The Cooper Site - Fort Supply, OK
Posted by: YoSam.
N 36° 34.289 W 099° 33.734
14S E 449694 N 4047484
Hunting ritual for the plains region
Waymark Code: WMNAHW
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 02/01/2015
Views: 3
County of marker: Woodward County
Location of marker: US-412,
Fort Supply Cemetery, E. of Fort Supply
Marker erected by: Kiwanis Club of Woodward, OK
Marker erected in 1999
Marker text:
The Cooper Site
2 miles NE is the Cooper Paleoindian bison kill. The site was the scene of the largest Folsom (ca 10,500 years ago) bison kills known. Each event saw over 30 bison herded into a dead-end gully. Hunters on the gully rim killed the animals with spears tipped with finely crafted Folsom points. A bison skull beneath the second kill was painted with red zigzag lines to ensure a successful hunt.
The mineral pigment was red hematite. This is the oldest painted skull in North America and is the earliest evidence on hunting ritual for the Plains region.
Bement, L. 1999. Bison Hunting at Cooper Site. OU Press.