Obsidian Cliff

Coordinates: 44°49′08″N 110°43′40″W / 44.8189°N 110.7278°W / 44.8189; -110.7278
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Obsidian Cliff
Obsidian Cliff
Obsidian Cliff is located in Wyoming
Obsidian Cliff
Obsidian Cliff is located in the United States
Obsidian Cliff
Nearest cityMammoth Hot Springs, WY
Coordinates44°49′08″N 110°43′40″W / 44.8189°N 110.7278°W / 44.8189; -110.7278
Area3,580 acres (14.5 km2)[1]
NRHP reference No.96000973
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJune 19, 1996[2]
Designated NHLJune 19, 1996[3]
Obsidian Mountain in the Yellowstone, by Henry Farney
Illustration of Obsidian cliff (volcanic glass) 200 feet high. Aug 18, 1888

Obsidian Cliff, also known as 48YE433, was an important source of lithic materials for prehistoric peoples in Yellowstone National Park near Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming, United States. The cliff was named by Philetus Norris, the second park superintendent in 1878.[4] It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1996.[1][3]

Geography[edit]

It is located about 13 miles (21 km) south of Mammoth Hot Springs, on the east side of the Mammoth-Norris section of the Grand Loop Road.[1] The Obsidian Cliff Kiosk, just north, is also listed on the National Register. Obsidian Cliff is also located on the northern end of Beaver Lake in Yellowstone National Park. A 1988 wildfire cleared trees from the site, allowing further archaeological expeditions.[5][6]

Geology[edit]

The cliff was formed from thick rhyolite lava flow that occurred about 180,000 years ago. The vertical columns are cooling fractures that formed as the thick lava flow cooled and crystallized.[6] The Cliffs stands at an elevation of nearly 7,400 feet (2,300 m) above sea level and goes on for about half a mile. The cliffs also extend between 150 and 200 feet above Obsidian Creek. The flow consists of obsidian, a dark volcanic glass. The obsidian is most abundant at the base of the cliff and slowly tapers off to larger concentrations of pumice at the top.

Significance to Native Americans[edit]

Obsidian has been quarried from the site for the past 12,000 years. Highly valued for its sharpness, Obsidian was used by Native Americans throughout the Western United States and Canada as knives, spear/arrow tips, and other ceremonial and sharp-edged objects.[6] Thousands of pounds of obsidian was transported thousands of miles to Ohio using the Missouri, Mississippi, and Ohio rivers between ~200BC and ~400AD for use as ceremonial goods by the Hopewell Culture.[7][8]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Ann M. Johnson; Leslie B. Davis & Stephen A. Aaberg (January 28, 1993). "National Historic Landmark Nomination: Obsidian Cliff" (pdf). National Park Service. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) and Accompanying nine photos, from 1884, 1889, 1920 and 1989 (32 KB)
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  3. ^ a b "Obsidian Cliff". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on June 26, 2006. Retrieved February 29, 2008.
  4. ^ Whittlesey, Lee (1988). Yellowstone Place Names. Helena, MT: Montana Historical Society Press. p. 114. ISBN 0-917298-15-2.
  5. ^ "Obsidian Cliff - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. April 4, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c Robbins, Jim (March 20, 2023). "Obsidian Cliff: Humanity's Tool Shed for the Last 11,500 Years". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ Lynott, Mark (2014). Hopewell Ceremonial Landscapes of Ohio. Oxbow Books. pp. 58–59, 201. ISBN 978-1-78297-754-4.
  8. ^ Griffin, James; Gordus, A. A.; Wright, G. A. (January 1969). "Identification of the Sources of Hopewellian Obsidian in the Middle West". American Antiquity. 34 (1): 1–14 – via JSTOR.

External links[edit]

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