Archaeologists at Oregon State University have found projectile points in Idaho that date back nearly 16,000 years — making them the oldest such artifacts found in the Americas. The points were uncovered at the Cooper’s Ferry site along the Salmon River in western Idaho. Though the land is currently held by the federal Bureau of Land Management, it’s the traditional territory of the Nez Perce Tribe and its ancestors.

OSU anthropology professor Loren Davis joins us to talk about the discovery and about what it means to fill in the region’s historical record with physical artifacts. We’ll also hear about the artifacts’ cultural significance from Nakia Williamson-Cloud, director of the Nez Perce Tribe Cultural Resources Program.