NETTLING POINTS
Early to Middle Archaic: 9,000 to 4,500
BP
DESCRIPTION: These carefully made bifaces range from
29 to 60 mm in length, 17 to 35 mm in width and 4 to 7 mm in thickness.
The original biface would be triangular before corner notching
took place and notching can sometimes rotate to basal in orientation.
Lateral edges are convex and often serrated. Basal configuration
ranges from convex to concave with lenticular cross sections.
The preform percussion flaking is broad and flat, producing a
thin biface. Serrated examples display about 3 to 5 teeth per
centimeter. As with most biface forms, many specimens are extensively
reworked. Some of them even display one convex and one concave
lateral edge, suggesting a cutting knife function. This biface
form appears to be one of the earliest Archaic styles to reach
Ontario.
DISTRIBUTION: Nettling points are found in small numbers
at least as far north as latitude 44 degrees on southwestern Ontario
and are most common in the northwestern Erie drainage basin.
RAW MATERIAL: Some Nettling points are manufactured from
local Onondaga or Selkirk cherts, but the majority are from Ohio
cherts such as; Pipe Creek chert, Flint Ridge chalcedony and a
number of the Mercer Fm. varieties.
AGE AND CULTURE: Nettling points are similar in form to
Early Archaic Palmer points described by Coe (1964), the Cypress
Cree points described by Lewis and Lewis (1961) and to Broyles
(1971) Charleston Corner Notched and certain of her Kirk series.
Boyles' dates for the St. Albans site and recent dates from the
Carolinas (J. Mueller, pers. comm) suggest that these points were
in use sometime between 7,500 and 8,000 BC.
REFERENCES: London Chapter, Ontario Archaeological Society.
W. A. Fox (1980), Nettling Points. KEWA 80-2.