Bone technology during the Early Agricultural Period: Tools, ornaments and everyday life in the Tucson Basin.

Las Capas and Los Pozos are large, multicomponent sites located on the Santa Cruz River floodplain in the Tucson basin of Southern Arizona.  Substantial and well-preserved bone and antler artifact assemblages recovered at these sites provide an unusual opportunity to examine bone technology during the San Pedro (1200-800 B.C.) and CIenega (ca. 800 B.C. - A.D. 50).  Some of the bone artifacts likely had symbolic functions, while others had more technical functions. Usewear analysis using high power optical microscopy and a comparative collection of replicated usewear was employed to identify potential tool uses.  Because bone tools are often used to produce other tools made from such perishable materials as plant fibers or leather, usewear analyses can provide information on other, less visible technologies needed for day-to-day life on the floodplain.