PALEOINDIAN LITHIC CONVEYANCE STRATEGIES AT AND AROUND PLUVIAL LAKE MOJAVE, CENTRAL MOJAVE DESERT, CALIFORNIA

This master’s thesis determines the source provenance and conveyance patterns for the local and nonlocal lithic raw materials used by Paleoindians around pluvial Lake Mojave in California’s Mojave Desert. To achieve this, pXRF analysis was conducted on 716 obsidian and fine-grained volcanic tools, projectile points, and debitage from 12 terminal Pleistocene/Early Holocene age Paleoindian sites. The data reveal that local lithic raw material, particularly felsite from the Soda Mountains Quarry Complex, was the “workhorse” for the local toolstone production strategy. A small amount of nonlocal obsidian is present as small flakes, tools, and projectile points that were likely transported to Lake Mojave in finished form, used and/or maintained, and eventually discarded there or transported elsewhere. The nonlocal Goldstone I dacite source is closer to Lake Mojave and present in greater quantities and artifact types, suggesting it was a common gearing-up locale for Paleoindians headed east/southeast to Lake Mojave. An overall north to south pattern of nonlocal toolstone conveyance to Lake Mojave is evident. One major travel route was from northwest to southeast from the Coso Volcanic Field and Goldstone source, and the other a southward route along the east side of Death Valley through the Amargosa, Pahrump, and Sandy valleys. This investigation substantially improves understanding of Paleoindian conveyance behaviors at Lake Mojave and the Mojave Desert as a whole.