Projectile point · Late Archaic

Darl

200 BCE–600 CE, Plains Archaic

Darl is a Transitional Archaic dart point of central Texas, named for Darl Creek in Bell County and dated to about 200 BCE–600 CE. It was made from Edwards chert and is the last dart point in the central Texas sequence, being replaced by Scallorn arrow points. It is closely related to Zephyr and Mahomet.

ObjectProjectile point
Dates200 BCE–600 CE
PeriodLate Archaic
CulturesPlains Archaic
RegionsNorth America — Great Plains

Diagnostic traits

Small to medium, narrow dart point with a slender triangular blade, weak shoulders and a narrow straight to slightly expanding stem with a concave base, often with alternate beveling of the blade edges.

Identification

Darl is narrower and thicker than Ensor with a straighter stem and a beveled blade; Zephyr is similar but more expanding-stemmed. Small examples are sometimes mistaken for arrow points, but Darl is thicker and usually over 30 mm long.

Reproductions and fakes

Rarely faked; look for beveled edge wear and patina.

Cite this article

Stratum Study. "Darl" (Artifact type). Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21. https://stratum.black/study/types/darl. Accessed 2026-09-21.

@misc{stratum-darl,
  title        = {Darl},
  author       = {{Stratum Study}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/study/types/darl}},
  year         = {2026},
  note         = {Artifact type article, Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21; sources: stratum. Accessed 2026-09-21.}
}

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Sources for this article: Stratum editorial (Stratum editorial). As of 2026-09-21; Study pack 2026.09. Data reproduced under the licences shown; text in Stratum's own words unless a section names its source.

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