November 14, 2009

Ancient Hohokam Canals Found in Downtown Mesa

Satellite imagery archaeology has enabled archaeologists to find ancient Hohokam canals in downtown Mesa, Arizona. The canal system was known but it is the extent of it that is the surprise. A water park to be built at the site has been put on hold. There is a golf course and a hospital atop the canals as well as the Mesa Grande Pueblo Ruins. The Hohokam canals rivaled Ancient Egypt and China. They cultivated tobacco, cotton, beans, squash, maize and agave.

The Phoenix Local Examiner has the story here;

http://www.examiner.com/x-29872-Phoenix-History-Examiner~y2009m11d13-Ancient-Canals-Discovered-in-Heart-of-Mesa-east-of-Phoenix

November 10, 2009

Sacred Mounds and the Mississippians

At the annual Southeast Archaeological Conference, Dr. Richard Krause gave a presentation on ancient stone mounds in the Southeast and across the country. He pointed out that there was a fusion between mortuary ritualism and mound building in these mounds between 2000 BCE and 1000 CE. Some mounds contain nothing. But the majority contain human remains and burial chambers. The building of stone mounds matches the distribution of food production and then social stratification. This may have been the impetus to setting off the Mississippian civilization. Community labor to grow food leads to community labor to build mounds and new artifacts are created and then offered to the dead

which leads to more production of artifacts and more exchange. The areas of these mounds were made into sacralized space and are the equivalent of shrines and are 1000 years older than Christian or Buddhist or Islamic shrines and they should be treated with the same respect.

Southeasternarcheaology.com has the report here;
http://www.southeasternarchaeology.com/seac2009.html

November 7, 2009

Scarlet Macaw Trade at Paquime

In a follow up study on the breeding of macaws at Paquime for trade purposes from 1200-1450 CE, a new analysis of bones of pre-historic macaws at the site appears to show that the people of Paquime raised most of the macaw birds themselves and did not import the great majority of the birds from the tropics. Feathers were harvested for ceremonial garb and for trade with the Southwest. Measurements of carbon and oxygen isotopes in scarlet macaws at Paquime indicate the birds ate mostly maize which they did not eat in the tropics. The new research shows that Paquime residents developed macaw breeding technology without the need for a close connection to the rest of Mesoamerica. The bones of 322 scarlet macaws, 181 macaws of other species and feces of macaws in 56 adobe cages were included in this new study. Not only did these birds not have a history of eating tropical foods but only one of the birds studied drank water from a place other than Paquime.

There is some question as to whether juvenile birds may have been transported in large numbers and then fed maize and water from Paquime changing the measurements.

Science News has the report here;

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/49308/title/Macaws_bred_far_from_tropics_during_pre-Columbian_times

October 14, 2009

Chunkey Stones and the Spread of Cahokian Culture

Archaeology Magazine has a story on the Mississippian game of chunkey written by the foremost authority on Cahokia, Timothy Pauketat. The game involved participants hurling spears or sticks at a rolling disc known as the chunkey stone. Cahokians used the game as an instrument of cultural expansion. The game was devised at the planned capital city of Cahokia which became an imperial power. Their religious and cultural and artistic beliefs and styles spread across the Mississippian world and intensified maize agriculture spread with it.  One of the important envoys of this new culture was the game of chunkey. Emissaries from Cahokia, carrying chunkey stones and war clubs, spread out, up and down the Mississippi and into the plains, to carry out peace missions and create political alliances. A Pax Cahokiana was established, and the game of chunkey was a primary vehicle for this.

Archaeology Magazine has the story here;

http://www.archaeology.org/0909/abstracts/pastime.html

September 3, 2009

Shawnee Lookout Park Discoveries

University of Cincinnati students, digging at Shawnee Lookout Park, have located a new mound and a rare pottery kiln and large dwellings. Earthworks have been uncovered on the perimeter stretching 4 miles in length. They may be uncovering the oldest continuously occupied hilltop Native American site in the US. The Hopewell lived at the site 2000 years ago and may be directly linked to the Shawnee who were living there up to 300 years ago. It appears that there are far more sites at the Lookout than previously believed. The Fort Ancient site is 40 miles away but does not appear to have the same continuous occupation. Both the Fort Ancient and Hopewell resided at Shawnee Lookout. They are finding Hopewell refuse overlaid by Shawnee refuse and some of the earthworks are Shawnee continuations of Hopewell work. The DNA of modern Shawnee peoples are being investigated to see connections with the Hopewell.

Science Blog has the story here;

http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/ancient-connection-new-evidence-points-shawnee-lookout-oldest-continuously-occupied-site-24769.html

July 30, 2009

Range Creek Reveals More Secrets

Archaeologists have now recorded 157 Fremont granaries at Range Creek in Utah. There are 3 types of granaries, small slab line types on the hillsides dating from the early Fremont period. Then there are much larger ones from 500-700 feet up to 1,800 feet up on cliffs and they hold from 30 baskets to 90 baskets of corn each. The larger granaries were built between 900-1060 CE and then they were abandoned. During this time of granary expansion, there was a huge population expansion, and so far, 50 sites have been uncovered dating to this period. Some of the sites are built condominium style, one built next to the other on hillsides. The Fremont developed a new form of maize indigenous to the canyon that was starchier and larger between 200-700 CE. Corn was also imported from outside the canyon. There is some evidence they lifted the corn from the valley to the cliff granaries on platforms. Excavations at the very rich area of Range Creek will continue for some time to come.

The Sun Advocate has the story here;

http://www.sunad.com/index.php?tier=1&article_id=16262

July 28, 2009

More on the Chimney Rock Excavations

Elite priests living in a spiritual outpost high on a Colorado mountain ridge 1000 years ago had their meals catered by commoners in the valley below. New findings by a team from the University of Colorado at Boulder led by Stephen Lekson, digging at Chimney Rock, have found that this elite dined on elk and deer while the workers ate smaller game. Chimney rock is an outlier of the Chaco Canyon culture in New Mexico that dominated the southwest from 850-1150 CE. Chimney Rock is 7,600 feet high and 1000 feet above the nearest water source. It has a Chacoan Great House and great kiva within the site. The kiva may have been a lunar observatory. Chimney Rock was occupied from 1075-1130 CE. The team is investigating mineral signatures on corn samples to find where it was grown and the water the samples were near. It appears that Chimney Rock, as a spiritual center, drew people into the area and that the elites who lived there were from Chaco.

Timbers at Chaco to build the great houses and kivas there came from the Chimney Rock region. Deer and Elk from Chimney Rock was probably delivered to Chaco as evidenced by bones found at Chaco. Fireboxes on cliffs near Chimney Rock could signal the Chacoans. No one knows why the site was abandoned after its short life of 50 years. The inhabitants burned their rooms when they left but there were items left inside. One of these artifacts was an intact pot with the jawbone of a large bear inside it. The bear had spiritual significance to Chaco culture.

Lekson said that this will probably be the last archaeological study at Chimney Rock in our lifetimes due to the cost and time it takes to mount an expedition like this.

The Colorado Edu. News has the story here;

http://www.colorado.edu/news/r/d8e411224278f6967ab333307e9a3fde.html

July 28, 2009

Discoveries at Range Creek

Archaeologists at the Range Creek sites in Utah are finding that the Fremont people were not a group living in isolation within their canyon. Trade items from other groups in the basin have been uncovered. A turquoise gem has been found dated at 1000 CE. The turquoise comes from New Mexico or Arizona and was probably re-traded to Range Creek. One habitation site at Range Creek now has been dated to 400 CE and had a habitation record of 400 years. There are more like it in the area.  Archaeologists have found that from 930-1060 CE, there was a huge expansion in the area and the Fremont began moving their sites higher into the cliffs and building cliff houses. The structures being uncovered are in pristine condition and they are numerous.

The Sun Advocate has the story here;

http://www.sunad.com/index.php?tier=1&article_id=16235

July 20, 2009

Large Hopewell Related Site Uncovered in Ohio

A large scale Hopewell related settlement has been uncovered in northern Ohio. The site was first detected by magnetic readings. After 5 weeks of digging, the evidence suggests three distinct pre-Columbian groups occupied the site going back 2,500 years. The site served as a  ceremonial spot, a wintering shelter, a stockaded village and a trading hub. The artifacts look like Hopewell artifacts. They may have  been imported from Hopewell areas to the south or the locals may have imitated Hopewell designs. The earliest artifacts belong to the Middle Woodland tradition and appear to be Hopewell in nature. The ceramic  

designs and the bladelets found match Hopewell crafts. Perhaps the site served as a northern trading hub for the Hopewell who were trading shells from the Gulf Coast and mica from the Appalachians, and the inhabitants living at the site learned the Hopewell designs this way. Perhaps the Hopewell element came by way of a religious tradition. A protected enclosure has been found ringed by a trench and wooden posts that were 8 feet high. A large dwelling with a ramped entrance, a hearth and benches has been uncovered surrounded by 60 posts. Within was found a puncturing tool made of deer bone, a  

freshwater shell pendant shaped as a bear claw and a flint projectile point. Digging will resume next summer.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer has the story here;

http://www.cleveland.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news/1248078607200050.xml&coll=2

A really good blog of the excavations has been maintained by the  

Cleveland Museum of Natural History and many nice photos of the finds  

are shown in the blog;

http://www.cmnh.org/site/ResearchandCollections/Archaeology/BloggingArchaeology.aspx

There are videos of the site here;

http://www.cleveland.com/science/index.ssf/2009/07/cleveland_museum_of_natural_hi.html#mor

July 10, 2009

New Research at Chimney Rock

For the first time in more than 30 years, archaeologists are excavating at Chimney Rock ruins. Chimney Rock construction may be tied to the major lunar standstill marking the end of the moon's northern migration cycle. Every 18.6 years, the moon will rise within a window framed by the giant rock spires of Chimney Rock. The most recent standstill took place from 2004-2008. The next time this happens at Chimney Rock will not be till 2022. Earlier research  indicated that periods of construction corresponded with lunar standstills and that major construction was at the time of a lunar standstill in 1076. Archaeologists will now carbon date burned beams at the site to confirm this.

Another major question about Chimney Rock was whether it was part of the Chacoan world. It may be that corn was grown at Chimney Rock for transport to Chaco. It is possible to signal Chaco from Chimney Rock atop Huerfano Peak in New Mexico. Archaeologists are also working to stabilize the Great House walls.

The Durango Herald has the story here with enlargable photos;

http://durangoherald.com/sections/Features/Outdoors/2009/07/10/Chimney_Rock_Chaco_or_not/

July 3, 2009

Big Finds at the Mississippian Site at Chesterfield

Archaeologists are digging at the Chesterfield site in Missouri and finding that it was a major market center for Cahokia. They are digging up very ornate bowls in good quantity and thousands of other artifacts including copper ear spools from the Great Lakes region, tools and beads as well as homes and storage pits. The pottery is of the Ramey style made during the height of the Mississippian cultures. Deer bones have been found as well indicating ritual feasting. This last week, they uncovered a stockade wall. The dig is in its beginning stages and already 5000 artifacts have been uncovered.

The Southern.com has the story here;

http://www.thesouthern.com/articles/2009/07/03/breaking_news/doc4a4e13c15bf22863652239.txt

June 18, 2009

Mogollon Artifacts Uncovered at White Sands

Jornada Mogollon artifacts have been uncovered at the White Sands missile range in New Mexico. The finds are described as significant because the evidence shows the Jornada Mogollon occupied the site twice; once in 1150 CE and then again from 1250-1350 CE. Three pithouses used by the Mogollon during the Dona Ana Phase have been uncovered and then later shelters of brush during the 2nd occupation were found. The Mogollon lived in the area from 1100-1450 CE. When the growing season ended, they moved to temporary shelters closer to the mountains where there was wood for fires, animals to hunt and plants to forage. It is believed that there are hundreds of sites along the Organ mountain range. More pottery of a certain type have been found at the site than any other site uncovered so far.

The Las Cruces Sun-News has the story here;

http://www.lcsun-news.com/ci_12616344

May 13, 2009

Earliest Canal System in the Southwest Uncovered

Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of an ancient farming  

community at a site called Las Capas in Arizona dating to 1200 BC-800 BC, the early agricultural period in the Southwest. The settlers created a system of canals now proven to be the earliest extensive irrigation system in the Southwest. These canals pre-date the Hohokam canals by 1000 years. This find has completely revised the history of organized irrigation in the Southwest. The canals were built in grids with earthen gates to regulate flow. The canals held running water 9 months out of the year. The area covers 100 acres and supported 150 people. The Las Capas people grew maize as their primary crop using popped corn to make tortillas. They gathered cactus fruit, mesquite pods and amaranth. Skeletal remains of the Las Capas people show they lived a healthy life. Circular pit houses have also been uncovered with charcoal remains used for cooking in shallow pits. They had domesticated dogs and other domesticated animals.

There are 7 other settlements nearby with evidence of canals there as  

well. A massive flood in 800 BC destroyed their society as the Las  

Capas people made attempts to rebuild the waterways and then abandoned their village.

The Explorer has the story here;

http://www.explorernews.com/articles/2009/05/13/news/doc4a09f6bd89333196876955.txt

May 1, 2009

1100 CE Palisades Uncovered at Macon County Airport

Archaeologists have uncovered two palisaded villages at the site of the proposed Macon County Airport runway extension dated to 1100 CE. Palisaded villages at this date in this region had been unknown. Artifacts being uncovered go back as far as 2000 BCE. Vertical palisades or fences were erected at 1100 CE to fortify homesteads at the site. Most of the remains at the site date back to the Woodland Period at 500 CE.

Archaeologists are stating that the site is rich with artifacts and finds.

The Macon County News has the story here;

http://www.maconnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4607&Itemid=34

May 1, 2009

New Hohokam Excavations

Archaeologists are digging at the 50 year old Hohokam Continental Site in Green Valley, Arizona. They are investigating a cluster of 4 pit houses that are new excavations. 500 artifacts have been uncovered at the site including a woven reed mat that was preserved by way of the fire that destroyed this complex 800 years ago. The mat was carbonized by the fire. This kind of specimen is a very rare find. Also found are stone tools, an axe head, a spindle whorl and pottery dating to 1150-1200 CE.

The original dig 50 years ago uncovered a spear thrower dating to 500 BCE.

The Green Valley News has the story here;

http://www.gvnews.com/articles/2009/04/30/news/49arch426.txt

April 19, 2009

Excavations on the Saluda River

Archaeologists excavating on the Saluda River in South Carolina have uncovered 35,000 artifacts including arrowheads, spear points, pottery and dwellings. Some of the items are estimated to be as old as 13,500 years old. This was a meeting place and trading spot for migrating tribes along the Eastern coast.

The State.com has the story here;

http://www.thestate.com/local/v-print/story/755229.html

February 20, 2008

300 AD Weaver Culture Village Unearthed in Iowa

Archaeologists digging at a site in Oakville, Iowa have found a Weaver Culture village dating back to 300 CE. They have found fish, turtle and deer bones in their refuse piles and this village was one of many along the banks of rivers in this region at that time. The villagers in this area at that time were very well fed people.

After 8 weeks of digging, they have pulled up an astounding 100,000 artifacts including pottery, arrowheads, spear points, stone axes. The site will be catalogued and then carefully covered over to protect it. Work on a levee to protect the farmland from flooding in the area has to be finished before spring and that work was halted for the archaeological work being done at the site.

The Quad City Times has the story here;

http://www.qctimes.com/articles/2009/02/17/news/local/doc499b53c24de8d281802385.txt

February 2, 2009

Earliest Use of Chocolate in the Ancient Southwest at Chaco

The earliest use of chocolate in the Ancient American Southwest was in 1000 AD. Traces of theobromine, a distinct marker for Cacao, was found on pottery shards at Pueblo Bonito in Chaco Canyon in New Mexico. These findings have been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Interaction between Mesoamerica and the Southwest looks is the causative factor. Chocolate was obviously a trade item from Mesoamerica joining other trade items like copper bells and scarlet macaws.

The cylinders with traces of theobromine are low in number and found in caches suggesting chocolate was used as a ritual object.

The Los Angeles Times has the story here;

http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-cacao3-2009feb03,0,6521359.story

January 11, 2009

Ancient Village Found on Mexico Border

An ancient village dating between 700-1200 CE has been uncovered near the Tucson Basin on the Mexico/US border. Ceramic analysis shows some Hohokam characteristics but the mix of artifacts show the village to be a frontier site peripheral to Mexico and the north. 23 pit houses, 97 thermal pits, 5 dog burials and 69 human burials have been found. A "stone jaw bone" with a serrated edge probably used for scraping hides was uncovered and a lot of deer bone.

Mexican archaeologists are also interested in the site.

The Sierra Vista Journal has the story here;

http://www.svherald.com/articles/2009/01/09/news/doc4966f5869ba07167469550.prt

December 23, 2008

Stone Age Americans Cooking Discovery

New studies of the diet of the First Americans reveal that the fire cracked rock piles that the Ancient Americans left were used as earth ovens to cook smoky, sweet camas bulbs--a cross between an onion and a potato. This was the tortilla of the Stone Age Americans. They take 2 days to bake. This proceeded corn consumption by thousands of years across North America.

Camas was mashed and pounded with a mortar and pestle into a dough shaped into loaves and baked. The ovens have been dated from between 7000 BCE up to 1600 AD. The food fell out of favor due to long cooking times, take longer to grow and provide fewer calories per pound than corn.

Discovery News has the story here;

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/12/22/native-american-oven.html

December 17, 2008

Ancient Cremation Ritual Uncovered on Ossabaw Island, Georgia

An excavation of a Woodland period burial (1000 BCE-350 CE) on Ossabaw Island along Georgia's coast has revealed cremated remains. The internment reveals something about the kinds of belief involving death during the Woodland period. Similar cremations have been found on St. Catherine's Island. Native Americans in the area had moved to the coast in the winter for shellfish and inland in the spring for deer hunting and to the uplands in the fall to gather nuts.

The burial pit was lined with wood and oyster shells. The body was placed on top of the wood and then burned. The body looks like it was reburied elsewhere later. There has been a radar survey and charcoal carbon-14 analysis will be done. Shell mounds at the site date back to 2000 BCE and 230 sites have been found on the island.

The Daily Citizen has the story here;

http://www.northwestgeorgia.com/statenews/local_story_352144343.html

November 9, 2008

Large Hohokam Village Uncovered

The Arizona Dept. of Transportation uncovered a huge cache of Hohokam artifacts at Cordes Lake in 1998. This May, archaeologists at the site uncovered a Hohokam village dating at 800-850 CE.  It is being called Antler House Village because burned antlers were found there. One metric ton of artifacts were found even before digging began including pottery, stone tools, turquoise, shells, figurines. The area is on the fringe of Hohokam expansion. A large percentage of the pottery is red on buff and plain grey pottery in Hohokam style. There is a long habitation record.

It appears that the Hohokam eventually abandoned the site in an orderly fashion. All of the human remains have been turned over to Native tribes. Site work continues till December and then will be backfilled. The artifacts will be given to the Sharlot Hall Museum in Prescott.

The Prescott Daily Courier has the story here;

http://prescottdailycourier.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=61124

July 15, 2008

Genetic Study of Athapaskan Groups

A large genetic study of a small group of Athapaskans from the subarctic northwest to the southwestern US has been published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology. The researchers came from universities in Illinois, California, Washington, Montana, Arizona and Mexico City.  The study focused on the Y chromosome of males in the ancestral line. This small group assimilated well and was so influential that the Athapaskan language dominates in large parts of the southwest. The Navajo and Apache descendants of this group speak a language related to Chipewyan, an Athapaskan language of the subarctic.

This group probably arrived in the southwest at a time of stress among groups living there. The study also found extensive mixing with European males. The study spanned groups from Alaska to the Yucatan, Hudson Bay and the southeast US.

The Athapaskan migrants did not seem to influence the physical landscape, architecture or cultural practices of the populations of the southwest. But their language became pre-dominant.

EurekAlert has the story here;

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-07/uoia-ycs071508.php

July 12, 2008

North Wall at Cahokia Found

Bill Iseminger and his students have been digging at Cahokia northeast of Monk's Mound and have discovered the north wall of the palisade or stockade wall that surrounded Cahokia's central plaza and Monk's Mound, the largest pyramidal structure north of the Rio Grande. This is the first time a wall was confirmed along the north side. The wall discovered is probably the first wall constructed about 1175 CE. The students also found dog bones and a clay piece used for the game of chunky.

Iseminger and his students will continue digging for a bastion that is part of the wall and for other walls.

The Edwardsville Journal has the story here;

http://tinyurl.com/5mo7j5

May 4, 2008

New Discovery on Ancient Chaco Turquoise Sources

30 years ago, archaeological scientists using neutron activation analysis proved that turquoise mosaics from Chichen Itza going back to 900 AD used raw material from the Cerillos mine near Santa Fe, New Mexico, over 2000 miles away. It was assumed that the large site of Chaco in New Mexico used turquoise from the same Cerillos mine.

The Journal of Archaeological Science reports that a new technique was used on 11 samples dating from 550-1050 AD from Chaco Canyon sites called source characterization which measures copper and hydrogen isotope ratios using ion mass spectrometry. The scientists found that only two of the 11 samples came from Cerillos and the rest came from Orogrande in southern New Mexico and #8 mine in northern Nevada and one from the Montezuma source in southern Nevada.

Norman Hammond wrote this news item for the London Sunday Times and suggests all Mesoamerican turquoise items should now be studied anew to understand the complexity of the ancient turquoise trade.

The Times Online has the story here;

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/court_and_social/article3872341.ece

May 5, 2008

1,100 Year Old Weeden Island Culture Sea Going Canoe Uncovered Near Tampa Bay

A 1,100 year old 45 foot canoe constructed by the Weeden Island culture of Florida has worked its way to the surface. It was carved from a single pine tree and was used to paddle over the open waters of the bay for long distance trade. This is the first Pre-Columbian sea going vessel uncovered in Florida.

The canoe will eventually be excavated and chemically preserved and until then, it sits in an undisclosed location beneath a layer of muck shoveled onto it to preserve it for now.

The Ledger has the story here;

http://www.theledger.com/article/20080505/NEWS/805050338/1004

April 29, 2008

Turtle Mound, Florida Re-Investigation

Turtle Mound in Florida which is a massive oyster-shell pile is being re-investigated. Archaeologists have found 1,200 year old pottery and other artifacts for radio-carbon analysis. Turtle Mound is the highest shell midden in the country being 35 feet tall at this point but may have been 54 feet tall before erosion. There are 35,000 cubic feet of oyster shells.

The mound may be as old as 1000 BCE and the new radio-carbon dates may confirm that.

The Orlando Sentinal has the story here with a video;

http://tinyurl.com/6ljper

April 24, 2008

Dog Burials in the Ancient Southwest

There are hundreds of prehistoric dogs buried in the southwestern United States and they played a key role in the spiritual life of ancient americans. Fellow Aztlan member Dody Fugate has conducted a survey of known dog burials in the Southwest where many have been found with jewelry alongside women and children. Fugate believes they were divine escorts into the next world. She has a database of 700 dog burials, many buried in groups or with humans. Many are concentrated in northwestern New Mexico and along the Arizona/Mexico border.

The burials were most common from 400 BCE to 1100 CE and the earlier burials of humans more often had dogs with them. The practice stopped in the 1400-1500s. The dogs were surprisingly diverse in physicality. White dog fur was used for ritual garb. Susan Crawford who is at the University of Victoria in Canada has found the same practices in the north.

As an additional note, the practice of burying dogs as divine escorts is suggested from the time of the Olmecs and especially among the Mixtecs and in Ancient West Mexico where the Colima sculpted dogs in shamanistic styles and buried these ceramics along with real dogs in human burials.

National Geographic has the story here;

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080423-dog-burials.html

April 8, 2008

1000-3000 BCE Copper Celt Found in Michigan

A man in Michigan has found a 3000-5000 year old copper celt from the time of the Old Copper Complex in Ancient America. It was probably acquired by way of trade in ancient times. Copper celts were traded from Mexico to the Rockies to the East Coast in the Old Copper Complex which is one of the oldest copper industries in the world.

The Traverse City Record-Eagle has the story here;

http://www.record-eagle.com/statenews/local_story_100095019.html

April 7, 2008

Anasazi Abandonment

Archaeologists are studying the mass Anasazi abandonment of their Colorado plateau home for more desolate regions in the south in the late 1200's trying to find an explanation for this out-migration of the population. The earlier explanations of drought or a little Ice Age are now found wanting. There had been a drought in the late 1200's and pollen layers in lake bottoms and bogs show shorter growing seasons due to colder weather at the same time. But starting in 1300, the whole area abandoned became much wetter but the inhabitants did not return.

Some Anasazi did revert from maize growing and turkey raising during the drought to hunting and gathering and built defensive walls against raiders. Evidence of increased violence is seen in more scalpings, dismemberments and perhaps cannibalism and whole families were slain in their homes. But this was not constant everywhere. At Kiet Siel, in northwestern Arizona, they continued to thrive till 1290, 15 years after the drought, and then they all left in an orderly fashion, sealing their granaries with fitted rocks and caulk seemingly in no hurry or danger.

Researchers now see the possible driving force in the great abandonment was a new Puebloan religion. Building styles were changing into more open architecture with public plazas and kivas from a more closed style in the past. Serving bowls became larger and more decorative. Immigrants from the west brought new pottery styles. Some archaeologists see signs of an evangelical religion emanating from the south pulling people out of their homes.

Archaeologists are now doing mass computer simulations of diet, rainfall, growing conditions and other factors and coming to the conclusion that as the Anasazi society became more successful, they became more fragile and too dependent on maize and animal husbandry and trade with neighbors. When the drought came and colder weather hit, they were no longer as flexible and independent as in the simpler past and then new religions, new immigrants and new ideologies led to societal breakdown and political change which led to the orderly abandonment of their pueblos to move south in some kind of mass religious movement.

The New York Times has the story here;

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/08/science/08anasazi.html

February 1, 2008

Three Sites Discovered that are Transitional between Woodland and Full Adena Culture

Archaeologists in Ohio are looking at 3 Adena encampments that show continuities with the earlier Woodland culture of the area. These sites are not located along rivers like other Adena sites and broken pottery and seeds of the earliest domesticated plants in Ohio (goosefoot, sumpweed, maygrass) have been found there suggesting a move away from nomadism and towards the new Adena era at these sites.

The Columbus Dispatch's great archaeological reporter Bradley T. Leppert has the story here;

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/science/stories/2008/01/29/sci_lepper29_ART_01-29-08_B5_N4952LR.html?sid=101

September 26, 2007

Hovey Lake Mississippian Era Discoveries

Archaeologists at Indiana University, excavating at Hovey Lake are turning up Mississippian artifacts and evidence that inhabitants at the site fled from a fire. As they continued to excavate, they found a larger Mississippian site with defensive walls but so far, no evidence of fighting.

Indiana Edu. has the report here;

http://www.indiana.edu/~archaeo/hovey/index.htm

August 23, 2007

2000 Year Old DNA From Chewed Plants in the Southwest Show Mexican Origins of Group

Steven LeBlanc of the Harvard Peabody has extracted DNA from wads of 2000 year old chewed plants from the Western Basketmaker Culture and found that much of their DNA derives from Central Mexico.

NPR has the story here;

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=13890656

July 12, 2007

GALLINA CULTURE MASSACRE UNCOVERED IN REMOTE NEW MEXICO CANYON; CRANIAL DEFORMATION FOUND

Seven skeletons belonging to the mysterious Gallina Culture of ancient New Mexico were uncovered in a remote canyon. The Gallina lived in the area from 1100-1275 AD. They had been brutally murdered and their bodies thrown in disarray outside their burned homes. Almost all of the Gallina skeletons found since their discovery in 1930 have been found murdered. The skulls of the seven skeletons showed unusual cranial deformation-unique to the Ancient Southwest.

Perhaps there was an ongoing genocide against this culture because they were alien in some way to the surrounding cultures. National Geographic has the story

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070712-chaco-massacre.html

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTO GALLERY OF MASSACRE SITE

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/photogalleries/ancient-culture/index.html

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

Dear Friends,

I would like to invite you all to join the listserv "Aztlan" as it joins its new host at FAMSI -- The Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Inc.

Aztlan has been around for well over a decade, and has recently been moved to a new home at FAMSI. It is one of the oldest and most respected listservs for Mesoamerican Prehistory.

Recent conversations on Aztlan cover such topics as: The Maya Collapse, breaking Ancient Americas news, the origins of Olmec writing, the uses of palmas, hachas and yokes in the Ball Game, new Southwest Discoveries, Mississippian research, Pre-Clovis and Clovis archaeology.

The moderators filter out ad hominems and science fiction archaeology.

If you are interested, please visit:

http://www.famsi.org/mailman/listinfo/aztlan

Aztlan typically has an activity level of approximately 3-5 emails per day. This may be too many emails for the casual reader. In this case, I still suggest subscribing, but click the bubble for "daily digest" which will deliver all Aztlan messages in a single daily email (you will therefore only receive one email per day, containing all of the day's messages).

Comments and Feedback;

michaelruggeri@mac.com

Copyright 2009;

Mike Ruggeri