Southwest Archaeology Today for August 15, 2005

Archaeology making the news … a service of the Center for Desert Archaeology.

Archaeologist digs up the history of Nevada mines: If only Fallon resident Bill Davis’ shoes could talk of the sod he’s trod.
http://www.lahontanvalleynews.com/article/20050812/News/108120019/-1/rss02

Hikes near Flagstaff show how eruptions shaped state’s history: When Sunset Crater erupted more than 1,000 years ago, the Sinagua people living in its shadow fled to Wupatki. The pueblo was home to almost 100 people and sat at the crossroads of three cultures – the Sinagua, Cohonina and the Kayenta Anasazi.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=46027

Ancient floor a work of nature, not nuture: The 67-year-old western Colorado mystery of the cellar with a tiled floor has an explanation now, and the Western Investigations Team has a new notch in its belt.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2005/08/15/8_15_1A_tiled_floor_natural_WWW.html

Animas-La Plata Project: Construction starts on long-awaited reservoir: For 37 years, three Indian tribes have been waiting for Congress to make good on a promise to supply them with enough water to satisfy tribal claims in an increasingly thirsty region.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/gen/ap/CO_Animas_La_Plata.html

Regents approve new Ph.D. in anthropology at UTSA: The University of Texas System Board of Regents on Thursday voted in favor of creating a new doctoral degree program in anthropology at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA).
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2005/08/08/daily32.html?from_rss=1

Tribe sues state, demands reburial of its ancestors: In a class-action lawsuit, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe has accused the state of Washington of knowing and willful desecration of Indian…
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002439412_graves13m.html?syndication=rss&source=seattletimes.xml&items=130

ANASAZI HERITAGE CENTER HOSTS NAVAJO TEXTILE EXHIBIT: Spectacular weavings from a nearby community are on display at the Anasazi Heritage Center’s Special Exhibit Gallery. They were created in the region surrounding Teec Nos Pos, Arizona, in the northeast corner of the Navajo Nation, about 5 miles from the Four Corners. The exhibit is on loan from the Farmington Museum through September 25, 2005.

Central to the exhibit’s creation is Kathleen Foutz, whose family has been involved with area trading posts for generations. She assembled this family collection, including some unusually large weavings, which spans the period from about 1910 through the end of the 20th century. In 1905, Hamp Noel and Eva Foutz established the original trading post at Teec Nos Pos, a Navajo name meaning “cottonwood trees in a circle.” Since that time, four generations of the Foutz family have managed trading posts in Teec Nos Pos, Shiprock, and Farmington, New Mexico. Teec Nos Pos weavings are often very large, and usually contain a variety of outlined shapes within an elaborate border. This regional style emphasizes intricate, symmetric geometric designs saturated with color, but these characteristics have evolved with time. Some design elements may show the influence of Oriental rugs that the weavers saw in traders’ picture books. Weavings created before about 1940 usually had a muted color scheme.

Later, modern dyes introduced bright hues to the weaver’s palette. Early 20th century weavings used homespun wool, but improved roads and transportation systems brought commercially-processed yarn within reach of Teec Nos Pos. While many artists continue to use commercial yarn today, there is also a resurgence of interest in the old ways. Some modern weavers carry on the traditions of using vegetal dyes and hand-processed wool. The art of Navajo weaving seems to be alive and well in the 21st century. One weaver says “I do it out of pride, because my mother did and my grandmother did. I want to do it to carry on tradition.” The Bureau of Land Management Anasazi Heritage Center is open daily from 9am to 5pm. The museum is located 3 miles west of Dolores, Colorado. The museum also serves as the visitor information center for Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. A $3 admission fee is charged for adults, 17 and under and Golden Pass holders are free. Special exhibits and events are made possible through visitor donations and entry fees under the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act. For more information, call the Center at (970) 882-5600.

PECOS CONFERENCE WRAP-UP (From Brian Kenny)

It was wet this year, but not as wet as at a Pecos Conference held just outside Payson AZ… To put this year’s conference into some perspective, the Pecos Conference site at Payson’s Shoofly Village was hit by a torrential rain storm and microburst winds just before the Saturday dinner. A few participants received some of the finest raw chicken ever served… Imagine 200 chilled, soaking wet archaeologists and wet dogs huddled in deep mud under a partially collapsed tent roof… with beer… a rather “earthy” scene to say the least…

http://www.swanet.org/2005_pecos_conference/misc.html
2006 Pecos Conference will be held August 10-13, at the Elks Campground (situated south of Navajo Lake State Park), 25 mi east of Bloomfield NM.

http://www.lamonitor.com/articles/2005/08/15/headline_news/news01.txt
… hundreds of archaeologists spent Saturday, the second day of the 2005 Pecos Conference, engaged in talks on topics such as agricultural engineering in the northern Rio Grande region and even dating artifacts found near Los Alamos.

http://www.lamonitor.com/articles/2005/08/12/headline_news/news03.txt
Archaeologists delivered presentations on current fieldwork and projects in their respective areas of study in one tent and in another, a symposium focused on new research being conducted on the Pajarito Plateau.

http://www.lamonitor.com/articles/2005/08/11/headline_news/news04.txt
The Pecos Conference was started in 1927 by Alfred Vincent Kidder to bring a variety of scholars, archeologists and historians working in the southwest to report recent findings and exchange new ideas.