Overview
- The stitched elk hide from Cougar Mountain Cave is radiocarbon-dated to roughly 12,060–12,620 years ago, making it the oldest known sewn hide, though its exact function remains uncertain.
- The Science Advances study re-dated 55 perishable artifacts using radiocarbon analysis and ZooMS, placing them in the Younger Dryas at the end of the Ice Age.
- Materials span multiple sites in the region—including Cougar Mountain, Paisley, Connley, and Tule Lake—and include fine-eyed bone needles, braided cords, twined basketry, and wooden trap parts.
- The assemblage draws on about 15 plant and animal taxa, indicating sophisticated manufacturing with fiber cordage, processed hides, and worked wood.
- Many items were first excavated in 1958 by John Cowles and later curated at the Favell Museum, with arid cave conditions enabling rare preservation of organic technologies.