North America - Southwest (Geographic Keyword)
201-225 (899 Records)
The discovery of disarticulated and processed human remains at several archaeological sites has provided evidence of extreme violence in the pre-contact American Southwest. Several theories have been presented to explain the presence of these traumatic injuries, including witchcraft executions, ancestor veneration, and cannibalism. The research being presented consists of a detailed reexamination of a small sample of human remains recovered from two neighboring Fremont sites and one nearby...
A Dance with Dragons (2017)
What is the relationship between culture and the things that humans create? How do our beliefs affect what we make and how do these creations affect us in turn? This issue is investigated through study of horned water serpent iconography, imagery that is both ethnographically and archaeologically documented as ritually significant in the Southwestern United States. This case study focuses on Cottonwood Spring Pueblo, a large aggregated settlement in the Jornada Mogollon culture branch. Salado...
Data Integration in the Service of Synthetic Research - SAA Vancouver Annual Meeting (2017)
Addressing archaeology’s most compelling substantive challenges requires synthetic research that exploits the large and rapidly expanding corpus of systematically collected archaeological data. That, in turn, demands an integration procedure that preserves the semantics of the data when combining datasets collected by multiple investigators who employ different systematics in their recording. To that end, we have developed a general procedure that we call query-directed, on-the-fly data...
Data Recording Strategies for Nuvakwewtaqa Repatriation (2015)
This poster presents a discussion of the various data recording methods implemented in the NAGPRA Repatriation of materials from Nuvakwewtaqa, Chavez Pass, Arizona. A number of different artifact types were analyzed in processing this collection, and artifact analysis associated with this project used a multi-stage approach. As this analysis required data recording following each stage, a well-organized, comprehensive multi-stage data recording strategy was constructed. This strategy, including...
Deciphering Bone Tool Production and Use: A Comparative Assessment of Quantitative Approaches to Microwear Analysis (2016)
Recent research in the pre-Columbian Pueblo Southwest has demonstrated the importance of understanding trends in bone industries that closely track other, related economic sectors such as perishable craft production. A vital next step in this line of inquiry is the identification the specific types of production activities in which bone tools are employed and variation across time and space. As illustrated by the results of this pilot study, texture analysis methods, developed within the...
Deconstructing Multiple Intersecting Identities and Cremation Ritual among the Preclassic Hohokam of the Tucson Basin (2015)
Hohokam cremation funerary customs are unraveled to acquire a deeper understanding of intersecting identity differences among seven Preclassic Period archaeological sites (A.D. 475-1150) of the Tucson Basin. This is done by analyzing the mortuary treatment of 477 individual remains using two primary datasets: (1) biological profile of the skeletal remains; and, (2) posthumous treatment of the body inferred from the analysis of the remains and archaeological contexts. Results indicate the...
Defining sacredness of rock art sites in the Sonoran Desert (2016)
Based on landscape archaeology, achaeoastronomy, the analysis of rock art iconography, ethnohistoric and ethnographic documents, this paper proposes to define the factors that determine the sacredness of rock art sites in the Sonoran Desert. Well characterized common patterns can be found in most of the rock art sites that will be described, facts that confirm with certainty we can speak of shared cultural traits within the region.
Dendroarchaeology at the Triangle HC in northern Arizona (2015)
The historic homestead of Triangle HC has served multiple purposes throughout the years. These purposes have been apparent in a series of new constructions and also reflect the historic uses of the building. Located on private land within the Prescott National Forest, this building is now being utilized as archaeological field school headquarters to understand more of the prehistory of the area. This prehistoric archaeological research has also created an opportunity to conduct historic research...
Dendroarchaeology of the Otero Cabin, Valles Caldera National Preserve, New Mexico (2015)
The Valles Caldera National Preserve in northern New Mexico has been the site of many culture group activities from prehistoric to present times due to its exceptionally resource-rich environment. During the early 20th century, profit-driven ventures left the landscape that we see today. A few families during this period were critical participants in the development of the VCNP environment. The earliest of these families was the Oteros who used land in the VCNP primarily for grazing horses,...
Depictions of Human Facial Decoration on Mimbres Pottery as an Indication of Social Affiliation (2015)
The culture of the Mimbres Mogollon region is known for its intricate, black-on-white, geometric and figurative pottery designs. Analysis of ceramic iconography found on Mimbres pottery allows archaeologists to hypothesize about Mimbres life and social structure. Using provenienced, figurative vessel data from the Mimbres Pottery Images Digital Database (MimPIDD), this paper investigates the possible relationship between human facial decoration and the inter- and intra-site provenience of...
Depopulation and Massacres: Bioarchaeological Evidence of Violence within the Ancestral Pueblo of the Southwest Region of North America (2015)
This paper investigates forensic data within the Southwest region of the United States for indicators of violence, conflict, and warfare related events. The main focus is the Mesa Verde region of the Southwest and other sites inhabited by the Ancestral Pueblo. In this area, I examine forensic evidence supportive of trophy-killing and cannibalism; both have documented evidence at other sites in the Southwest area. Different types of trauma, such as, cut marks and blunt force trauma are also...
A Descriptive Analysis of Animal Paleopathology from the Archaeological Site of Salmon Ruins (2016)
This thesis research is a small part of the greater potential study of the interactions between people in prehistory and the animals they relied upon for food and ritual items. Analysis will compare the prevalence of osteological changes and abnormalities in the remains of wild animals and domestic turkeys at Salmon Ruin, New Mexico. Domestic turkeys, being influenced by the hand of humans, are unique cases of paleopathology that could potentially provide insight into the domestication and care...
Desert Digs: New Deal Archaeology in Southern Arizona, 1934-1941 (2015)
The Sonoran Desert of Southern Arizona is well known for its wealth of archaeological sites left behind by PaleoIndian, Archaic, and Formative period cultures. During the Great Depression, archaeological surveys and excavation projects provided employment opportunities for hundreds of young men and women seeking jobs. Bryon Cummings and Emil Haury at the University of Arizona in Tucson and Odd Halseth at Pueblo Grande Museum in Phoenix took advantage of a variety of New Deal work programs to...
Determining Construction Materials and Soil Formation Processes at a Burial Mound in Northwest Mexico Using Soil Micromorphology (2015)
El Cementerio [SON P:10:8] is a late Ceramic period (cal. A.D. 943-1481) burial mound in Central Sonora, Mexico. The mound was constructed within the floodplain about 300 meters from the eastern bank of the Rio Yaqui. Micromorphology analysis (the microscopic analysis of undisturbed soils and sediments) was conducted in order to characterize the nature of the soils and sediments used to construct the mound. Samples were collected in situ from excavation units across the mound, with their...
Developing New Interpretations from Old Data at Montezuma Castle National Monument, Arizona (2015)
This paper addresses recent archaeological work at the Castle A site (AZ 0:5:95 [ASM]), located within the Montezuma Castle National Monument boundary in Camp Verde, Arizona.Initially excavated and stabilized in 1934 by National Park Service archaeologists Martin Jackson and Sallie Pierce, the project is a historically significant event in the development of Verde Valley archaeology.Based on Jackson and Pierce’s interpretation of stratigraphic evidence, they believed a catastrophic fire...
The Developing Tale of Sayles Adobe (2017)
The Sayles Adobe terrace site (41VV2239) rests within Eagle Nest Canyon 300 meters upstream from the Rio Grande confluence. The site name comes from E.B. Sayles’ 1932 sketch map of the canyon which notes an area of "sandy adobe" below Skiles Shelter. ASWT research began at Sayles Adobe this past spring with excavations focused on investigating natural terrace formation and cultural deposits buried within. Using a combination of old and new archaeological techniques, Sayles was quickly found to...
Dietary Patterns of Paquime: New Evidence from Dental Calculus and Microfossils (2016)
As part of a larger multinational project, we gathered and analyzed 112 samples of dental calculus (fossilized plaque) from human remains discovered at Paquimé and other sites in the Casas Grandes river valley to identify various microfossils still present in the silica matrix. Once identified, we used the prehistoric plant remains to reconstruct human/plant relationships present during the Viejo and Medio periods in and around Paquimé. Our data suggest that maize was used throughout both time...
Dietary Reconstruction Based on Coprolites from Antelope Cave (2015)
Results of 20 Antelope Cave coprolites show both consistencies and inconsistencies with other Ancestral Pueblo coprolite analyses. Most of the human coprolites appear to be late summer and early fall depositions. Four principle plant foods were ground to a fine flour: maize kernels, dropseed caryopses, sunflower achenes, and cheno-am seeds. Maize and dropseed were found in six coprolites each and they did not co-occur. Microscopically, maize starch occurred in seven coprolites. Thus, maize was...
Differences in Mesoamerican Connections Across Hohokam Canal Systems of the Phoenix Basin, Arizona (2016)
Material evidence of interaction between people of the U.S. Southwest and Mesoamerica is detected as early as ca. 2000 BCE. Markers of long-distance interaction increase in diversity and abundance over time, growing to include copper bells, iron pyrite mirrors, and other objects and symbols. These markers moved up to 2000 km by social actions and exchange mechanisms that remain obscure. Although the Hohokam had stronger ties to Mesoamerica than any region in the U.S. Southwest, more could be...
Digging without Getting Dirty: Making use of Archival Data to Explore Variations of Labor Costs in Hohokam Residential Architecture at Pueblo Grande. (2015)
Archaeological research in Arizona’s Phoenix Basin has been ongoing for nearly four decades, reaching its heyday during the 1990s. This resulted from large CRM projects associated with development in Phoenix, especially ADOT. The potential uses of data collected as a part of these excavations has only begun to be realized, and efforts to digitally preserve and make available these data accessible for new analysis are underway. At Pueblo Grande and elsewhere in the lower Salt River Valley, there...
A Digital Approach in Consultant Archaeology: PaleoWest at the Ironwood Village Site (2015)
In the Summer of 2014, PaleoWest Archaeology stripped seven acres within Ironwood Village site in Marana, AZ for archaeological data recovery ahead of a land development project. Digital methods allowed PaleoWest to conduct high-quality cutting-edge archaeology, manage a complex field effort, and complete work on time within an aggressive development schedule. This poster outlines a fully digital workflow using tablets and smartphones connected over cellular networks in the field. Data entry...
Digital Archaeology at Ironwood Village: A Model for Archaeology’s Paperless Future (2015)
The particular challenges at the Ironwood Village excavations—time constraints, burgeoning data opportunities, and management of a complex array of excavation staff and machinery--begged for a modernized approach to data collection and workflow management. PaleoWest Archaeology’s digital workflow system—already four years in development—was customized for the project and implemented throughout. The result was one of the world’s first all-digital major excavation projects, the success of which...
The Digital Legacy of Public Archaeology in the Phoenix Basin, Arizona (2015)
Federal undertakings, particularly flood control and water transmission projects, have served as the impetus for some of the largest public archaeology projects in Arizona since the 1950s. The Central Arizona Project, a 336 mile diversion canal that distributes water from the Colorado River into central and southern Arizona, was the largest and most costly transmission system constructed in the United States. It took nearly 25 years to identify and mitigate the cultural resources within the...
Directionality in Ceramic Vessel Construction and Ceremonial Circuitry in the Ancestral Pueblo World: A Case Study from Pueblo Bonito (2016)
This paper explores the relationship between utility ware vessel construction and widely shared elements of cosmology in the Chaco interaction sphere through an examination of corrugated gray ware ceramics from Pueblo Bonito. The direction of coiling, which is inversely related to the angle of corrugation or pinching, appears to be a conservative element of ceramic technological style and is typically consistent within regions. As these differences cannot be accounted for by handedness alone, it...
Dirt, Rocks, and Water: Irrigation Here, There, Then, and Now (2017)
Regional specialists spend most of their time studying many topics in one area. Indeed, it would be next to impossible to be an authority on a region and its complexities if one did otherwise. Topical specialists, travel widely and study numerous variations on a single theme. Each of these specializations has its pros and cons. Neither is superior to the other. They are complementary. This presentation focuses on ancient irrigation in the American Southwest and present-day parallels from other...