame of wooden logs in the shape of a cone, dome or tent.  Frames are covered with brush and earthen daub sealant for protection.  Fire pits are sometimes used inside homes.
ORNAMENTS: Men and women wear necklaces, bracelets and pendants made of shell, stone, bone and dried berries, sandals made of woven yucca fibers or strips of leaves.  The shallow-basined lodgings are considered a precursor to Basketmaker pit-houses.
cave art J.Q. Jacobs

map Arkyan

7000 wikAEBE, wikAP, wikBsm
c.7000 iceΛ Laurentide ICE SHEET V recedes from south Maine to north Labrador at the 60th parallel, with tundra then present until 3000. 7000 mxfld
c.7000 Semi-permanent settlements arise in North America. 7000 PW 13
c.7000 POTTERY V begins in Americas, some in Upper Great Lakes region, some in Ecuador and Colombia. 9-7000 wikPtr 55-5000 Copilot
3000 TAWH 16
American ceramics have been radio-carbon dated to 30-25,000 BP.  Earliest pieces are animal and female FIGURINES, hand shaped, and left to dry in the sun to harden.  This kind doesn't hold water. drnd
c.7000 Hunters from the Great Basin area migrate south into south Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Sonora and Chihuahua.  One branch is called Cochise (after the county in Arizona). 7000 mxfld
c.7000 Kennewick skullKENNEWICK MAN dies, and is carefully buried along the shore of the Columbia River in Washington State, leaving one of the most complete early Native American skeletons.  He lived mostly on marine animals.  Skeleton has a spearhead permanently loged in his hip bone. photo: Ghedoghedo

7560-7370 wikAPNA, 7-6900 wilKM
c.7000 Northeast Americans depend increasingly on deer, nuts, and wild grains as climate warms. 7000 wikAPNA
by 7000 LAKE LAHONTAN in NW Nevada from the retreating glacier, dries out, breaks up into several smaller lakes, around the same time humans appear. by 7000 wikLL
c.7000 MUMMIFICATION is practiced by people in Lahontan Basin, Nevada. 7000 wikAPNA
c.7000 Sulfur Springs Phase of West Paleo-Indians begins until 5000, depended on hunting ancient horses, mammoths, antelope and bison with flaked projectile points. 7000 mxfld
c.7000 Λ AGRICULTURE V: Tehuacan valley shows evidence of crop cultivation.  People live in rock shelters and use stone cooking pots. 7000 PW 13, mxfld
c.7000 Λ MAIZE V is domesticated in Americas in the Balsas River valley. 7000 wikThc
c.7000 CASSAVA V (manioc) cultivated in upper Amazon.  Its edible starchy root tuber is a major source of carbohydrates.   b7000 PW 13, wikHAg
c.7000 CLOVIS lineage, in South America from 9000 ends.  This suggests that a continent-wide population replacement happened.  Hereafter, there is genetic continuity with people living today. 7000 lsci
c.7000 Varieties of projectile points exist in Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia and Peru. 7000 PW 13
c.7000 Natives migrating south along the west coast reach Palli Aiki at Strait of Magellan in Chile. 7000 MCAW
c.7000 zeaΛ AGRICULTURE V: ZEA Λ MAIZE V, in Mesoamerica from ??, now domesticated in South America.    photo: pub dom

7000 wikHAg
by 6700 ZEA MAIZE domesticated from wild grass in south Mexico.  by 6700 wikHAg 5100 wikHA
c.6500 San Dieguito–Pinto tradition and Chihuahua tradition flourish in the Southwest until 200CE. 6500 wikAPNA
c.6500 Λ AGRICULTURE VΛ POTATOS V domesticated in south Peru and northwest Bolivia. 8-5000 wikHAg, wikHPt
6500 wikHSA
c.6500 Mummy CaveMUMMY CAVE  V, occupied from 7280, by layer 8, cultural evidence becomes continuous.  Layers 8, 9, 10 and 12 produced lanceolate or leaf-shaped projectile points corresponding to Angostura-style points.  Inhabitants during this era are big-game hunters from the Great Plains who adapt to the mountain environment. photo: Biblio- philesyn77

6500 wikMmC
c.6500 POTATOS V, chilies, and Λ BEANS  V cultivated in the Amazon Basin.  6500 wikHSA
c.6300 High altitude grains and POTATOS cultivated in Ayacucho Peru.    6300 PW `3
c.6100 iceLAKE AGASSIZ in North America, water trapped by retreating Λ Laurentide Ice Sheet in a huge inland lake, held in by an ice dam, which now breaks, letting the water empty quickly into the Atlantic.  Causes a sudden global temperature decrease, which leads to drier conditions in east Africa and Mesopotamia. 62-6000 wikTop 6000 wikBHK
c.6000 BeringiaΛ BERING STRAIGHT between Siberia and Alaska, is now 100km wide, and crossable only by boat. NOAA
c.6000 PLANO Culture of North America from 9000 ends. 6000 Copilot, wikPln
c.6000 UNANGAS (Aleuts) begin to migrate from an unknown location to Aleutian Islands. 6000 wikAPNA 2000 britAl
c.6000 Temperature rises sharply, associated with drought.  Great herds die out including camels.  Many areas are denuded and native populations change their living patterns. 6000 mxfld
c.6000 Nomadic hunting bands roam Subarctic Alaska following herds of caribou and other game animals. 6000 wikAPNA
c.6000 Λ COPPER V is mined around Lake Michigan. 6000 wikCpr
c.6000 Ancestors of Penutian-speaking peoples settle in the Northwest Plateau. 6000 wikAPNA
c.6000 Early Archaic Period in Americas from 9000, in North America from 8000, ends.  Characterized by sedentary farming.
Middle Archaic Period begins until 3000.  Identifiable sedentary settlements emerge.
6000 wikHA, wikLAP
c.6000 COTTON V first evidenced in Peru, but not domesticated until 4200.     . 6000 wikHCt
c.5931 MinnyMINNESOTA WOMAN, age 15-17, dies, and is buried under a thin layer of broken clam or mussel shells, meaning she probably drowned, either by breaking thru ice or falling off a boat on a glacial lake.  Artifacts include a dagger made from an elk horn and a conch shell pendant. photo:
Albert Ernest Jenks

5931 wikLHEF, wikMnW
c.5800 Λ WEAVING first evidenced in North America by the Windover site in Florida.  87 pieces of fabric associated with 37 burials. 65-4900 wikWv
c.5700 Crater LakeEruption of Mount Mazama in Oregon causes most of the mountain to collapse.  Magma emptying the underlying chamber, forms a caldera that holds present Crater Lake.  Mount Mazama is reduced from 3,700m to 2,486m high. photo: Athleticamps

5700 wikAPNA, wikMM 5600 wikFRC
c.5630 Mummy CaveΛ MUMMY CAVE  V:  Layer 16 has a new side-notched point, implying arrival of a group from east Nebraska or west Iowa, replacing the previous group which may have moved north.  These points suggest a connection with the Simonsen site in northeast Iowa.  Side-notched points recovered from layers 21, 24 and 28 imply a return of the previous inhabitants. photo: Biblio- philesyn77

5630 wikMmC
c.5500 OLD CORDILLERAN culture in Oregon and Washington from 9500 ends.  Used flaked stone points called "Cascade points". 5700 mxfld 5500 wikOCC
c.5500 Dire wolfDIRE WOLVES (canis dirus, about the size of the largest modern gray wolves), existing in East Asia and North America from 123,000, go extinct. art: Aledgn

11,000 Copilot 5500 wikDW
c.5500 ENCINITAS Tradition (Millingstone Horizon) begins in California until 1500.  A subset of the Archaic Period.  Sites are at San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, and Ventura County. 6500 wikMH 5500 wikLAP
c.5500 OSHARA tradition, a Southwest Archaic tradition, arises in north-central New Mexico, the San Juan Basin, the Rio Grande Valley, south Colorado, and southeast Utah until 500CE. 5500 wikAPNA
5400 wikOst
c.5500 WINDOVER BOG BODIES:  168 people, mostly infants, but some to about age 60 are buried in a muck pond on the east coast of Florida.  Well-preserved brain tissue has been recovered from 91 skulls.  About 100 undisturbed burials have fully articulated bones.  Bodies show the effects of disease and healed wounds.  Many bones of children show interrupted growth, perhaps due to severe disease or malnutrition.  Children and teenagers are buried with more grave goods than are adults.  37 graves contain 86 pieces of woven fabric.  Bottle gourds show the earliest evidence for vegetable container storage discovered in North America. 6-5000 wikWAS
c.5500 Λ COTTON  V bolls deposited in a cave in Tehuacán Valley, Mexico. 5500 wikHCt
c.5400 Λ CAMELIDS V (llamas, alpacas, guanacos and vicunas) herded in Ayacucho Peru.  5400 PW 13
c.5000 Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest from Alaska to California develop a fishing economy, with salmon as a staple.  Natives of the Northwest Plateau begin to rely on salmon runs. 5000 wikAPNA
c.5000 Old Λ COPPER culture of the Great Lakes area hammers the metal into various Λ TOOLS V, such as knives, axes, awls, and ornaments, such as bracelets, rings, and pendants. 5000 wikAPNA
c.5000 COCHISE Tradition (part of Picosa culture) in southwest US begins until 200. 5000 wikAPNA, wikLAP, wikCT     3000 mxfld
c.5000 Burial mounds are built in east Canada. 5000 mxfld
c.5000 Bottle GOURDS (a type of Λ SQUASH V) cultivated, and used as containers, in eastern North America. 5000 PW 13
c.5000 Sulfur Springs Phase of West Paleo-Indians from 7000, ends.  Depended on hunting horses, mammoths, antelope and bison with flaked projectile points. 7000 mxfld
c.5000 Λ AGRICULTURE V:  Tehuacan valley Mexico grows Λ MAIZE V.  Probably has little nutritional value at this stage.  Other foods include maguey plant, cactus fruits (prickly pear), tree legumes like mesquite, Λ BEANS V, wild grasses, deer and rabbits.  Cultivated plants probably are only 5% of the diet, as opposed to 54% from hunting and 41% from collecting wild plants. 6000 mxfld 5000 PW 13, TTPC, bk
c.5000 Λ BEANS V first cultivated in Andes Mountains. 5000 Copilot
c.5000 South America:  LATE PRECERAMIC Period begins until 2000.  As people become sedentary, populations grow, leading to areas of resource shortage. 5000 jrnk
c.5000 Limited cultivation begins in lower Amazon 5000 Pw 13
c.4720 Mount HUDSON VOLCANO in Andes Mts. of south Chile errupts.  .  Leads to abandonment of group A1 paintings at Cave of the Hands. 5750 or 2200 wikCdlM, 4770-4675 wikCdlM
c.4700 HUACA PRIETA on the coast of Peru becomes an early permanent settlement. 4700 wikHSA
c.4600 LAS VEGAS Culture on coast of Ecuador from 8000 ends. 4600 wikLV
c.4500 SHIELD ARCHAIC tradition begins in North America until 1500.  A distinct regional tradition during the climatic optimum.  Temperatures are warmer than in the late 20th century; forests advance northward. 4500 wikAPNA
c.4200 Λ COTTON V, used in Peru from 6000, domesticated.  4200 Pw 13, wikHAg
c.4000 Arctic Small Tool tradition begins in Alaska near Bristol Bay, and on the east shores of the Bering Strait in Alaska until 1000.  Soon spreads across the arctic part of Canada to Greenland.   See 2300. 4000 mxfld 2500 wikAPNA
c.4000 Across the Southeast Woodlands, people start exploiting wetland resources, creating large shell middens where the people live along rivers. 4000 wikAPNA
c.4000 Shell-mound sites occupied on coast of Mexico and Guatemala. 4000 ehAm
c.4000 Λ AGRICULTURE VΛ BEANS V first grown in Mexico, often together with Λ MAIZE V and Λ SQUASH V.   See Europe 2000. 5000 Copilot 4000 bk
c.4000 TOMATOS domesticated in Mesoamerica. 4000 wikHAg, 500 Copilot
c.4000 PEPPERS domesticated in Mesoamerica and South America. 7000 Copilot 4000 wikHAg
c.4000 Λ POTTERY evidenced in Amazon basin. 4000 Pw 13
c.4000 Peru has domestic llamas as pack animals, grows corn, potatoes, Λ BEANS V, Λ SQUASH V, and COTTOM. 4000 bk, wikAPNA, 3500 PW 13
c. 3600 CASMA / SECHIN valley in coastal Peru, occupied from 7600, culture begins until 200. 1800 wikCSc
c.3500 CHIRICAHUA phase of Cochise Tradition begins until 1500.  Chiricahua Λ TOOLS V have different projectile points and many seed-processing artifacts. 3500 wikAP, wikCT
1000 mxfld
c.3500 Construction of extensive mound complex built until 3000 at Watson Brake in the floodplain of the Ouachita River near Monroe in north Louisiana. 1500 wikAPNA
c.3500 Hunter-gatherer societies in Lower Mississippi Valley organize to build monumental earthwork mound complexes.  Building continues 500 years. 3500 wikAPNA
c.3500 Meso-America:  Paleo-Indian period ends.  Began 10,000ARCHAIC PERIOD begins until 2000. 3500 wikmc
c. 3500 Valdiva VALDIVIA culture of Ecuador begins until 1800.  Communities of sedentary farmers, fishermen, and deer hunters living in houses built in a circle or oval around a plaza.  They grow Λ MAIZE V, kidney Λ BEANS V, Λ SQUASH V, Λ cassava, hot peppers, and Λ cotton V. map: pub dom

3500 wikHSA, wikPC, wikVC
c.3500 LLAMAS and ALPACAS domesticated in the Andes highlands. 3500 wikHSA
c.3500 Peru:  Fishing nets and twilled textiles are manufactured. 3500 PW 13
c.3500 EL PARAISO, a U-shaped site of central coastal Peru is occupied until 1800.  Function disputed, possibly an economic or religious center, or both.    Has no ceramics during its main occupation period. 3500 EPP
c.3195  METEORS  bombard Earth, resulting atmospheric dust-veil as evidenced as cold period in narrow tree rings, and other world events. 3195 kpol 3123 CWH
c.3114 Mythic base date (August 13, 3114) of Maya Long Count Calendar of 1200. 3114 CWH, kpol
c.3000 Λ AGRICULTURE V evidenced in east North America. 3000 wikHAg
c.3000 Cultivation of sunflower and marsh elder begins in North American South; northeast natives cultivate amaranth and marsh elder. After harvesting, the seeds are ground into flour. 3000 wikAPNA
c.3000 TUNDRA from south Maine to north Labrador at the 60th parallel, from 7000, replaced with spruce forests. 3000 mxfld
c.3000 Cochise tradition of the American Southwest begins cultivating a primitive form of Λ MAIZE V imported from Mesoamerica; common Λ BEANS and Λ SQUASH follow later. 3000 wikAPNA 3-2000 mxfld
c.3000 Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest begin to exploit shellfish resources. 3000 wikAPNA
c.3000 Fishing in Northwest Plateau increases. 3000 wikAPNA
c.3000 Until now, few Archaic people live along North American coastlines.  But now evidence of large-scale exploitation of oysters begins.  Fron now until 1000, shell rings, large shell middens surrounding open centers, develop along the southeast coast. 3000 wikAPNA
c.3000 Natives speaking Algonquian languages arrive in Northeast Woodlands from the south. 3000 wikAPNA
c.3000 Middle Archaic Period in Americas from 6000 ends.  Characterized by identifiable sedentary settlements.
Late Archaic Period begins until 1000.  Includes Arctic Small Tool tradition, Aleutian tradition, Poverty Point culture.
3000 wikLAP
c.3000 Λ COTTON  V is grown and processed in Mexico, and Arizona. 3000 wikHCt
c. 3000 Preceramic Period of the Casma/Sechin culture begins in Peru until 1800.  Noted for growth of coastal settlements of Huaynuna, with a settlement dated at 2900, and Las Haldas with a settlement is dated at 2200.  Both Huaynuna and Las Haldas are more than 12km from the irrigable lands of the Casma River Valley.  Fishing is their main means of subsistence. 1800 wikCSc
c.3000 Population in the Central Andes area starts expanding. 3000 lsci
c.3000 Λ AGRICULTURE VΛ POTATOS V cultivated in Andes mountains. 3000 TTPC, bk, mxfld
c.3000 CARAL founded in the Supe valley on coast of Peru, occupied until 2000.  NORTE CHICO (Caral Supe) civilization of north-central coastal Peru begins until 1800Λ COTTON PRECERAMIC Period begins until 2000..  Domesticated cotton used to produce fine nets to catch anchovy beyond subsistence requirements.  Much surplus is used to support construction of monumental architecture, e.g. at El Paraíso and Aspero.  Irrigation-based Λ AGRICULTURE.  . 3000 wikCrl, wikCSC, wikHA, wikNC
wikPCe
2600 hstC, wikCrl
by 3000 Farmers are probably well established on Ecuadorian coast and river plains. by 3000 TAWH 16
c.3000 Chavin de Huantar Peru, is occupied until 400.  See 1200. 1200 wikCdH
c.2888 People of the Stallings culture on the Savannah River begin making pottery, at a time when pottery making is spreading in South America, but had not reached Meso America. 2888 wikAPNA
c.2850 Venezuela and adjacent areas show evidence of manioc and sweet potato cultivation. 3-2700 mxfld
c.2800 Ceramics of the Monagrillo complex are present in small settlements around Parita Bay in central Panama, an area of rich coastal resources.  Technologically conservative. 2800 ehAm
by 2800 Peruvians gather protein-rich shell fish off the beaches. by 2800 mxfld
by 2700 Mesoamericans rely on Λ MAIZE, and live mostly in villages.  Temple mounds and classes start to appear. by 2700 wikHA
Piramide Mayor
photo: Kyle Thayer
c.2600 PYRAMIDS built of adobe by the Moche at Caral in Peru.  Largest, known as Piramide Mayor, is nearly 100 feet tall, with a base as big as 4 football fields. 2700 bk 2600 Copilot, hstC
c.2500 GREENLAND V entered by Independence I people from North America.  Last evidence of Independence I is 1730. 2500 wikAPNA
c.2500 Cochise tradition of American Southwest becomes skilled at farming. 2500 wikAPNA
c.2500 ALEUTIAN TRADITION begins in Alaska until 1800.  Artifacts of chopped stone, unlike the more common slate Λ TOOLS V.  Objects made by core & flake method, bifacially carved projectile points.  People lived in semi-subterranean winter houses of driftwood, whale bone, and peat.  They used kayaks, Λ ATLATLS and harpoons to kill sea mammals. 1800 wikAP, wikAPNA, wikAT
c.2500 POVERTY POINT V in Louisiana:  Late Archaic mound-builder construction begins until 1000. 2500 wikMB
by 2500 Peruvians sail far out in the ocean for larger fish. by 2500 mxfld
c.2475 Λ POTATOS and sweet potatos cultivated in South America. 2475 TTPC
2470±150 Λ MUMMY CAVE:  Layer 30 is occupied. 2470 ± 150 wikMmC
c.2400 Λ GREENLAND entered by Saqqaq people from Siberia, who live there until 400. 2400 wikAPNA
c.2400 INDPENDENCE I Culture living north of Independence Fjord in Greenland begins until 1300. 1300 wikSqC 1000 wikI1C
c.2300 Arctic Small Tool tradition, in Alaska near Bristol Bay, and on the east shores of the Bering Strait in Alaska from 4000, migrates to Ellesmere Island in northeast Canada, less than 800 miles from the North Pole, crossing over the mountains in a great notch, today known as Sverdrup Pass, to the upper end of Baffin Bay, which usually has open water in the summer. 2300 mxfld
c.2300 Tlapacoya (aka Zohapilco), a significant island community on Lake Chalco in the Basin of Mexico, has the earliest yet identified ceramic FIGURINE in Mesoamerica. 2300
c.2300 Pre-OLMEC civilization in Grijalva River delta produces much pottery. 2300 wikPC
4.2 kiloyear event begins from 2200 to 2150?.  A volcanic eruption causes marked increase in aridity and wind circulation, induces degradation of land-use conditions.
Global distribution of 4.2 kiloyear event.  Hatched areas get wet conditions or flooding.  Dotted areas get drought or dust storms.
map: Jianjun Wang

2200 wik4.2, wikAE, wikAkE, wikOKE
agriculture map: Joe Roe

Americas 2000-1001
V