Projectile point · Middle Archaic
Pinto
6000–2000 BCE, Desert Archaic
The Pinto point is a bifurcate-stemmed dart point of the Great Basin, Mojave and Southwest, about 6,000 to 2,000 BCE, named after the Pinto Basin in California. It marks the Middle Archaic across the arid west and overlaps with Gatecliff split-stem forms. Most are in obsidian, chert or basalt.
| Object | Projectile point |
|---|---|
| Dates | 6000–2000 BCE |
| Period | Middle Archaic |
| Cultures | Desert Archaic |
| Regions | North America — Great Basin & Plateau, North America — Southwest |
Diagnostic traits
Bifurcate-stemmed point with a notched or concave base and rounded ears; shoulders weak to barbed.
Identification
Pinto has a bifurcate or concave base with rounded ears and weak to barbed shoulders, distinguishing it from Elko eared points, which are corner-notched with an expanding stem, and from Humboldt, which is unnotched. It is often crudely made and thick. Gatecliff split-stem is similar but narrower.
Reproductions and fakes
Obsidian Pintos are reproduced and sandblasted to dull them; obsidian hydration rims are absent on modern work. Basalt examples are rarely faked.
Cite this article
Stratum Strata. "Pinto" (Artifact type). Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21. https://stratum.black/strata/types/pinto. Accessed 2026-09-21.
@misc{stratum-pinto,
title = {Pinto},
author = {{Stratum Strata}},
howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/strata/types/pinto}},
year = {2026},
note = {Artifact type article, Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21; sources: stratum. Accessed 2026-09-21.}
} Citations carry the pack version and the article's as-of date so they resolve to the same text later. The facts themselves belong to the sources listed below; cite those for the science.