Ceramic: Chaco-McElmo Black-on-white, bowl, AMNH 29.0/6898

Summary

Chaco-McElmo Black-on-white, bowl, Accession 29.0, Catalog #6898. Morris FS 505. Analyzed by Lori Reed 2004. Temper is sand and sherd in a well-fired paste suggesting production in the Chaco Cibola region. Bowl is restored with unknown adhesive but roughly 30% is missing. Measurements: 24.5 cm orifice diameter; 9.5 cm height. Image AMNH 29.0/6898 A: closeup of interior design. Image AMNH 29.0/6898 B: interior view showing full design layout. Note: exterior surface is slipped and unpainted. Recovered from Earl Morris excavation of Room 44, Aztec West Ruin. Morris found that “A terrific fire had raged in Room 44. The chamber had been filled to a depth of from 10 to 15 feet with refuse containing a large proportion of vegetable substance. After combustion, this mass had been reduced in bulk to a depth of 7 feet. The heat generated had been intense. In places adobe clods had been melted and fused and sandstones had been burned to a brick red. Eleven black-on-white bowls, a dipper, potsherds, a grooved ax, a chipped knife blade, and a mammal bone awl (29.0- 6894-6909) were recovered. Among the animal bones from this room, skulls of deer and mountain sheep were conspicuous. The fragments of a number of pottery vessels were sorted from the large quantity of sherds recovered. All are of Mesa Verde type” (Morris 1928:296).

Reference: Earl Morris, 1928, Notes on Excavations in the Aztec Ruin, Volume XXVI, Part V, Anthropological Papers of the American Museum of Natural History, New York.

Keywords

Temporal Coverage

Calendar Date: 1110 to 1140 (Late Chacoan)

Calendar Date: 1140 to 1280 (Post-Chacoan)

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Gary Brown

Contributor(s): Lori Reed; Anne Grulich; Aztec Ruins National Monument, Aztec, NM; Aztec Ruins National Monument

Principal Investigator(s): Laurie Webster

Repository(s): American Museum of Natural History, New York City, NY

Notes

Rights & Attribution: Artifact was collected from Aztec West Ruin excavations by Earl Morris between 1916 and 1922. Morris' excavations were sponsored and funded by the American Museum of Natural History, New York.

Rights & Attribution: High resolution images of the item are archived and available to researchers through the National Park Service, Aztec Ruins National Monument.

Rights & Attribution: Publication or use of the image is restricted; permission may be obtained through consultation with American Museum of Natural History and Aztec Ruins National Monument.

Source Collections

Original Item: American Museum of Natural History, New York

Image: NPS, Aztec Ruins National Monument, Aztec, New Mexico

Related Comparative Collections

Aztec Ruins Collections housed at Hibben Center, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque

Aztec Ruins Collections housed at American Museum of Natural History, New York

Aztec Ruins Collections housed at Aztec Ruins National Monument, Aztec, New Mexico

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