Archaeology Dictionary:
Poverty Point Culture
[CP]
Late Archaic Stage hunting–gathering–farming communities flourishing in and around the lower Mississippi Basin in the period 1700–700 bc. Named after the type-site at Poverty Point, Mississippi. Distinctive material culture includes clay balls, an elaborate microlithic industry, occasional clay figurines, and baked clay vessels. Extensive trade networks are suggested by the presence of steatite vessels and the limited use of copper among other luxuries. The subsistence base was dependent on hunting, the exploitation of riverine resources, and some cultivation of native plants.
