The Bachman Cave (10-OE0565) point typology, Owyhee County, southwestern Idaho

Abstract

In the past, archaeological investigations have recovered material culture that have often been stored as museum property without a focused analysis or written report of the results. This study focuses on one such assemblage ofchipped stone projectile points from the Bachman Cave locality of southwestern Idaho that has been stored at the Southwest Idaho Regional Archaeological Center (SWIRAC) for over twenty years. The focus of this study outlines the approach used to develop the cultural chronology of the site by conducting an objective and subjective analysis of the projectile points, using previous and recent literature as well as field notes, level records, and published radiocarbon samples to corroborate the data. Overall, this study presents a cultural sequence of a site in southwestern Idaho as it is revealed by the identification and analysis of Bachman Cave projectile points. The Bachman Cave projectile point database is consistent with a known analytical scheme and this will greatly add to future archaeological investigations conducted in the Snake River Plain of Idaho and the Northern Great Basin region.