The Presence of Fraxinus in Hohokam Pithouses

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

This paper will investigate the presence of ash wood (Fraxinus sp.) in the context of burned pit houses of the Hohokam culture by comparing the botanical remains in burned pit houses to remains from unburned pit houses from previous data recovery projects in Arizona. To further understand the purpose of Fraxinus in burned pithouses, previous ethnobotanical studies of indigenous tribes such as the Hopi and O’odham and their use of Fraxinus will be consulted. In order to understand the effects of Fraxinus in a burned context, experimental methods will be utilized and recorded to compare the smoke output from a fire utilizing Fraxinus as a fuel source in contrast to other fuel sources commonly found in pit houses in the region. All methodology and results will be recorded to further understand how the presence of Fraxinus may contribute to a ceremonial atmosphere due to observable differences such as intensity or color of the smoke output or smell. Results of research from data recovery, ethnographies, and experimental methodology will be used to assess the presence of Fraxinus in burned pit houses and how it may contribute to the overall atmosphere of ceremonial burnings.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

Keywords

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 40100.0