Occupational History and Site Function at Two Sites within Montezuma Castle National Monument

Summary

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

Arizona’s Verde Valley represents a significant archaeological resource and was a prehistoric cultural crossroads. Despite this, the region has been relatively understudied. Archaeological interest and excavation has historically focused on the large pueblos in the region, while smaller habitation and resource processing sites have only received cursory investigations. The last archaeological excavation in the Montezuma Well Unit of Montezuma Castle National Monument was conducted by the National Park Service in the early 1960s. Recent archaeological testing at two sites near Montezuma Well represented a rare opportunity to explore Southern Sinagua occupation and use of the Verde Valley and Montezuma Well area, in particular. The resulting analysis of recovered cultural materials offers a challenge to the previously established occupational history of the area and identifies site functions that have had only limited consideration.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

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

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 41632.0