Around 4,000 years ago, at the beginning of the Transitional Period, there is some evidence of a climatic change to a warm, dry period that may have affected hunter-gatherer strategies. Transitional Period sites are more frequently located close to water, and some sites along the major rivers appear to have been occupied for longer periods of time than during the Late Archaic. Trade becomes important and stone for making tools is traded over hundreds of miles. Burial ceremonialism appears for the first time in the eastern US (although it has not been documented in Pennsylvania), and it is assumed that there are significant changes in social organization. However, it is difficult to interpret the specifics from the archaeological record.
Broadspears from the Susquehanna River Valley
A new spear point style is characteristic of the Transitional Period. The points are large and broad-bladed and are known as broadspears. They are most often made from jasper or rhyolite but some are made from other materials such as quartzite or argillite. Broadspears are frequently used as knives or reshaped into scrapers or drills. Some of the so-called drills are over 6 inches long and very thin. These probably do not represent re-sharpened spears points, and many were not used as drills. Their function remains problematical as do other Transitional period artifacts. Some archaeologists believe that “broadspears” were never intended to be used as spear points and always functioned as cutting, scraping, or drilling tools. Stemmed and notched points like those found on Middle and Late Archaic sites also occur on Transitional Period sites, and some researchers argue that they may have been the only types used for spears.
Drills from the Susquehanna River Valley
Many sites from this time period are characterized by extensive scatters of fire-cracked rock, that is, rock that has been exposed to extreme heat, causing it to break into angular pieces. Some of this is the result of normal cooking, as rock was often used in fire pits to radiate heat for roasting meat and other foods. Also, heated rocks were thrown into holes in the ground, lined with hide and filled with water, as a method for boiling foods. The large accumulation of fire-cracked rock on Transitional Period sites suggests that food was being cooked for large groups, and possibly during relatively long periods of site occupation. Frequently associated with these fire-cracked rock features are bowls carved out of a soft stone called steatite or soapstone. These bowls were the first portable cooking containers. They vary in size and shape; many are flat bottomed and they often have simple handles at either end.
Roasting Pit (note the charcoal and fire-cracked
rock in the wall of the excavation)
The presence of steatite and tool stone such as rhyolite and jasper on sites throughout the Middle Atlantic region and into the Ohio Valley indicates that these materials were extensively traded. Steatite comes from eastern Lancaster County, and rhyolite was quarried from western Adams County, but both of these materials were traded all over Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia. It is generally agreed that this was part of a trade network probably relying on dugout canoes for transportation. Trade indicates inter-band dependence and large social networks. This type of exchange suggests the development of alliances and trading partnerships with neighboring bands. Considering the changes in the environment, these arrangements could represent a “safety net” that led to food sharing during difficult times.
Steatite bowls are sometimes considered to be the first cooking containers and precursors to fired clay pottery. Some steatite bowls are large and show evidence of having been heated. These are obviously cooking containers. However, some have not been exposed to heat and many are relatively small and not suitable for cooking. Because they are heavy and traded over long distances, steatite bowls may have held special significance during Transitional times. We know that when modern hunter-gatherer bands come together, they frequently hold “feasts” in celebration of marriages and childbirth or to reinvigorate belief systems. Some of the fire-cracked rock was also probably used in sweat lodges which would be compatible with the ceremonial/feasting scenario. Some of the large fire-cracked rock features may be the remains of these feasts, and steatite bowls may have played a special role in these activities. In addition, steatite was sometimes used to make ornamental items. Small perforated steatite disks, likely beads, and scalloped pendants have been found on Transitional Period sites in Pennsylvania.
Steatite artifacts, including bowl fragments and a scalloped piece (bottom center), possibly from a pendant
While there is no evidence of burial ceremonies in Pennsylvania, there are Transitional Period cremation burials in New York and New Jersey. In southern New Jersey, at the Savich Farm site, a cemetery has been found that contains cremated burials and grave goods in the form of atlatl (spear thrower) weights and large numbers of broadspears. Many of the artifacts have been burned and broken, likely during the cremation process. This is the first evidence we have for burial ceremonies in the Middle Atlantic region, and we assume that similar activities were taking place in Pennsylvania.
In western Pennsylvania, the change from the Archaic Period to the Transitional Period was less dramatic, and did not include the variety of technological changes documented for the Susquehanna and Delaware Valleys. Fire-cracked rock features are found, but broadspears and steatite bowls are less common. It is interesting that steatite bowls found at a site just west of Pittsburgh originated in the steatite quarries of Lancaster County. In this region the Archaic adaptation seems to have continued through the Transitional Period with only a few of the distinctive artifacts from eastern Pennsylvania being observed. However, following the Transitional Period, cultural evolution in the Ohio Valley of Pennsylvania is heavily influenced by developments to the west in what is now Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.
For archaeologists, the Transitional Period is an exciting but perplexing time in Native American cultural development. It appears to represent sudden and significant technological, economic, and social change. What was the function of broadspears and steatite bowls? Why was rhyolite tool stone traded over such large areas when it was not particularly easy for making tools? Was all of this the result of a slight change in temperature and precipitation or had changes been building during the Late Archaic that are not visible in the archaeological record? Or is the Transitional Period of eastern Pennsylvania being influenced by the significant developments in the Mississippi Valley? It is equally perplexing that, for the most part, the following Woodland Period is also very different from the Transitional Period. The Transitional Period appears to be very different from any cultural developments before or after. To understand why will require a great deal more research.
