One reason why bluff shelters are such an important class of archeological site is the presence of rare, usually perishable artifacts. At open, or non-shelter, sites the only kinds of artifacts that usually survive are made of hard materials that don’t decompose quickly. Stone tools, ceramics, and sometimes bone will survive in the ground for…
Bluff shelters should be preserved not only because they are a warehouse of information for archeologists who seek knowledge about the past. They should also be preserved because they are sacred spaces. Contemporary Native American tribes such as the Osage and Caddo Nations feel a strong historical connection to Ozark bluff shelters, and that they…
The amazing information about Arkansas’s past contained in our bluff shelters will be lost if we do not take steps to protect them. Currently, Arkansas bluff shelters are doubly endangered by both looting and rapid development. Looting Looting in bluff shelters is not new. Even Dellinger’s crews reported extensive disturbance at sites that they visited…