Edziza obsidian is a naturally formed volcanic glass found at the Mount Edziza volcanic complex in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It occurs in at least four geological formations of the volcanic complex and was widely used by indigenous peoples during the pre-Columbian era. As a result of its widespread use, Edziza obsidian has been found in several archaeological sites throughout the Pacific Northwest.
Edziza obsidian occurs as lava flows at various elevations throughout the northern and southern ends of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. The largest occurrence of Edziza obsidian is centred on Goat Mountain in the Spectrum Range where it is associated with the Spectrum Formation. Edziza obsidian associated with the Armadillo Formation occurs at Artifact Creek, Fan Creek, Coffee Crater, Destell Pass and Cartoona Peak. The obsidian also occurs on The Pyramid, a lava dome of the Pyramid Formation. Sorcery Ridge of the Ice Peak Formation also contains Edziza obsidian. [1]
Edziza obsidian is the most widely distributed obsidian in western North America and perhaps the most widely distributed obsidian in subarctic North America, occurring over an area of more than 2,200,000 km2 (850,000 sq mi). [2] [3] It has been recovered from archaeological sites in Alaska, Yukon, western Alberta and along the British Columbia Coast, having been used by North American indigenous peoples to make stone tools as early as 10,000 years ago. [2] The obsidian was especially used for thousands of years by the Tahltan people who live adjacent to the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. [4]
In Alaska, Edziza obsidian has been recovered from the 10,300-year soil layer level of the On Your Knees Cave archaeological site on Prince of Wales Island. A 4,100-year-old Tlingit village site near Coffman Cove dubbed 49-PET-067 also contains Edziza obsidian. [5] In Alberta, flakes of Edziza obsidian have been found at Patricia Lake near the town of Jasper. [6] In British Columbia, two fragments of Edziza obsidian have been recovered from the Bluejackets Creek archaeological site on Haida Gwaii and are presumably of late Holocene age. [7]
Telegraph Creek is a small community located off Highway 37 in northern British Columbia at the confluence of the Stikine River and Telegraph Creek. The only permanent settlement on the Stikine River, it is home to approximately 250 members of Tahltan First Nation and non-native residents. The town offers basic services, including Anglican and Catholic churches, a general store, a post office, a clinic with several nurses on-call around the clock, two Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers, and a K-9 school. Steep river banks and rocky gorges form the terraced nature of the geography.
Mount Edziza Provincial Park is a provincial park in Cassiar Land District of northern British Columbia, Canada. It was established on 27 July 1972 to protect the Mount Edziza volcanic complex and the surrounding Tahltan Highland.
Mount Edziza, sometimes called Edziza Mountain or Edziza Peak, is a stratovolcano in Cassiar Land District of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located on the Big Raven Plateau of the Tahltan Highland which extends along the western side of the Stikine Plateau. The mountain has an elevation of 2,786 metres, making it the highest volcano of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. However, it had an elevation of at least 3,396 metres before its original summit was likely destroyed by a violent, climactic eruption in the geologic past. Mount Edziza contains several lava domes, cinder cones and lava fields on its flanks, as well as an ice cap that is characterized by several outlet glaciers stretching out to lower altitudes. All sides of the mountain are drained by tributaries of Mess Creek and Kakiddi Creek which are situated within the Stikine River watershed.
The Spectrum Range, formerly called the Spectrum Mountains and the Rainbow Mountains, is a subrange of the Tahltan Highland in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia, 20 km west of the Stewart-Cassiar Highway, south of Mount Edziza and north of the Arctic Lake Plateau. The Spectrum Range falls within Mount Edziza Provincial Park. The range is lightly glaciated, as compared to the other ranges to the west. It is accessible only by foot or via helicopter; there are no roads to the range.
The Mount Edziza volcanic complex is a group of volcanoes and associated lava flows in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. Located on the Tahltan Highland, it is 40 kilometres southeast of Telegraph Creek and 85 kilometres southwest of Dease Lake. The complex encompasses a broad, steep-sided lava plateau that extends over 1,000 square kilometres. Its highest summit is 2,786 metres in elevation, making the MEVC the highest of four large complexes in an extensive north–south trending volcanic region. It is obscured by an ice cap characterized by several outlet glaciers that stretch out to lower altitudes.
The volcanic history of the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province presents a record of volcanic activity in northwestern British Columbia, central Yukon and the U.S. state of easternmost Alaska. The volcanic activity lies in the northern part of the Western Cordillera of the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Extensional cracking of the North American Plate in this part of North America has existed for millions of years. Continuation of this continental rifting has fed scores of volcanoes throughout the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province over at least the past 20 million years and occasionally continued into geologically recent times.
Mess Creek, formerly known as Mestua, is a tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It flows north and northwest for about 110 km (68 mi), through a lake and a gorge to join the Stikine River, which in turn flows southwest across the Canada–United States border into Alaska where it empties into various straits of the Inside Passage. The northern half of Mess Creek forms a western boundary of Mount Edziza Provincial Park which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan people.
The Little Iskut River is a tributary of the Iskut River in the northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada, in Cassiar Land District. From its source at Little Ball Lake in Mount Edziza Provincial Park, the Little Iskut River flows about 45 km (28 mi), generally north to the vicinity of Mowdale Lake, then southeast and south to the Iskut River just below Cascade Falls. The Little Iskut River is part of the Stikine River drainage basin, as the Iskut River is a major tributary of the Stikine.
Taweh Creek is a tributary of Mess Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Stikine River in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally northwest for about 25 km (16 mi) to join Mess Creek about 15 km (9.3 mi) northwest of Mess Creek's confluence with Raspberry Creek. Taweh Creek's watershed covers 159 km2 (61 sq mi) and its mean annual discharge is estimated at 4.32 m3/s (153 cu ft/s). The mouth of Taweh Creek is located about 25 km (16 mi) southeast of Telegraph Creek, about 60 km (37 mi) west-southwest of Iskut and about 100 km (62 mi) southwest of Dease Lake. Taweh Creek's watershed's land cover is classified as 41.3% barren, 21.1% shrubland, 20.7% conifer forest, 8.4% herbaceous, 8.1% snow/glacier, and small amounts of other cover.
The Nido Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Neogene age in northwestern British Columbia, Canada.
The Klastline River is a tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally northwest about 70 km (43 mi) to join the Stikine River, which flows southwest across the Canada–United States border into Alaska where it empties into various straits of the Inside Passage. The Klastline River flows through Mount Edziza Provincial Park which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan people. Klastline means "confluence" or "junction of waters" in the Tahltan language.
Destell Pass, sometimes incorrectly spelled Destall Pass, is a mountain pass in the Tahltan Highland of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located southeast of Telegraph Creek and northwest of Artifact Ridge at the southeastern end of Mount Edziza Provincial Park. Destell Pass has an elevation of 1,622 m (5,322 ft) and consists of a narrow rock cleft. Edziza obsidian of the Armadillo Formation occurs at Destell Pass.
Raspberry Pass is a mountain pass in the Tahltan Highland of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located southeast of Telegraph Creek between the heads of Raspberry Creek and Bourgeaux Creek in Mount Edziza Provincial Park. Raspberry Pass forms a boundary between the Spectrum Range and the Mount Edziza area, cutting northwesterly through the middle of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex.
The Big Raven Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Holocene age in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is the youngest and least voluminous geological formation of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex (MEVC); it overlies at least six older formations of this volcanic complex. The main volcanic rocks of the Big Raven Formation are alkali basalts and hawaiites, although a small volume of trachyte comprises the Sheep Track Member. These rocks were deposited by volcanic eruptions in the last 12,000 years during the latest magmatic cycle of the MEVC. Alkali basalt and hawaiite are in the form of lava flows and small volcanic cones while trachyte of the Sheep Track Member is mainly in the form of volcanic ejecta which covers an area of about 40 square kilometres.
Kakiddi Creek is a tributary of the Klastline River in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows north about 35 km (22 mi) through two lakes in a broad hummocky lowland to join the Klastline River, which in turn is a tributary of the Stikine River. Kakiddi Creek forms the northeastern boundary of Mount Edziza Provincial Park which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan people.
Tenchen Creek is a tributary of Kakiddi Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Klastline River, part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally flows northeast for about 8 km (5.0 mi) to join Kakiddi Creek about 13 km (8.1 mi) south of Kakiddi Creek's confluence with the Klastline River. Tenchen is a combination of the Tahltan words "ten" and "chen", which mean "ice" and "dirty" respectively.
Artifact Creek is a tributary of Stewbomb Creek and part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally southeast for roughly 13 km (8.1 mi) to join Stewbomb Creek, which flows into the Little Iskut River.In turn the Little Iskut River flows to the Iskut River, the largest tributary of the Stikine River.
Gnu Butte is a butte in Cassiar Land District of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located southeast of Telegraph Creek on the northwestern side of Raspberry Pass. The western and southern sides of the butte are surrounded by Raspberry Creek while the eastern and northern sides of the butte are surrounded by Flyin Creek. Gnu Butte lies on the Tahltan Highland between Mess Lake and Mowdade Lake in Mount Edziza Provincial Park. It bears a resemblance to flat-topped hills in parts of Africa, hence its name.
Tencho Glacier is a mountain glacier in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located inside Mount Edziza Provincial Park on the Tahltan Highland, an upland area of the Stikine Plateau. Tencho Glacier is the source of several small streams that flow from the Mount Edziza volcanic complex.
The Edziza Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Pleistocene age in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. First described in 1984, the Edziza Formation was mapped as one of several geological formations of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. It overlies at least four other geological formations of this volcanic complex that differ in age and composition. The main volcanic rock comprising the Edziza Formation is trachyte which was deposited by volcanic eruptions at the end of the third magmatic cycle of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex 0.9 million years ago.