Almost Halfway to our Goal of $5,000 to Support Southwest Archaeology Today!

Almost Halfway to our Goal of $5,000 to Support Southwest Archaeology Today!
Many thanks to the 76 generous Southwest Archaeology Today subscribers who have given a total of $2,175 in response to the online campaign! This invaluable support helps us continue to deliver SAT to more than 1,500 inboxes every Monday morning. If you have not yet joined your fellow readers in making a gift, please do so today. With only two weeks left in the campaign, we need everyone’s support to meet our $5,000 goal and continue providing you and others with this valuable online resource. Make your gift today at https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/how-to-help/sat/.

National Park Service Temporarily Closes Indian Arts Museum to Allow for Artifact Conservation at WACC
The National Park Service quietly shuttered a museum at Grand Teton National Park this week, removing a world-class collection of ancient Native American artifacts donated by the Rockefeller family nearly four decades ago. http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2011/10/13/13greenwire-condition-of-rare-indian-artifacts-reveals-def-59441.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Oklahoma University Students Assisting Research on Bison Kill Sites and Folsom Culture
Lee Bement’s lab has an interesting choice of decor — bison skulls — adorning the walls and lining the long lab benches, where more skulls and bones rest for analysis. Bement, an Oklahoma Archaeological Survey employee, ran an archaeological field school during the summer for OU students and others interested in archaeology to excavate a bison kill site. http://www.oudaily.com/news/2011/oct/14/students-help-trace-states-past-american-bison-bon/

Recent Archaeological Discoveries in Southern Texas Sparking Public Interest
Revived interest in the 1813 Battle of Medina and a recent discovery of prehistoric artifacts near Brackenridge Park have renewed a passion for archaeology in South Texas, members of a local historical group said Saturday. Wilson McKinney, chairman of the Southern Texas Archaeological Association, said a resurgent interest in Texas history, driven in part by this year’s 175th anniversary of Texas’ independence from Mexico, has generated curiosity about the bloodiest battle in Texas history.  http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Brackenridge-find-celebrated-for-Archaeology-Month-2220532.php#ixzz1axjA5Lc2

Congress Recognizes National Archaeology (Oct. 22)
The Archaeological Institute of America (AIA), headquartered at Boston University and comprised of over 235,000 members, will lead 108 of its local societies in a host of public educational activities to demonstrate the value of archaeological pursuits. AIA will also join with the American Anthropological Association, Society for American Archaeology, Society for Historical Archaeology, and American Schools of Oriental Research in collaborative efforts to reach out to over 100 cities across the United States through online events.  http://www.archaeological.org/news/aianews/6796

Update on Gila Cliff Dwellings Closure
The Park Service has announced that the Gila Cliff Dwellings are expected to reopen around Thanksgiving, Nov. 24th, instead of December 26th, as was previously reported.  Tours of the the TJ Site, a Classic Mimbres village, are available by reservation. Tours will will be offered daily at 11 am and 2 pm.  Tours are limited to 20 persons and take approximately 1 1/2 hours. Ten spaces on each tour may be reserved in advance by calling the Gila Visitor Center at 575-536-9461

Call for Entries – Poster Art for the 2012 Arizona Archaeology and Heritage Awareness Month
The Arizona State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) is pleased to announce a call for original designs to be used on the 2012 Arizona Archaeology and Heritage Awareness Month (AAHAM) poster.  The winning poster design will receive $200.00!   In addition to being featured on the AAHAM poster, the chosen design will also be utilized on other 2012 AAHAM publicity tools, e.g., the statewide Listing of Events brochure, bookmarks, websites, and other venues/materials to be determined by the SHPO. https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/sat/2012 _poster.doc – MS Word Document.

Lecture Opportunity (Tucson)
AAHS September Lecture, 17 October, DuVal Auditorium (inside UMC), 1501 N. Campbell Ave., 7:30 PM. Janet Lever-Wood and Laurie Webster present “What’s in the Bag? A New Look at Ancient Bags through Museum Collections and Rock Art.” In this presentation, a rock-art researcher and an archaeological perishables specialist team up to explore a variety of questions related to bags. How are they depicted in rock art? What forms are portrayed? In what contexts do they occur? What kinds of archaeological examples survive in museum collections, how were they made, and what did they contain? Taken together, what do these multiple lines of evidence suggest about the uses of bags in the ancient Southwest? Drawing from rock art images from the San Juan River corridor of southeastern Utah, depictions from other regions, the Southwestern archaeological literature, and ethnographic information from other parts of the world, we embark on a visual and cultural exploration of this rarely considered, but always ubiquitous, item of material culture. http://www.az-arch-and-hist.org/

Urban Outfitters “Navajo” Product Line  Called Offensive and Possibly Illegal
Fashion retailer Urban Outfitters has landed in hot water after a scathing letter points out its (potentially illegal) fascination with all things Navajo. Earlier this week, Sasha Houston Brown of Minneapolis published an open letter to the company’s CEO as a guest contributor on the blog Racialicious. Brown posits that the frequent use of “Navajo” to describe and market Urban Outfitters’ products is offensive, and moreover, a possible violation of federal law. http://tinyurl.com/3bvxttg and http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/10/12/urban-outfitters-taken-to-task-for-faux-navajo-products/