1. This specimen comes from a depth of 48 to 54 inches, marking the deepest level from which any blade was taken. Though it shows an old break, enough remains to offer a computed length. The form is leaf-shaped and probably pointed at both ends. Computed length, 9.2 cm.; width, 4.6 cm.; thickness, 1.2 cm. Material is basalt (pl. 21,b).2. Basal half of what was probably a leaf-shaped blade. Incomplete length, 4.5 cm.; width, 5.4 cm.; and 1.4 cm. thick. Material is basalt (pl. 21,c).3. Larger half of a basalt blade, showing some attempt to reshape the broken margin. Incomplete length, 7 cm.; width, 4.5 cm.; and 1.5 cm. thick (pl. 21,a).4. This chert specimen exhibits the best flaking technique of any large blades from the Tank Site. Compared with the patinated basalt examples, considerable contrast exists. Typologically this specimen is similar to forms typical of the Hunting Culture of the Santa Barbara coast. Because of its shallow position (6-12 inches), lack of patination, and flaking technique, we have assigned it to Phase II of Topanga. The form is a willow leaf with slightly serrated edges. Length, 14.9 cm.; width, 3.4 cm.; and 1.5 cm. long. Material is a dark-brown chert (pl. 22,a).
1. This specimen comes from a depth of 48 to 54 inches, marking the deepest level from which any blade was taken. Though it shows an old break, enough remains to offer a computed length. The form is leaf-shaped and probably pointed at both ends. Computed length, 9.2 cm.; width, 4.6 cm.; thickness, 1.2 cm. Material is basalt (pl. 21,b).
2. Basal half of what was probably a leaf-shaped blade. Incomplete length, 4.5 cm.; width, 5.4 cm.; and 1.4 cm. thick. Material is basalt (pl. 21,c).
3. Larger half of a basalt blade, showing some attempt to reshape the broken margin. Incomplete length, 7 cm.; width, 4.5 cm.; and 1.5 cm. thick (pl. 21,a).
4. This chert specimen exhibits the best flaking technique of any large blades from the Tank Site. Compared with the patinated basalt examples, considerable contrast exists. Typologically this specimen is similar to forms typical of the Hunting Culture of the Santa Barbara coast. Because of its shallow position (6-12 inches), lack of patination, and flaking technique, we have assigned it to Phase II of Topanga. The form is a willow leaf with slightly serrated edges. Length, 14.9 cm.; width, 3.4 cm.; and 1.5 cm. long. Material is a dark-brown chert (pl. 22,a).
Large points (pl. 21, h-l; pl. 22, b).—
1. This specimen, like the blade above, also deviates to some degree from other large points. It is composed of an unaltered obsidian and comes from the 0-to-6-inch level of the deposit. Because of its shallow depth and contrastive nature, it has been assigned to Phase II. The form is leaf-shaped, being more pointed at one end. Length, 7 cm.; width, 3 cm.; and 1.3 cm. thick (pl. 22,b).2. Specimen made from a thin piece of banded, laminated chert. Shaping was done merely by marginal flaking, as the original surface shows no working. Coming from a depth of 60 inches, this marks the greatest depth of any large point. Length, 5.4 cm.; width, 2.8 cm.; and 5 cm. thick (pl. 21,j).3. Basal fragment of a large blade. This broad, angular base is a unique occurrence for the Tank Site, though some parallels may be noted in Lake Mohave specimens. This single piece possesses sharp, angular shoulders that terminate in a broad, flat, angular base. The material is a white chert (pl. 21,k).
1. This specimen, like the blade above, also deviates to some degree from other large points. It is composed of an unaltered obsidian and comes from the 0-to-6-inch level of the deposit. Because of its shallow depth and contrastive nature, it has been assigned to Phase II. The form is leaf-shaped, being more pointed at one end. Length, 7 cm.; width, 3 cm.; and 1.3 cm. thick (pl. 22,b).
2. Specimen made from a thin piece of banded, laminated chert. Shaping was done merely by marginal flaking, as the original surface shows no working. Coming from a depth of 60 inches, this marks the greatest depth of any large point. Length, 5.4 cm.; width, 2.8 cm.; and 5 cm. thick (pl. 21,j).
3. Basal fragment of a large blade. This broad, angular base is a unique occurrence for the Tank Site, though some parallels may be noted in Lake Mohave specimens. This single piece possesses sharp, angular shoulders that terminate in a broad, flat, angular base. The material is a white chert (pl. 21,k).
Figure 5. Metate Types
Manos and Metates
As heretofore, manos far outnumber metates in the deposit. An explanation of this inequitable representation of milling stones has already been discussed in some detail (Treganza and Malamud, 1950; p. 140),viz., that the more rapid wear of the nether stone periodically called for manos of somewhat varying shapes to conform to the changing contour of the metate throughout its serviceable life. Proof to substantiate this thesis is lacking, but it appears to be a reasonable possibility. Also, the practice of pecking manos to increase the effectiveness of their grinding surfaces must have resulted in considerable breakage, as judged by the large number of fragments.
Of 2,556 manos and 329 metates, whole and fragmentary, 962 and 79 respectively, were classifiable. The descriptive categories derived from the 1947 data proved adequate in defining the limits of variability and patterning displayed by our recent acquisitions. Some pieces exhibit technological refinement of types earlier described.
Metates
Metates are of three types, called here deep basin, shallow basin, and flat slab. As was true last season, the material is predominantly sandstone for all three forms.
Type I, deep basin (fig. 5, a, c, e).—These are the most abundant. Fifteen complete specimens and seventeen fragments were recovered. In both form and size there exists a close parallel between this type and those associated with the Oak Grove Culture of the Santa Barbara area.
Type II, shallow basin (fig. 5, b, d; pl. 18, c right).—This type is represented by fifteen complete and eleven fragments.
Type III, slab (fig. 5, f; pl. 18, c).—Like type II, the slab metate is less common, being known only through eleven complete and ten fragmentary specimens.
The distribution of metates through the deposit was not as random as that of manos. Many of the complete specimens occur among features or with burials. Fragments were encountered throughout the excavation, but were most highly concentrated in features consisting of large aggregates of stone. No depth table has been presented for metates, as it is assumed that the mano distribution reflects a more complete picture for these related tools; however, the deep-basin form seems to occur at the greatest depth.
Manos
Manos and mano fragments were so common in the occupational debris that their association in features or with burials had little or no significance. With the exception of scraper planes they were the most frequent artifact group encountered. Their depth distribution (table 5) suggests several noteable points. The highest frequency occurs in the 6-to-12-inch level, being represented by some 349 examples. From 0-to-36-inches there are 960 specimens but from 36-to-54-inches there are only 2 examples. This would seem to indicate then that the early history of the Tank Site was characterized mainly by a flake-and-core industry with the mano-metate complex being exhibited only lightly at first and then gaining considerable importance toward the latter periods of Phase I. Excavations at LAn-2 would also indicate that the trait began to wane toward Phase II and was gradually replaced by a mortar-pestle complex, which continues to be characteristic on into historic times.
Manos have been typed largely on the basis of the number of faces that exhibit wear, the nature of the worked or worn surfaces, and the general form. Some eight types have been recognized.
Table 5
Mano Types
Figure 6. Mano Types
I. Unifaced
IA. Natural cobbles with wear on one surface. Cobbles range from symmetrical to irregular in shape: circular to ovoid in outline.IB. Extended form of type IA, showing excessive wear. Forms all tend toward symmetry.IC. Elongated “sugar-loaf” in cross section. Entire back surface completely smoothed.
IA. Natural cobbles with wear on one surface. Cobbles range from symmetrical to irregular in shape: circular to ovoid in outline.
IB. Extended form of type IA, showing excessive wear. Forms all tend toward symmetry.
IC. Elongated “sugar-loaf” in cross section. Entire back surface completely smoothed.
II. Bifaced
IIA. Natural cobbles with wear on two surfaces. Symmetrical forms range from oblate spheroids to ovoid disks, others are symmetrical. In cross section wear surfaces are parallel to lenticular. Grades into type IIB.IIB. Same as IIA, but forms are elongated (length always much greater than the breadth).IIC. Wedge-shaped, ovoid to elongate cobbles. Angle between wear surfaces ranges from 5 degrees to 45 degrees.IID. Same as type IIC, but one surface is keeled as a result of superimposed wear pattern.
IIA. Natural cobbles with wear on two surfaces. Symmetrical forms range from oblate spheroids to ovoid disks, others are symmetrical. In cross section wear surfaces are parallel to lenticular. Grades into type IIB.
IIB. Same as IIA, but forms are elongated (length always much greater than the breadth).
IIC. Wedge-shaped, ovoid to elongate cobbles. Angle between wear surfaces ranges from 5 degrees to 45 degrees.
IID. Same as type IIC, but one surface is keeled as a result of superimposed wear pattern.
III. Trifaced
III. Long, narrow, triangular cross section.
III. Long, narrow, triangular cross section.
Mortars
Newly acquired mortars are represented but by three fragmentary pieces. Only one is of sufficient size to suggest an outer diameter of approximately 12 inches, and all three appear to be of the cobble type similar to the complete specimen collected in 1947 (Treganza and Malamud 1950, pl. 24,a). Considering the area excavated and the very small number of both mortars and pestles that were recovered, it would be safe to assume this complex was of little significance in the history of the Tank Site. Their function was probably concerned primarily with something other than the food economy, such as grinding pigments or functioning in some specific capacity. Wooden mortars and pestles can not be totally excluded, but the great preponderance of manos and metates would probably preclude any serious assumption that mortars and pestles ever played any important roll at the Tank Site.
Included in feature 18 was a spherical cobble 8 inches in diameter, marked by a well-defined, shallow, circular depression. Its surface bears the marks of shaping by pecking and some rubbing; the depression is well-smoothed, as if worn down by constant use. We can not say whether the piece is completed, as such; or whether, possibly, it represents a small mortar in an arrested state of manufacture.
Pestles
Five complete pestles were recovered, providing a total of nine for the two seasons. The specimens this year differ from those already known in being more stylized, i.e., four are almost perfectly cylindrical and show wear at both ends. All are made of sandstone and have gently rounded pounding surfaces. Specimens 1, 2, and 4, as listed below, were found in a single cache.
1. Shaped over-all by pecking, forming a slightly tapered cylinder, somewhat bulbed at either extremity. Both ends evidence use. This example, by far the largest recovered from the Tank Site, compares in many respects to pestles associated with later cultures of the coast and interior. Length, 31.5 cm.; average diameter, 6.9 cm. (pl. 24,a).
2. Entirely shaped by pecking and grinding. Two opposite sides somewhat flattened by abrasion as if used as a mano on a slab metate, and resulting in a somewhat flattened cylinder form. Both ends used. Length, 13.5 cm.; average diameter, 6.8 cm. (pl. 24,c).
3. Similar to specimen 2, though more nearly circular in cross section and surface shows no grinding. Length 16.5 cm.; average diameter, 7 cm.
4. Completely worked by pecking and grinding. Cylindrical form distorted by slight tapering and dorsoventral flattening. Used at both ends. Length, 15.2 cm.; average diameter, 6.5 cm.
5. This specimen is composed of a highly weathered sandstone so that the surface treatment is no longer discernable. Shaped to a truncated conoid and apparently used only on the larger end. Length, 18.5 cm.; greatest diameter, 8.5 cm.
These five specimens were localized in the southeast sector of the deposit, and none occurred deeper than the 12-to-18-inch level. Numerous Phase II projectile points came from this same general area of the site and therefore there is some inclination to assign these specimens to a late position in the Phase I with the probability that they are Phase II.
Abrading Stones
Two broad classes of abrading stones have been differentiated on the basis of form and inferred function (Treganza and Malamud 1950, p. 147):
I. Those that could be held in the hand and rubbed against some article being finished. These have smoothed, even-abrading surfaces that are gently concave to convex. They are clearly distinguishable from manos by their reduced average proportions, and the near consistent lack of pecking as a sharpening measure. That this latter characteristic does not hold without exception seems to be due simply to the fact that some of the abrading stones appear to be reused manos.One of the examples in the above category, originally a broken bifaced mano, has small, half-inch deep depressions at either end. These evidently served as finger-holds, for they effect a good grip on the tool.II. Those that, though quite varied in size, bear one or more grooves on their faces. The furrows vary in breadth and depth and appear to be a function, essentially, of the amount and kind of wear to which the artifact was subjected.Many of these specimens, especially those with narrow, V-shaped longitudinal grooves, would be classed as awl sharpeners had they occurred in sites of later origin. However, bone awls or pointed, worked bone in any form is absent in the Tank Site. It would suggest, then, that this class of abrading stones were involved in conjunction with wood working, the tangible evidence having been lost to us.
I. Those that could be held in the hand and rubbed against some article being finished. These have smoothed, even-abrading surfaces that are gently concave to convex. They are clearly distinguishable from manos by their reduced average proportions, and the near consistent lack of pecking as a sharpening measure. That this latter characteristic does not hold without exception seems to be due simply to the fact that some of the abrading stones appear to be reused manos.One of the examples in the above category, originally a broken bifaced mano, has small, half-inch deep depressions at either end. These evidently served as finger-holds, for they effect a good grip on the tool.
II. Those that, though quite varied in size, bear one or more grooves on their faces. The furrows vary in breadth and depth and appear to be a function, essentially, of the amount and kind of wear to which the artifact was subjected.Many of these specimens, especially those with narrow, V-shaped longitudinal grooves, would be classed as awl sharpeners had they occurred in sites of later origin. However, bone awls or pointed, worked bone in any form is absent in the Tank Site. It would suggest, then, that this class of abrading stones were involved in conjunction with wood working, the tangible evidence having been lost to us.
Cog Stones
Cog stones, because of their unique forms and restricted distribution, may be useful as diagnostic elements for future comparative studies. As yet we know little about their function or cultural associations in the rest of southern California. Their temporal position appears to be a middle one, as none occur in positiveassociation with late or historic sites, and conversely, none have been reported for Lake Mohave, coastal San Dieguito, or Oak Grove. The Tank Site specimens represent the earliest known occurrence, and even here their exact position as to Phase I or Phase II is not fully known. Most of our specimens occur in the top levels (0-18 inches), though a single example was found as deep as 32 inches (pl. 23,b).
We have suggested cog stones in southern California may constitute the counterpart of the spindle charm stones of central California with the south boundary of the Chumash marking the near southern limit of the spindle forms. Material out of which cog stones have been made is of some interest. The Tank Site specimens range through volcanic tuff, siliceous sinter, escoriated basalt, to a fine-grained basalt. From other areas the same materials are present plus sandstone, granite, and granodiorite. Steatite, one of the most easily worked stones, appears to be absent. Obviously the hardness and type of stone were of little importance. The appearance of the finished product likewise varied. Some specimens are a product of perfection, others of the roughest sort. Perforated specimens might suggest hafting, but few are of this type.
The suggestion of a ceremonial usage of cog stones is not solely lacking in evidence. In 1936-1937, under the Works Progress Administration, Mr. J. W. Winterbourne excavated two sites in Orange County known as the Banning Site and the Norris Site. The following are excerpts from a letter dated April 13, 1939, to Edwin F. Walker from J. W. Winterbourne (we are indebted to Mr. H. Eberhart for providing this data from his manuscript on cog stones):
“I am enclosing some data on cog stones that one of the clerks gathered from the field notes.... We have noticed several peculiarities regarding this cogged discoidal. First, that the Banning Estate Site seems to have produced as many of these stones as all the other sites where they are found combined; second, that the stones in most cases are found in the clay completely below the camp debris; third, that rarely have they been found in association with other artifacts except the discoidal; fourth, that they seem never to have served a utilitarian purpose as they are not pitted or polished and rarely broken; fifth, if broken, in almost every case the Indians attempted to mend them with asphalt; sixth, that the material used in their manufacture is with few exceptions a vesicular basalt which is found in outcrops in the San Joaquin Hills and at various points in the Santa Ana Mountains; seventh, that the number of cogs or depressions may vary three to twenty-five or thirty-eight, that the stone may be perforated near the center of the planes or it may not be, but that usually there is a depression near the center of both obverse and reverse planes.”
The following excerpts are from the same letter and contain more detailed information regarding archaeological occurrences: “A decomposed burial was uncovered four feet east of a cog stone and at the same depth.... Three fine specimens were found close together under four oblong slabs of fossilized limestone, a pectin shell and a blue piece of granite.... A cog stone was uncovered twenty-five inches below the surface, 19 inches northeast by north from a large metate, in plot #10-b. Upon further investigation, the metate proved to be resting on the stones of a fireplace from which a few broken human bones protruded. Twelve inches north of the fireplace ... a mano was found with the cog stone.”
The above excerpts were from the Banning Site. The following are from the Norris Site: “Three cog stones, #39, #40, #41, were found at a depth of 39 inches. These cog stones rested in the clay on edge. Flat surfaces parallel to each other. These cog stones were found close to a fireplace about two feet square and also close to a burial ... two cog stones were uncovered. These cog stones were one on top of the other and rested on the clay which underlies the kitchen midden. A cog stone was found in test hole #14 at a depth of 3½ feet, 8 inches below the bottom of the excavations in a pit. Abalone shell covered the top of the cog stone ... three cog stones one on top of the other.... This is the first fragment of a cog stone ever encountered in our excavation. We found a few with cogs or pieces broken from them but the Indians generally made an attempt to mend them. This would seem to indicate a ceremonial rather than a practical use.”
These instances serve to indicate such objects were held in high esteem at least for the two sites mentioned. None of the Tank Site specimens was patched nor did any two occur in the same immediate area; however, parallels exist in the forms, materials, the near association of metates, and at least two burial forms. Also, we recognize no utilitarian role in which these curious objects could have functioned.
Last season’s cog stones were all fragmentary. This year three complete specimens were found.
1. Beveled disk, biconically drilled. The specimen is indented at even intervals, resembling somewhat a perforated metal tapered gear or a fish vertebra. Height, 3.8 cm.; diameter at base, 8.8 cm. Material a fine-grained basalt (pl. 23,a).2. Slightly beveled disk. The periphery is grooved at even intervals producing a cog effect. Both the flat surfaces are slightly pitted at the center of the disk. Height, 4.7 cm.; average diameter, 8.5 cm. Material a rough escoriated basalt (pl. 23,c).3. Slightly beveled disk like the above specimen only more refined and with more grooves. Slightly pitted on both surfaces. Grooves appear to have first been made by a sawing technique and then later smoothed down. Height, 3 cm.; average diameter, 7.3 cm. Material is volcanic tuff (pl. 23,b).
1. Beveled disk, biconically drilled. The specimen is indented at even intervals, resembling somewhat a perforated metal tapered gear or a fish vertebra. Height, 3.8 cm.; diameter at base, 8.8 cm. Material a fine-grained basalt (pl. 23,a).
2. Slightly beveled disk. The periphery is grooved at even intervals producing a cog effect. Both the flat surfaces are slightly pitted at the center of the disk. Height, 4.7 cm.; average diameter, 8.5 cm. Material a rough escoriated basalt (pl. 23,c).
3. Slightly beveled disk like the above specimen only more refined and with more grooves. Slightly pitted on both surfaces. Grooves appear to have first been made by a sawing technique and then later smoothed down. Height, 3 cm.; average diameter, 7.3 cm. Material is volcanic tuff (pl. 23,b).
Stone Disks
Discoids, like cogged stones, do not appear to have been utility items. That there may be some relationship between these two groups in a functional complex is attested by their direct association in the Banning Site as reported by Winterbourne. Eventually they may prove to be as important as cog stones in terms of cultural time-markers, though at present little is known concerning their distribution.
Stone disks have been divided into two gross categories: (I) those with flat to convex faces; (II) those on which one or both faces are concave. In either group the sides may be beveled or straight (for illustrations, cf. Treganza and Malamud 1950, pl. 24,c,d,f,i).
The three specimens recovered this season fall into the first group. All are characterized by flat faces and all are made of sandstone.
1. Sides beveled with the lower or larger face battered about the entire periphery. Height, 4 cm.; diameter, 6.5 cm. to 9 cm.2. Fragmentary specimen with straight sides and slight central depression on one face. Height, 4.2 cm.; diameter, 7.7 cm.3. Fragmentary specimen with vertical sides. Height, 3 cm.; diameter undetermined.
1. Sides beveled with the lower or larger face battered about the entire periphery. Height, 4 cm.; diameter, 6.5 cm. to 9 cm.
2. Fragmentary specimen with straight sides and slight central depression on one face. Height, 4.2 cm.; diameter, 7.7 cm.
3. Fragmentary specimen with vertical sides. Height, 3 cm.; diameter undetermined.
A barrel-shaped object of sandstone was recovered which, if it is a finished product, should not be classed here as a stone disk. However, there is some possibility that it represents a discoid in the initial stages of manufacture, and as such it is without parallel in the collection. Height, 6 cm.; diameter 5.9 cm. at ends; 6.8 cm. at middle.
There is no reason to assume that any of our specimens are in any way related to the so-called “bowling” stones reported for southern California in late prehistoric or historic times.
Rubbing Stones
This class includes small flat cobbles, showing abrasive wear on one or both faces. They may be distinguished from manos by their reduced size though many appear to look like “little” manos. None shows any shaping other than through continued wear from use.
A minority of these pieces, thirty-four, are distinguished by the development of a small centralized pit on one or both smoothed faces. In some instances there is a single pit on one surface and two on the other. Many of these pitted examples have been battered on their peripheral edges, suggesting they were either reused rubbing stones or they served a dual function of both smoothing and pecking. We are hesitant to call them “pitted hammerstones” since many are made from a soft sandstone and would be ill adapted to this function. It is of some interest to note that this general type of stone implement occurs in central and northern California throughout most of the entire cultural history of the more advanced industries. It has been suggested that such an artifact may have been used as an “acorn anvil” or in some way related to the preparation of the acorn in the hulling process. Should this prove to be correct, then one might expect it to be an ancient element in native California.
For future comparative work it may prove advantageous to make further subdivisions by differentiating between pitted and non-pitted forms. We have made no attempt to do so at the present time.
Core Hammerstones
Some investigators tend to place core hammerstones in a class with flaked tools, but in the present paper they are classed as an artifact of pecked stone. It is the great quantity of their occurrence which appears significant, rather than how they are classed.
Hammerstones may be conceived as having two quite distinct functions: (1) those whose function is primarily to remove a large flake through the percussion method, such as the production of a core itself or a rough blade, and (2) those hammerstones having sharp or semisharp projections used to reduce to some desired shape rocks of a nonconcoidal nature, such as pecking down the surface humps on a mortar or pestle in order to develop symmetry; or the function may not necessarily be one of shaping but merely to periodically rough up a grinding surface on a metate or mano. There naturally remains the possibility that once a specimen of the latter type had lost all of its sharp projections it could then assume the role of the first type and continue as a useful tool (Treganza and Valdivia, 1955, p. 20).
One problem of classification arises when we combine the process of manufacture and the concept of use. If we assume a rough piece of source material was purposely flaked down to produce a core to be used solely as a hammerstone, the artifact by definition becomes a flaked tool. However, at this point it bears no resemblance to a hammerstone, but looks more like a chopper or just a plain core and frequently may be classed as such. Once this core is used as a percussion instrument and has its sharp margins battered back, it begins to take on the characteristics of a hammerstone or a used core tool. If battering continues, the final result is an angular nodule whose irregular, worn margins mark the former presence of sharp bifacial flake edges. A well-worn core hammerstone is also a worn-out specimen, at least in the light of its original function.
Of the 1,478 specimens from the Tank Site it is our opinion that their resultant form is derived through means of their own function—that of pecking. That such an implement was much in demand is evidenced by the pecked surfaces of numerous grinding tools. We doubt seriously if hammerstones of this type were manufactured as such, but rather we assume any suitable core, rejected scraper plane, or chopper could have served as a starting point, and an over-all examination of our specimens supports such a thesis.
Emergent is the correlation of core hammerstones and the presence of manos and metates. Noteably both these grinding elements are rare in the coastal San Dieguito and in the Lake Mohave area but do occur among the Shoshonean and Yuman groups who occupied the areas corresponding to these ancient lithic cultures.
Cobble Hammerstones
Cobble hammerstones tend to be oval or egg-shaped and exhibit abrasion on one or both ends. None exceeds fist size, and many are slightly smaller. A number evidence additional use as a rubbing stone.
A varient of this form is slightly thinner and contains small bifacial depressions that have been pecked into the more flattened sides and presumably served as finger grips.
Slate Pendants
To date, worked slate was represented only by three nonperforated, lozenge-shaped specimens, one of which displays a faint, crude rectilinear design. The second season’s activity produced no comparable examples, though it added six pieces to the collection. These can be broken down into three descriptive categories:
1. Four examples, none over 2 mm. in thickness, too fragmentary to warrent reconstruction. Judging by the striations on their surfaces and edges, they were shaped by grinding. On each, one end tapers to a blunt point.2. A lozenge-shaped specimen containing three broken-out peripheral biconical drilled holes. Average length, 6 cm.; average width, 4.5 cm.; 3 mm. thick.3. A single trapezoidal specimen with no perforation or abrasive marks, but shaped at its narrow end by chipping. Length, 12 cm.; width, 6 cm.; 3 mm. thick.
1. Four examples, none over 2 mm. in thickness, too fragmentary to warrent reconstruction. Judging by the striations on their surfaces and edges, they were shaped by grinding. On each, one end tapers to a blunt point.
2. A lozenge-shaped specimen containing three broken-out peripheral biconical drilled holes. Average length, 6 cm.; average width, 4.5 cm.; 3 mm. thick.
3. A single trapezoidal specimen with no perforation or abrasive marks, but shaped at its narrow end by chipping. Length, 12 cm.; width, 6 cm.; 3 mm. thick.
Miscellaneous Artifacts
Here, as in the first report, are included objects that constitute part of the total cultural inventory, but assmall or unassociated occurrences, they require individual descriptions.
Objects of Stone
1. A smooth, symmetric piece of fine-grained sandstone that, though incomplete, is recognizably spindle-shaped. In all probability it is a fragment of pseudomorphicbelemnitecast, but appears to be analagous to the spindle-shaped charm stones of the Santa Barbara Hunting Culture or to those of central California or to the single specimen recovered at the Little Sycamore Site in Ventura County (Wallace, 1954, fig. 38B, p. 114; pl. 24e).2. Six clusters of quartz crystals, apparently segments of geodes, were recovered. Whether collected as a curiosity or whether they functioned as would a single large crystal for purposes of anamatistic power, as in central California, can only be conjectured. In 1947 a very small, terminated crystal was found in direct burial association, so there remains the possibility that at least single specimens had some ceremonial significance.3. Spheroidal cobbles of varying sizes were encountered, especially in association with features. None appears to have been artificially shaped either by pecking or grinding, and hence we assume they represent highly selected specimens collected from the numerous conglomerate exposures found in Topanga Canyon. Circumstances surrounding their occurrence offer no clue as to their possible use.4. Half of a biconically drilled chlorite-schist bead, 1.5 cm. long, and about 1 cm. in diameter. Both ends appear to be roughly serrated, but this feature may be accidental. That the bead was at one time worn on a string appears evident from the high luster at the juncture of the two conical drill holes.5. A perforated tip of a fossil shark tooth, on which the enamel is largely lacking.
1. A smooth, symmetric piece of fine-grained sandstone that, though incomplete, is recognizably spindle-shaped. In all probability it is a fragment of pseudomorphicbelemnitecast, but appears to be analagous to the spindle-shaped charm stones of the Santa Barbara Hunting Culture or to those of central California or to the single specimen recovered at the Little Sycamore Site in Ventura County (Wallace, 1954, fig. 38B, p. 114; pl. 24e).
2. Six clusters of quartz crystals, apparently segments of geodes, were recovered. Whether collected as a curiosity or whether they functioned as would a single large crystal for purposes of anamatistic power, as in central California, can only be conjectured. In 1947 a very small, terminated crystal was found in direct burial association, so there remains the possibility that at least single specimens had some ceremonial significance.
3. Spheroidal cobbles of varying sizes were encountered, especially in association with features. None appears to have been artificially shaped either by pecking or grinding, and hence we assume they represent highly selected specimens collected from the numerous conglomerate exposures found in Topanga Canyon. Circumstances surrounding their occurrence offer no clue as to their possible use.
4. Half of a biconically drilled chlorite-schist bead, 1.5 cm. long, and about 1 cm. in diameter. Both ends appear to be roughly serrated, but this feature may be accidental. That the bead was at one time worn on a string appears evident from the high luster at the juncture of the two conical drill holes.
5. A perforated tip of a fossil shark tooth, on which the enamel is largely lacking.
BONE IMPLEMENTS
It can be said with certainty that bone tools in any form were not characteristic of the Tank Site in either Phase I or Phase II.
From both season’s work were recovered a single fragment of a bone awl, a small section of polished bone containing a light drill pit, and the tip ends of six antlertine flakers. The antler specimens all occurred in the 0- to 12-inch level and probably should be assigned to Phase II since their distribution would coincide with the pressure-flaked projectile points.
This near-complete lack of bone artifacts is a pronounced contrast with later coastal and interior sites. In part it can be suggested that wooden objects were manufactured at the Tank Site as a substitute for bone.
OTHER REMAINS
Unworked Bone and Shell
The nonhuman bone recovered consisted primarily of highly fragmented cannon bones, none of which lent itself to positive identification. The total bulk of such refuse was surprisingly low. We can make no claim that mammal bone has disintegrated and disappeared in the course of time, for human bone, though by no means well preserved, was relatively abundant in small pieces (see features).
As has been pointed out, this scarcity of faunal remains lends support to the thesis that at least large game animals did not serve as significant staples. Smaller, lighter bones of rodents were even more rare, and even these could have been postoccupation, since burrowing mammals were present when we excavated. Only two pieces of bird bone were noted and both of these were under an inverted metate.
In the deeper part of the deposit (below 12 inches) identifiable shell remains were absent. Occasional small flecks of calcareous residue might suggest the former presence of highly altered shell remains, but as yet we lack a microscopic analysis to confirm this. In the extreme upper limits (0-6 inches) a few obvious shell fragments were collected, but even here such occurrences were rare.
Fossil Remains
Previously mentioned were a possible belemnite cast, which may have served as a charm stone, and a perforated shark’s tooth, probably used as a pendant. Last season we observed numerous remains of some unidentified fossil vertebrate and several marine shells.
Whether these remains indicate merely the former presence of an aboriginal fossil collector, or whether they played some functional role, will never be known to us. A large fossil fish vertebra is known to have constituted part of a Yokuts rainmaker shaman’s kit (records of the University of California Archaeological Survey), and fossil horse teeth occur with historic Wintu burials (Treganza, 1954), but the temporal separation between these two historic groups and the Topanga Culture is too great to offer any likely suggestions.
Pigments
Numerous mineral pigment sticks and granules indicate the considerable use of such items, but other than the occurrence of hematite in moderate to light form with some burials, little is known of possible additional uses. As for body paint or surface decoration on perishable material, the evidence of such use would not be preserved.
None of the pigment sticks was formed as a result of molding ground materials into a paddy or brick, as is sometimes noted for California, but rather, a good grade of mineral was originally selected, and, as pigment was desired, it was ground from this parent source. Gradually, either long angular or rounded forms resulted. Of these sticks of pigment 13 were hematite, showing a color range from brick red to brown; 33 were limonite, ranging from pale yellow to a rich orange yellow. Occasionally sticks of a pink mudstone occurred.
This site occupies the same ridge as does the Tank Site approximately 350 yards west-northwest of the latter at an estimated 150 feet lower elevation. The ridge narrows down to a slight saddle, providing a semi-knoll upon which the occupational debris has collected (Treganza and Malamud, 1950, pl. 14,a,c). For purposes of fire control the area had previously been bulldozed, obliterating the exact limits of the deposit. Mound soil appears to extend 110 feet east-west and 70 feet north-south, and is 36 inches at its deepest point, some 15 feet southwest of the center of the site. The midden thins out on the periphery more rapidly toward the west than to the east. The deposit is loose, dark, and sandy. No extensive ash lenses were observed, and charcoal, though it appeared in small pieces, was not common. Surrounding the depositional area, the markedly yellow sandy clay stands out in definite contrast. The submound base is the same as the surrounding soils only slightly darker from the downward leeching of organic material from the midden. Directly above the site and to the northeast, a light-yellow sandstone outcrop has been exposed to weathering for a considerable period of time.
Exploratory excavation was initiated in the form of a 12- by 3-foot test trench in 1947. Continuing in the summer of 1948, it was found that more thorough excavation would be warranted. A 5-foot coördinate system was then superimposed on the partial excavated area (see map 3).
At the conclusion of the 1947 season there was reason to feel that the Tank Site was stratified, though at that time without further data, or a means of checking with another site, the evidence was not fully convincing. However, in 1948 additional work on the Tank Site plus a limited amount of excavation on the LAn-2 provided the necessary information not only to show a definite cultural change in respect to some elements within the Tank Site, but also that the Topanga Culture as it has been defined underwent considerable change as it continued on into later times. These changes as exhibited in LAn-2 consist primarily in a shift in the method of disposal of the dead from extended burials to a flexed position, a change in burial orientation favoring north, elaboration in pestle types, absence of large crude blades, projectile points that are small and correspond with the types in upper level of the Tank Site, and a shift in material and variety of core and flake tools. It is upon these differences that Topanga Phase II rests.
Map 3. Site LAn-2
DISPOSAL OF THE DEAD
The method of disposal of the dead contrasts sharply with that of the Tank Site. Of the four burials exposed, two were loose-flexed (pl. 17,c-d), a third, tight-flexed on the back (pl. 17,a-b), and the fourth, though incomplete, likewise suggested a flexed position. The use of a rock cairn is shared by a single burial from the Tank Site, though in the case of the former (burial 6), the cairn composed of manos and metates and other rocks surrounded the burial; here the rocks lay directly over the burial. Like the Tank Site, associated artifacts were rare. The only occurrence was a single metate associated with the cairn in burial 4.
The condition of the bones was poor. Though more complete than the remains from the Tank Site, the skeletal material was fragile and difficult to expose, possibly due to the loose sandy mound matrix.
Burial 5 from the Tank Site possessed a slight flexure of the knees and the dual burial 10 possibly suggests flexure. Both of these burials come from the shallow area of the Tank Site and may suggest a parallel.
In other coastal sites, the burial pattern found at LAn-2 finds comparable practices (Rogers, D. B., 1929; Rogers M. J., 1945; Walker, 1936; Peck, 1955; Wallace, 1954.)
Table 6
Burial Data on Site LAn-2
FLAKED TOOLS
The assemblage of flaked core tools recovered from LAn-2 represents in part a continuation of the lithic patterns as described for the Tank Site. Such modifications as have been noted, plus other cultural changes, constitute the basis for assuming this site follows the Tank Site in an uninterrupted temporal sequence. This assumption is further backed by stratigraphic evidence provided by projectile points (table 4).
Some core tools are also found in LAn-2 but do not occur either in the total quantity, quality, or number of types as found in the Tank Site. Many of the specimens exhibit a lesser degree of patination, though there are some that are heavily patinated. Considering the great quantity of tools in the Tank Site and its close proximity, it may be that the more weathered tools were borrowed from the Tank Site. The majority of the core tools were so poorly manufactured that at times definite tool types were difficult to recognize. Basalt still appears to predominate as a source material, but quartzite appears to have been of more common usage, especially in the making of certain scraper types.
Table 7
Flaked Tools and Materials from Site LAn-2
Inasmuch as the tool types are the same as those set up for the Tank Site, there is little need to redescribe them. The frequencies are listed in table 6. The depths ranged from surface to 36 inches, but the distribution of artifacts appeared to be homogenous, hence the depth has no significance.
Projectile Points
Nothing from LAn-2 approached the large crude blades and points characteristic of the lower levels of the Tank Site (LAn-1). Contrarily, the material matches the small points that are typical of the upper levels of the Tank Site (0-12 inches), and finds, in addition, parallel in the later coastal cultures of the Santa Barbara region. All of the specimens are pressure flaked and composed of either chert or obsidian. The eight typable points represent too small a series, and the deposit is too shallow to show any stratigraphic differences within the site.
Lozenge points (pl. 23, i-l).—Of the four specimens recovered, one appears to have accidentally had a large flake removed from one side and then undergone secondary chipping, producing a resemblance to a single side-notched type. Their representative lengths are 4.0, 3.6, 3.5, and 2.9 cm.
Side-notched points (pl. 23, g-h).—These two specimens differ from those of the Tank Site in that the base tends to be more concave rather than convex. Only one of the Tank Site specimens showed a slight concavity. These specimens differ somewhat from the side-notched concave points that are typical of the protohistoric and historic period in that they are broad across the base and proportionately short. Their lengths are 3.5 and 2.5 cm.
Contracting-stem points (pl. 23, f).—This single specimen is larger than those of the Tank Site and differs in that the sides tend to be convex near the tip, concave at the mid-section and base, terminating in well-defined tangs. Were it not for the well-defined tapering stem, the basal portion would be concave. Typologically this type finds a good parallel in D. B. Rogers’ Hunting and Canalino specimens and a somewhat lesser similarity to the Gypsum Cave material. (An extended discussion of this type will be found in the conclusion.) Length, 7 cm.
Convex-base points (pl. 23, m).—This type is not represented in the Tank Site series and is known here only through a single incomplete specimen. It is a type not uncommon to the later coastal group. Reconstructed length, 3.5 cm.
Fragments of points.—Only two additional point fragments were recovered, neither of which are typable.
GROUND OR PECKED STONE
Ground or pecked stone, like that of chipped material, evidences a certain amount of continuity as compared to the Tank Site, but also changes slightly. The number of examples and types is considerably less, perhaps due in part to the proportional amount of digging done, though it is difficult to determine, as the Tank Site might well be classed as unusual in regard to its great quantity of implements. Where manos and metates were of frequent occurrence in the Tank Site, they become rare here. Though only two mortars and four pestles were found, it would indicate a considerable statistical increase over the Tank Site, especially when the amount of digging done in the two sites is compared. Slate pendants carry through as do stone disks. No cog stones were recovered though they appear to be an associate of the disks.
Metates
A slight shift may be noted in the types of metates. The shallow basin and the slab take precidence over the deep basin. As to material and form, no differences could be noted. The specimens from this site were not weathered so badly nor was the inverted position common. The number of each type recovered was as follows: shallow basin, 17; slab, 3; deep basin, 2; and 19 unidentifiable fragments.
Manos
Manos, like metates, were not too numerous nor varied in form. The finished specimens lack the perfection of the better made examples in the Tank Site. Considering the entire grinding complex, it is evident that the role played here was of less importance. This might be interpreted as indicative of a slight shift in the food economy. It is difficult to offer an explanation as to the direction or nature of such a shift, though there is some evidence suggesting greater emphasis was placed on hunting. By types, the following number of each was found: 4 mono-facial type IA; 20 bifacial type IIB; 3 wedge-shaped type IIC; and 1 type III, with three worked faces.
The ratio of manos to metates is quite different here than at the Tank Site. Here the ratio is 1.5 metates to 1 mano. Little explanation can be offered to this reverse trend other than it represents a breakdown of an older pattern as a result of a shift toward the mortar-pestle complex.
Mortars
The evidence for mortars rests upon two incomplete specimens. A single rim fragment, composed of a fairly course sandstone, resembles the Tank Site specimen, but having a somewhat larger diameter (about 10 inches). The second specimen is too fragmentary to allow any reconstruction of size.
Pestles
Only four pestles were recovered. One, a complete specimen composed of a diabase, was shaped by pecking followed by grinding. The specimen is 14.6 cm. long, tapering from 3.5 cm. in diameter to 5 cm. at the distal end. A ridge forms a circular band about the handle, 3.1 cm. from the top, 1.6 cm. wide, and projects some 3 cm. The form has a phallic appearance (pl. 24,d).
A fragmentary specimen like the above type is too incomplete to afford much information. It is composed of a coarse sandstone and has been subjected to considerable oxidation from a fire.
Another fragmentary specimen 11.3 cm. long exhibited a well-defined convex pounding end. One side shows evidence of flattening by grinding, and in this respect it is like the cache of three small pestles from the Tank Site.
An implement, hardly worked but apparently complete, is an elongated cobble, nearly circular in cross section. The pounding end is convex, showing considerable wear. The length is 19.7 cm. with an average diameter of 8.5 cm.
Rubbing Stones
All of the seven specimens recovered were composed of flat cobbles, spherical to oval in form, and worn on both sides. Of these, two have a single concave surface and a single specimen was bipitted on both surfaces. Size of specimens averaged 7.85 by 7.1 by 2.8 cm.
Stone Disks
A single representative with beveled edges ranging in diameter from 7.4 cm. on one surface to 5.5 cm. on the other, and 3.6 cm. thick, was found. It is composed of a sandstone and is shaped by pecking and grinding, resulting in a somewhat uneven form. Similar specimens have been illustrated for the Tank Site (Treganza and Malamud, 1950, pl. 24,c,d,f,h).
Pendants
Pendants are known only in fragmentary or unfinished form, none of which resemble the types from the Tank Site. A single unfinished specimen, composed of slate, is subrectangular in outline with irregular wavy edges, the dimensions being 10 cm. long by 2 cm. wide by 5 cm. thick. On both surfaces of the smaller end biconical drill holes had been started. The entire surface shows evidence of irregular scratchy abrasive marks. A single specimen composed of laminated shale is incomplete and suggests merely a rectangular form. In addition, three steatite fragments appear to represent some form of pendant. If complete, all would probably have had a long tapering rectangular form. The thickness varies from 1 to 3 cm.
OTHER REMAINS
Shell and bone artifacts were absent; this may be partly due to the limited excavation. No evidence of textiles was detected.
Unworked Bone and Shell Remains
Like the Tank Site, both these elements were rare, especially shell, which is known only through two unidentifiable fragments. A few deer bones occurred, the lower mandible of a wild cat (Lynx rufus), and the canine and incisor teeth of either a fox or coyote. The preservation of mammal bone, like that of human, was very poor.
The final Topanga report remains primarily descriptive in order to make the data more useable for comparative purposes. Although this concluding report describes some new material, adds considerably to artifact frequencies, and defines Phase I and Phase II of the Topanga Culture, the basic conclusions reached earlier remain essentially unchanged, and the previous general conclusions need not be repeated here (Treganza and Malamud, 1950). This summary is the senior author’s opinion and does not necessarily reflect the views of either of the coauthors of the Topanga reports.
An extended archaeological survey in upper Topanga Canyon and its main tributaries revealed ten additional habitation deposits comparable to the Tank Site, LAn-1. More recent excavations along the adjacent coast and in the interior valleys (Walker, 1951; Wallace, 1954; Peck, 1955) have produced artifacts comparable to both phases of the Topanga culture. Therefore, the Topanga Culture, as we have defined it here, is not limited to the Tank Site but contains local expression as well as relationships outside the immediate area.
The two phases of the Topanga Culture are derived primarily through differences in projectile points and burial customs. Phase I is characterized by large percussion-flaked blades and points (pl. 21) which occur in the Tank Site (LAn-1) from the surface to 60 inches in depth with the greatest frequency below 18 inches (see table 4), and no similar type points or blades have been found in LAn-2. Phase II projectile points are smaller, varied in type, and are pressure flaked (pls. 22, 23,f-m). These points are confined to the upper 18 inches of the Tank Site and are exclusive to LAn-2. There are three forms of interment in the Tank Site, all of which characterize Phase I: (1) primary inhumation, extended, prone or supine, head southerly; (2) reburial, segments of long bones only, generally under an inverted metate; and (3) fractional burial with interment of long bones only. By virtue of its deep occurrence the reburial is the most ancient in the Tank Site (Treganza and Malamud, 1950, p. 135, burial 8). Phase II burials are flexed, with no specific orientation, and occur both with and without rock cairns. These burials were all limited to LAn-2.
Since clear-cut stratigraphic evidence is lacking it is difficult to assign other classes of artifacts as being definitely associated with any one specific phase of the Topanga Culture. Some general statements can be made. The large quantity of basalt core tools, especially scraper planes, occur deep in the Tank Site and are far less common in LAn-2. Manos and metates bear out the same relationship; however, both these types of artifacts span the time gap from early occurrences to the historic period. It is only when one or both of these elements characterize or dominate a site, such as in LAn-1, that they have diagnostic or comparative value in so far as the Topanga Culture is concerned.
Cog stones, discoidals, and crescentic stones, or “amulets,” are unique types of artifacts, and when found in the right association with other artifacts may prove to be valuable horizon indicators. Cog stones and discoidals occur most commonly along the interior margin of the southern California littoral, and, where documented, the mano and metate are also present. Crescentic stones, as an artifact type, have been most objectively associated with the San Dieguito of the San Diego coast and the San Dieguito-Playa (Lake Mohave) Culture of the eastern desert. However, the crescentic stone in its various forms expresses considerable latitude in time and space.
Certain elements in the Topanga Culture might be viewed as “index artifacts” when they occur as associates. To have comparative value it is the combination of traits which create the cultural pattern and not the isolates. Phase I is characterized by a combination of extended burial with the head south, reburial of long bones under metate, fractional burial, percussion-flaked projectile points and blades, dominance of flake and core tools, dominance of milling stones with wide variation in the hand stone (mano), crescentic stones, stone cogs, and stone discoidals. The latter two may occur late in this first phase. Phase II has flexed burials with no specific orientation, an occasional rock cairn in association, pressure-flaked projectile points constituting several types, and dominance of the cobble mortar and pestle as milling implements, though the latter may occur toward the end of Phase I.
Through lack of clear-cut stratigraphic evidence, all other artifacts described for the Tank Site will have to be considered either as late Phase I or early Phase II. Unless subsequent excavations at LAn-2 produce data of a nature different than that already described, this latter site should represent the type site for Phase II of the Topanga Culture.
Following the first published Topanga report, two village sites along the adjacent coast have been excavated, both of which share comparative traits with the two phases of Topanga Culture (Wallace, 1954, 1955; Peck, 1955). Both authors were handicapped in making comparisons, since this final report was not available. With future comparisons to be made, a clarification of some statements might be in order. Wallace (1955, Table I, p. 220) in presenting “milling stone horizon cultural assemblages” uses nine broad comparative categories for five different geographical areas in which each area is known by one or more excavation sites. The traits listed by Wallace under the heading of Topanga are those characteristic of Phase I with the possible exception of the mortar and pestle. “Few clam disk beads” are also listed. The only shell artifact found in the Tank Site was a single massive clam-disk bead which, because of its shallow occurrence (4 inches), is probably a Phase II artifact.
Peck (1955, p. 70), comparing Zuma Creek with Topanga, mentions the following as occurring at the Tank Site (LAn-1): “... hard calcareous mass at lower levels.” Reference must be to the nonculturally altered sandstone base of the site, since the lowest portion of the cultural deposit, the C profile, is rather soft (Treganza and Malamud, 1950, p. 130). Peck notes burial markers as: “stone platforms, red ocher abundant, and flint tools.” Large aggregates of stone were common in the Tank Site and are termedfeatures, being composed of large quantities of boulders, whole and broken artifacts, and frequently a segment of human long bone (fig. 1). Frequently one or more metates occurred with burials. Red ocher was abundant in small granules throughout the site and appeared more frequently in the burial areas, but not to the extent as to class an interment as being a red-ocher burial in the traditional meaning or even as a burial marker. Flint tools consist of a single chert blade. Varied silicates occur as artifacts in the Tank Site but not as grave markers. Peck (1955, p. 70) also lists manos as occurring in pairs. Two was not characteristic for the Tank Site as mano caches occurred, numbering from two up to six (pl. 19,a,b).
It has been difficult to place the Topanga Culture in acompatible time perspective with the other known early cultural assemblages of southern California. Topanga, between its two phases, has elements in part comparable to all of these earlier cultures but lacks a majority of artifacts common to any one. Paramount for an explanation is the “abnormal” quantity of lithic artifacts classed under the broad heading of core and flake tools which occur in the Tank Site. Most characteristic are scraper planes, choppers, and a variety of heavy-duty scrapers. Western archaeologists fail to share any common understanding as to what these artifacts mean in time and function. The many subvarieties into which these major classes have been divided suggest they are more the product of a too elaborate or overextended typology rather than varieties that have cultural significance. In part, the Topanga papers make the same error in attempting to describe objectively a large mass of data and at the same time devise some system whereby not only the Topanga artifacts but other materials could be made more meaningful in terms of cultural comparisons. Needed is a reëxamination of the entire concept of “core tools” in western North America. Earlier, few people recognized or reported such tools. Now the other extreme has the artifact versus the “naturifact” and the talk of culture in such loose terms as preblade industries.
Habitual thinking has perhaps contributed to the general idea that a lithic assemblage of core tools characterized by percussion flaking has come to represent both antiquity and a hunting- or skin-dressing economy. This may be true in instances where the physical and the biological evidence are sufficient to support such a claim.
The general antiquity of the Tank Site can be established on the grounds of physical evidence but the great quantity of core tools invites speculation to account for their occurrence in a nonhunting culture. Some 4,994 core tools were collected from the Tank Site of an estimated presence of 50,000. This figure is exceptionally high, compared to other southern California sites of assumed similar age. Greatest in amounts were scraper planes and core hammerstones. Curiously enough, none of the scraper planes, regardless of finish, shows any degree of wear of battering on the presumed working edge or polishing on the under surface as would be expected to occur with use. This is true of similar artifacts from the San Dieguito, La Jolla, and Lake Mohave cultures. Possibly as a fleshing tool no such wear would result, but evidence of skin dressing is lacking with so little mammal bone occuring in the site. A wood-working or plant-fiber economy likewise would hardly necessitate any great quantity or variety of tools. The large pulping plane used to remove mescal fiber from a leaf was rare even among the historic Diegueno.
To account for the large number of “core tools” in the Tank Site, especially scraper planes, choppers, and core hammerstones, it is suggested these tools are actually crude implements used in the manufacture and maintainence of more refined implements directly associated with the mass production of the food economy, that is, the milling stones known as the mano and metate. The function of these primitive mills is to grind, necessitating a rough contact between the surface of the mano and the metate. When the surfaces are worn smooth, caking of meal (acorn) occurs on the polished faces, resulting in the reduced efficiency of the mill. Primitive peoples who have used the mano and metate solve this problem in one of two ways. In the Southwest and in Mexico volcanic scoriaceous or vessicular basalt is selected for either or both the hand stone and the grinding slab. As wear progresses new holes are constantly opened up on the surface of both the grinding tools and hence the mill constantly maintains full grinding efficiency and is self-sharpening. If granites, sandstones, or schist are used, as is often the case, then on frequent occasions the grinding surfaces have to be artificially pitted. To do this a core is made containing angular points and edges and sharp blows are struck on the faces of the mano and metate, removing small pitts (fig. 5,b,f; Treganza and Malamud, 1950, pl. 22,b,c,g). This latter technique of pecking or crumbling is the same as that used to shape or reduce a stone to a desired rough form preparatory to grinding as a finishing technique. It was discovered in our own experience in the manufacturing of stone artifacts (Treganza and Valdivia, 1955) that when a core hammerstone lost its sharp edges through battering it was of little use, and continued use of such a blunt hammerstone often broke the object being manufactured.
Where this pecking technique is used to sharpen manos and metates three end products result in terms of exhausted tools and become part of the camp refuse. Hammerstones occur as subangular nodules with battered blunt edges; manos, when they are worn too thin, usually break in the process of pitting, and the metate in time wears through or the bottom gets knocked out resulting in a “killed” artifact. What has earlier been referred to by many authors as the “ceremonial killing” of an artifact might also be viewed as the end product of function.
It is noted that Phase II site LAn-2 shows a sudden decline in core tools accompanied by a decline in manos and metates. Presumably the mortar becomes a replacement.
Recovered from approximately one-tenth of the Tank Site were 2,556 manos, 329 metates, both whole and broken, and 1,478 worn-out hammerstones. No clear breaking point could be established between an unused scraper plane, which is really a core with one or more flat bottoms, and a partly used hammerstone, or between just a plain core and a partly used hammerstone. Probably most of our scraper planes might be considered potential hammerstones. This being the case, the scraper plane may be just a “myth artifact” growing out of the literature and typologies rather than being an existing reality. This does not imply that all so-called core and flake tools or even some scraper planes should be considered in the same light. It merely points up the fact that Western terminology and typology might be reëxamined. One exception might be considered in the Type IA scraper planes (Treganza and Malamud, 1950, pl. 17,a), which, because of symmetry, flat base, marginal and all-over surface flaking, are similar to the classical forms of the San Dieguito Culture.
The possibility that this “abnormal” quantity of the core tools characterizing the early phase of Topanga can be related to a functional part of a seed-gathering economy relieves some difficulties in making cultural comparisons, and provides a more realistic approach. Why Topanga should have more core tools than other reported sites may also have an answer. Some early archaeologists failed to recognize core tools and naturally did not collect them. Sites immediate to the coast generally have a split marine-land economy, and though the metate and mano are present, the core tools used for purposes of pitting such artifacts are distributed more widely in a mound mass charged with shell refuse. Often, along the coast, beach cobbles and cobbles from marine conglomerate provide the only lithic source close at hand, and a resulting tool made from a cobble resembles more a chopper or a “teshoa” flake. This is particularly true of metate-producing sites around Santa Barbara. The Tank Site is adjacent to a massive basalt outcrop from which angular core tools were manufactured. Thus, quarry refuse, and immediate lithic supply, and an economy demanding a great many pecking tools, plus erosional factors that might have concentrated artifacts in the course of time, can in part help explain the great quantity of core tools found at Topanga.