Taima-Taima is aLate Pleistocene archaeological site located about 20 kilometers east ofSanta Ana de Coro, in theFalcón State ofVenezuela.[1] The human settlement at Taima-Taima started about 14,000 years ago.
The earliest human occupation goes back to 14,200-12,980 years ago. This indicates a pre-Clovis settlement of South America; the site is used as evidence for people arriving to South America earlier than previously believed.[3]
Cruxent discovered aNotiomastodon pelvic bone that was pierced by a stone spearpoint. Geological and radiocarbon dating of the find both indicate the date of 13,000 BP (11,000 BC).[4][5]
Fossils ofXenorhinotherium (an extinct animal similar tocamels), dating from thePleistoceneEpoch, have been found in Taima-Taima.[6] Other such finds were made in Brazil, and also in Venezuela in the localities of Muaco, and Cuenca del Lago.
At Taima-Taima, José Cruxent discoveredEl Joboprojectile points, which are believed to be the earliest such artefacts in South America, going back to 16,000 BP. This was a major discovery inPaleoindian archaeology.[7]
The bi-pointed El Jobo points were found in the valley ofPedregal River, and were mostly distributed in north-western Venezuela; from theGulf of Venezuela to the high mountains and valleys. The population using them were hunter-gatherers that seemed to remain within a certain circumscribed territory.[8][9] El Jobo points were probably used for hunting large mammals.[10]
The Joboid series of points have been grouped into four successive complexes. The earliest wasCamare, thenLas Lagunas,El Jobo, andLas Casitas. The Camare and Las Lagunas complexes lack stone projectile points. The Camare tool complex has been dated to 22,000-20,000 years ago. El Jobo tool complex has been dated to 16,000-9,000 years ago.[10]
Ochsenius, C. and R. Gruhn, eds. (1979)Taima-taima. A Late Paleo-Indian Kill Site in Northernmost South America. Final Reports of the 1976 Excavations. CIPICS/South American Quaternary Documentation Program. Printed in the Federal Republic of Germany (includes chapters by J. M. Cruxent, A. L. Bryan, R. Gruhn, R. M. Casimiquiela and C. Ochsenius)
Jaimes Queros, A. (2003)El Vano, una nueva localidad paleo-india en el nor-occidente de Venezuela. Maguaré No. 17, pp. 46–64. Gerardo Ardila Calderón, ed. Revista del Departamento de Antropología de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Bogotá Colombia.
Oliver, J.R., Alexander, C.S. (2003). Ocupaciones humanas del Plesitoceno terminal en el Occidente de Venezuela. Maguare, 17 83-246
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