The Puebloan Ancestors Time Period
?? BC - 100 BC
The Puebloan's Ancestors moved to the Southwest at a very early date.
They were probably one of the first groups that migrated from Asia.
In the Archaic time period, people were nomadic foragers and hunters.
They could not make permanent dwellings, but rather they would
move whenever the food supplies moved or died off. Agriculture was
unknown since the harsh weather of the area required reliable
irrigation almost everywhere that cultivated crops could be planted.
They only had domesticated one animal, which was the dog. They had
very primitive rock tools and weapons. The best known weapon of
these people was the atl-atl. The atl-atl was a device used to throw
spears, or other projectiles. The Puebloans usually made the
spearheads from obsidian, a black glass-like rock. They would chip
away at the obsidian with another rock until it resembled the tool or
weapon they had in mind. Finishing cuts would be done with a
smooth stone. This technique is called flintnapping. Many times, the
obsidian chips would shoot off into the flint napper's hands. Because of
this, they often wore leather over their hands to protect them from the
sharp glass. The early peoples resided in caves or wherever there was
some form of natural shelter.
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