Innovation and Selection in Prehistory

Abstract

In the American midcontinent, first millenium A.D. point types show a single continuum of metric variation, not a time-series Of distinct forms. This view changes our understanding of the technological transition from dart to arrow, which may have begun earlier and unfolded over a longer time than commonly believed, and involved for some time simultaneous use of both weapon types. Reduction in point size may have persisted even after the arrow was adopted, possibly in response to broader subsistence changes. The Diet Breadth model suggests one explanation for the continuous decline in arrow-point size. VVhatever its cause, this time-dependent trend can improve our ability to measure time as the continuum it is