Welcome to the inaugural edition of Mule Creek Underground! We’ve started this blog to give you a feel for the process of planning, conducting, and living through an archaeological research project.
First, a little history is in order. This will be our fourth year working in Mule Creek, and our largest effort to date. We’re in Mule Creek because of a combination of fine archaeology, unique natural resources (especially obsidian), and the goodwill of members of the community. This project has been a joint venture between Archaeology Southwest and various colleges, colleagues, and community members.
This summer, we have partnered with the University of Arizona (U of A) to bring students from around the country to Mule Creek for archaeological test excavations at the Fornholt site (LA164471). The project directors are Preservation Archaeologists Deb Huntley and Jeff Clark from Archaeology Southwest. Katherine Dungan, an Archaeology Southwest employee and graduate student from the U of A, is the Field Director. Your author for what I hope will be an exciting five weeks of archaeological field work is Rob Jones, Preservation Fellow, field assistant and (part-time) field chronicler.
The lush landscape of the Mule Creek region
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I drove out to Mule Creek on Sunday in one of the heaviest wind storms in a very long time. Dust obscured the normally long views of this desert setting.
I got to spend an exciting 28 hours with the students, staff, and our local hosts. The turkey mole that our host served us all for our welcoming dinner was over-the-top delicious. This promises to be a truly great year. The student population hails from coast-to-coast. Every student brings a unique perspective, which is the very best that a field school can hope for. We will work hard to bring the preservation archaeology perspective to them. That has been at the core of the Center for Desert Archaeology’s approach to fieldwork for nearly three decades. In my introductory remarks to them, I emphasized the role that they can play in responding to and expanding the preservation archaeology concept. I look forward to spending several field sessions with the students and staff and our amazing local hosts, and I hope that this blog can keep me involved directly for those times when I can’t be in the field.
While the cottonwoods are still lush–as shown in the image on the website–the dry, dessicated grassland is pretty extreme. There is a major concern over the threat of fire, and I was elated to find that not one of the students is a smoker!
This field school has a significant research agenda, and this blog lets us share ongoing progress from multiple perspectives. I hope that this can become a conversation that brings in a larger on-line community, and at the end of the season we will host an on-site open house for the local community. We will do our best to bring the trajectory of our field season to the blog.
I will close with the brief observation that the baby goats grabbed our hearts on Day 1. I hope that someone got a good photo and will share their responses to our first day in Mule Creek. To say that day exceeded my expectations is an understatement.
June 13, 2011
Hey Excavators-great website; Wondering how close the fire is to you now? You are all in my thoughts and prayers. My “Indians of California,” Anthro Professor, Michael Mauer, former Alumni of Arizona suggested I check out your activities and website. I am curious which tribe built the Kiva? How long ago? Has enough cataloquing been done on this project that there might be a permanent museum exhibition somewhere? Would any of your artifacts be available as a traveling exhibition to some of the Jr. Colleges in California? Sure wish I was there with you. Appears to be a great site. How’s the weather? Is it 110 yet? 120? I will do a Cherokee Rain Dance for you. Keep us posted. Are you only doing the one session this summer? Peace, Karen