6,500-Year-Old Hunting Kit Discovered in West Texas Cave
Arkeonews
6 April 2025
A remarkable archaeological find in the rugged terrain of West Texas is transforming our understanding of the region’s prehistoric inhabitants. Deep within the San Esteban Rockshelter cave system, researchers have uncovered a well-preserved hunting kit, believed to be approximately 6,500 years old. This discovery is being hailed as one of the oldest intact weapon systems ever found in North America.
The excavation was conducted by a team from the Center for Big Bend Studies (CBBS) in collaboration with the Odyssey Archaeological Research Fund at the University of Kansas. While it has long been theorized that ancient hunter-gatherer societies in the area utilized atlatl-based hunting tools, the discovery of this complete and untouched cache allows scientists to move from speculation to a vivid reconstruction of these early technologies.
Among the significant artifacts recovered were six stone-tipped foreshafts, which were used to connect darts to an atlatl—a spear-throwing lever. Additionally, four hardwood foreshafts, likely intended for poison delivery, were found alongside four damaged dart nock ends and a rare, straight-flying boomerang. A partial atlatl was also recovered, although one end of its handle had deteriorated over time.
Devin Pettigrew, a weapons expert and assistant professor at CBBS, noted, “We’re also missing the proximal handle end of the atlatl, but we know enough about this type to reconstruct what it may have looked like.” The preservation state of these ancient Native American hunting tools is exceptional, particularly given their age. Most archaeological finds from this era are fragmented, making full reconstructions difficult. However, this discovery allowed researchers to piece together nearly the entire weapon system, enabling them to visualize how these components functioned together in actual hunting scenarios.
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Thanks Judi! 
