Atlatl Cave

Atlatl Cave is an important archeological site that contains organic evidence of occupation by Archaic North Americans c. 900 BCE. It is located at the west end of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. During the 1970s, archeologists discovered plant material, a yucca fiber sandal, beads, basketry, and fabric made from rabbit fur in the cave. They also found part of an atlatl, or spear-thrower, from which the site got its name. Atlatl Cave is important because unlike most Archaic sites in the canyon, the shelter protected the organic materials inside, which allowed for accurate radiocarbon dating.