PLEISTOCENE-HOLOCENE TRANSITION: A VIEW FROM THE COLORADO PLATEAU

Plateau archaeologists have created a "myth" that has been repeated and embellished throughout most of the 20th century. That myth, simply stated, says,"...there were no paleoindians (>6000 yrs) on the Colorado Plateau because there was no Pleistocene megafaunal presence to provide a subsistence base for early peoples. Field research on the alluvium, lacustrine deposits, cave and alcove fills, floral and faunal remains, and artifacts give us limited glimpses of the Pleistocene-Holocene transition of this large region. Because of hyperarid conditions, some perishable remains (in normal geologic environments) have been preserved for as much as 12 millenia, in surprisingly pristine condition. Research conducted since 1984 tends to shatter the Plateau 'myth' and provide an expanded model for the late Pleistocene-early Holocene paleoenvironments and their inhabitants for the Colorado Plateau.