At Calico Early Man Site, northeast of Barstow in California’s Mojave Desert, the most consequential objects are also among the easiest to overlook: fractured stones embedded in ancient gravels. Their interpretation made this place famous. Were some deliberately shaped by people, or could natural forces have produced the same apparently purposeful edges? The question gives these otherwise unassuming deposits a significance that reaches far beyond the desert hills.
The site belongs to a particular chapter in the search for the earliest inhabitants of the Americas. Louis Leakey, already internationally known for his work on human origins, worked here between 1964 and 1970. His involvement brought unusual attention to a Californian excavation. Calico’s place in that history is secure even though the much larger claim associated with the stones remains contested.
