Buhl Woman facts for kids

Buhla is the name given to the skeleton of a very old woman. She lived a long, long time ago, during a time called the Paleo-Indian period. Her skeleton was found in January 1989 near Buhl, Idaho, in the United States.

Scientists used a special method called radiocarbon dating to figure out how old Buhla was. They found she lived about 10,675 years ago! This makes her one of the oldest human remains ever found in the Americas. A worker found her bones by accident in a rock quarry. He saw a thigh bone in a machine. Soon after, almost her whole skeleton was carefully dug up nearby.

What Was Found with Buhla?

When Buhla's skeleton was found, there were some interesting objects near her.

• A sharp, pointed tool made from obsidian was found near her right cheek. Obsidian is a type of natural glass formed from volcanoes.
• This tool looked brand new, as if it had never been used.
• Because of where it was placed, scientists think it might have been a special gift left with her when she died. These kinds of gifts are sometimes called "grave goods."

Other small pieces were also found with Buhla:

• Fragments of what might have been a tool for piercing, like an awl or a pin.
• A broken bone needle. The eye of this needle also showed no signs of wear.
• A piece of badger bone with special marks carved into it.

These items suggest that the people who buried Buhla cared for her and perhaps had special customs for burial.

Buhla's Reburial

Buhla's skeleton was found on land owned by the state of Idaho. This meant a special law called the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) did not directly apply. However, Idaho has its own state law for Native American remains.

This state law says that Native American remains should be returned to the closest federally recognized tribe. For Buhla, this was the Shoshone–Bannock Tribes at Fort Hall.

In 1992, Buhla's remains and the objects found with her were given to the Shoshone–Bannock Tribes. The tribes then reburied her in 1993. This reburial honored her as an ancestor.