Broken Mammoth

Broken Mammoth, Alaska is an archeological site located in the Tanana River Valley, Alaska, in the United States. The site was occupied approximately 11,000 B.P. to 12,000 B.P. making this one of the oldest known sites in Alaska. Charles E. Holmes discovered the site in 1989 and investigation of the site began in 1990 and excavations are ongoing to this day.

The Broken Mammoth site was occupied at least three separate times in its history, the last occupation occurring approximately 2,500 years ago. The oldest occupation of the site occurred between 11,000 and 12,000 years ago according to radiocarbon dating, making this one of the oldest sites in Alaska. It is possible that the site was occupied at approximately the same time as other Nenana complex sites in Alaska.

Features found at the site include hearths with charcoal dating to approximately 12,200 BP implying that some form of temporary occupation occurred which could include using the site as a temporary base. A small bone needle found at one of these hearths supports this theory. According to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources the evidence points to small camps, which served as headquarters for small hunting groups to operate seasonally. Activities that would have most likely occurred here include: manufacturing of tools and maintenance as well as food processing and skin working (as evident by the remains of a bone needle)

Early occupation of the Broken Mammoth had a setting similar to the lowland tundra with low vegetation, mostly shrubs and few trees. The regional pollen record provides evidence of shrubland with plant life including dwarf birch and willow.

After approximately 9,000 years this shrubland became woodland which supporter spruce and alder trees. The faunal remains of a red squirrel and a porcupine date the process of forestation at slightly more than 9,500 years ago. Windier conditions reestablished at Broken Mammoth around 10,000 BP with loess accumulation accelerating until about 7800 B.P. After this time modern conditions stabilized after 5700 B.P.

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