[rdl6989]

ping

[Rurudyne]

They came here, probably from Europe, and were ravaged in the wake of a comet striking the ice sheets.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Kind of like a lot of American tool manufacturers, only here they last 30 years, not 300.

[DesertRhino]

Their degree of precision is exceeding their degree of possible accuracy.

[henkster]

All those tools are now made in China.

[I-ambush]

The paleo-progressives got voted in and enacted spear control.

[minnesota_bound]

Tools made by some of North America’s earliest inhabitants were made only during a 300-year period

This is because the Clovis politicians went offshore to the Chinese Clovis manufacturers.

[griffin]

Clovis society was doing great until Grog became Woke and changed his gender identity. It went downhill fast after that.

[central_va]

Then they imported them from Asia.

[TXnMA]

In most places on Planet Earth, there is no supply of lithic material of sufficient quality and size -- available exposed on the surface -- to enable the (technically challenging) production of Clovis-technology projectile points.

Nomadic people -- passing through localized good resource areas -- would make the points and move on -- into resource-poor areas, where no new Clovis-technology points could be made.

This could appear as an apparent short lifetime for the technology.

TXnMA   
  

[TXnMA]

I also note that the large, light colored artifact in the photo is not a completed Clovis point. It is, instead a preform -- a work-in-progress -- that failed during manufacture -- probably due to insufficient support/immobilization during attempted formation of a "flute".

What is shown is evidence of the most common cause of failure of attempts at making long, clovis-morphology points: "End Shock".

Knappable materials are lousy at flexing; rather than bend, they will SNAP! When the end being fluted was driven downward by the impaact of the soft hammer (antler butt), the center flexed upward. Because the center was inadequately restrained by wrapped leather and hand pressure, the stone exceeded its elastic limit and fractured in tension.

Modern lithicists call the failure mode, "end shock". No doubt, prehistoric flintknappers -- who needed the point for survival -- had much more colorful expressions for the event!! '-)

TXnMA