According to a couple of news releases from the Florida Aquarium, new archaeological excavations are underway at the Little Salt Spring site near Sarasota in southwest Florida. Little Salt Spring is a cenote--a vertical hole eroded into limestone--located in southwest Florida, where evidence of Paleoindian and American Archaic occupations have been discovered.
Underwater Archaeologist John Gifford, PhD from the University of Miami takes a closer look at an "item of interest" that dates back to 10,000 years ago. This piece, along with others, were brought to the surface of Little Last Spring in North Port, Florida on Thursday, August 19, 2010. Photo by University of Miami
Little Salt Spring is perhaps best known because in the adjacent slough was discovered a huge Archaic period cemetery where extremely well preserved human bodies, and the textiles and wood objects buried with them, were found. This year's excavations are on the Paleoindian site, located on an underwater ledge some 90 feet below the modern surface, where a large tortoise dated to 12,000 RCYBP.
Excavations on about 5-6% of the ledge have been ongoing for the past three years, led by John Gifford from the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. Last week Gifford held a media event, where he brought several "items of interest" to the surface of the spring.
The anoxic (lack of oxygen) quality of the sediment at the bottom of Little Salt Spring has created an excellent level of in situ preservation; the specific findings are of course several months or years away, but results of earlier excavations suggests a high level of preservation for Paleoindian-aged wooden and other organic materials. The excavations are in support of plans to expand the site's public component.
- Little Salt Spring, description of the site
- Little Salt Spring, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science
- Little Salt Spring video, You Tube video of excavations in July 2010
- Divers unearthing prehistoric secrets, Tampa Tribune, 8/20/2010
Comments
These people had to have used horses for riding and work. There are *so few* animals that can be domesticated right from the wild. The horse is one of so few and the only wild animal in north america. I find it impossible that out of all these people, none of them noticed how easy the horse can be domesticated.
No–the only evidence we have for domesticated animals in the Americas at the time of Little Salt Spring is for dogs. Horses were not domesticated in the Americas; they died out at the end of the Ice Age and were brought back by the Spanish colonizers in the 16th century.
Dog domestication history
Horse domestication history