Beads and ornaments from the Coachella Valley

Established bead sequences for coastal and central California are generally used to date archaeological sites in southern California. The applicability of these chronologies in the Coachella Valley is investigated by comparing beads from this region with the established sequences. Two data sets were collected in order accomplish this goal: (1) careful description of individual beads found with features from two prehistoric sites in the Coachella Valley; and (2) chronometric readings, i.e., C14 dates for those features. As a result, eight bead types were identified dating to the Late Prehistoric Period. The Cylinder and Barrel match the two California sequences, while the Cap and Oblique Spire-lopped do not. Barrel and Spire-lopped types do not have any temporal significance and the Split Oval was not dated. A new type, Whorl Ground, was also discovered. These findings indicate that coastal and central California bead chronologies do not apply to the Coachella Valley.