Visitor took ancient artifact from Outer Banks beach and park rangers tracked it down

Ancient spear points can now be counted among the things tourists may find on popular North Carolina beaches.

Cape Lookout National Seashore reports a stone projectile point predating the birth of Christ was recovered by the National Park Service after being illegally taken by a park visitor.

“On April 16th, some visitors found this projectile point on the beach and took it with them. Rangers ultimately tracked these visitors down and educated them on ... the Archaeological Resource Protection Act,” the park reported April 27 on Facebook.

“Violations of ARPA, such as the collection of archaeological items, can be a felony.”

Investigators did not report if the visitors face charges.

An archaeologist has identified the recovered artifact as a Kirk Corner-Notched Point that is “8,000 to 10,000 years old.”

Kirk Corner-Notched Points are triangular, 1.5 inches to 4 inches in length and found by collectors throughout the Southeastern United States. Indigenous hunters created the blades by flaking and grinding the edges of small stones, historians say.

They are considered “one of the most common dart point types from the Early Archaic period of eastern North America.”

However, the points aren’t commonly found on sandy beaches. It may never be known whether the point washed ashore or appeared through erosion, since it was moved by the tourists, the park says.

“Given that it was found out on the islands, it was presumed that the point may have been used as a fishing spear,” Nate Toering, chief of Interpretation & Education at Cape Lookout, told McClatchy News.

“It’s currently being held by law enforcement until the investigation is closed. Ultimately, it may end up on public display. We currently have a similar projectile point on display in the Harkers Island Visitor Center in a temporary display cabinet. So, while it is quite rare to find them, it does happen from time to time.”

The point could be included in a park exhibit on “pre-colonial life for Native Americans in the Southern Outer Banks,” Toering said.

Visitors who find cultural artifacts in national parks should leave them in place and alert park officials to the location. Experts will then investigate, including collecting data on the context. This includes parts of shipwrecks, which frequently appear in the sand at Cape Lookout.

Only “unoccupied seashells, pine cones, and driftwood” can be removed from Cape Lookout National Seashore, and no more than five gallons per person can be removed per day, officials said.

This story was originally published April 27, 2023 at 10:15 AM with the headline "Visitor took ancient artifact from Outer Banks beach and park rangers tracked it down."