Early Holocene Pearl Oyster Circular Fishhooks and Ornaments on Espíritu Santo Island, Baja California Sur

Abstract

Discovery and analysis of 43 pearl oyster (Pinctada mazatlanica) artifacts and associated shell-processing tools from middle and basal levels of Covacha Babisuri, a rock shelter on Espíritu Santo Island, Baja California Sur, provide evidence of Early and Middle Holocene fishhook production along the southern Gulf of California coast. AMS 14C analysis of a fishhook preform recovered from the lowest stratum of the rock shelter returned a date of 8380 –+ 50 RCYBP (Beta-236254), or 8750–8500 cal BP, with a reservoir effect of 250 –+ 20 years, making this artifact one of the ear- liest known examples of a shell fishhook in the world. An additional pearl oyster artifact was found in a deeper level dat- ing closer to 10,000 RCYBP, suggesting that this type of fishhook may date to this earlier period.