Dear Friends,
Several weeks ago, Preservation Archaeologists Karen Schollmeyer and Allen Denoyer returned to Tucson after an exhilarating AND exhausting six weeks in Silver City, New Mexico. There, they led the inaugural season of Archaeology Southwest’s new Preservation Archaeology Museum Curation and Survey Field School.
Archaeology Southwest has a decades-long history of running archaeological field schools to help prepare the next generation of professional archaeologists, often in conjunction with the University of Arizona and other partners. So, what was new about this year’s field school?
Quite simply, this year it did not include excavation. Instead, Karen and Allen focused on teaching students how to work with previously excavated collections and how to do archaeological survey and experimental archaeology. It therefore continues our emphasis on Preservation Archaeology—noninvasive, nondestructive research with an eye toward site and landscape conservation.
Archaeology Southwest worked with a new partner—the Western New Mexico University (WNMU) Museum—as well as our long-term partner the School of Anthropology at the University of Arizona. WNMU Museum and curator Danni Romero provided us with a venue in which to work and a wonderful collection from the so-called NAN Ranch Project of the 1970s and 1980s. The NAN Ranch archaeological site is a Classic Mimbres period (1000–1130 CE) village that was excavated by the Texas A&M University field school. Unfortunately, those collections have not received much scholarly attention in the last half-century; our field school seeks to rectify that.
Karen and Allen’s archaeological survey activities occurred in areas near the site, which sits in the picturesque Mimbres Valley of southwestern New Mexico. Experimental archaeology activities focused on replicating and understanding ancient technologies help students better understand how the items they saw in the museum collections and on survey were made and used. Twelve students from across the country lived in the WNMU campus dorms while learning how to undertake ethically grounded archaeological research.
Special thanks to Karen, Allen, and the rest of their team! And keep your eye on these pages for some blog posts written by their students, sharing some of their experiences!
Until next week,
Steve Nash
President & CEO, Archaeology Southwest
Interview with Preservation Archaeology Field School Alumni Jonathan Hazel and Lydia-Ann Snyder
This summer, two Arizona State University students were chosen to participate in the collaborative field school in Tucson, Arizona, and Silver City, New Mexico. We talked with the students about their experiences as an ASU Online student and in-person student. Jonathan Hazel was an ASU Online student who majored in history and anthropology and recently graduated. Lydia-Ann Snyder is an in-person student at Arizona State University majoring in anthropology and double minoring in Art History and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Nicole Pomerantz for Arizona State University News | Read more »
Archaeology Café Season 16: Dogs!
Unleash your curiosity at the 2024–2025 season of Archaeology Café: Dogs! This season, we’re diving into the fascinating relationship between humans and canines. Join us as we explore this enduring bond across time and cultures. Experts in archaeology, zooarchaeology, and biology will guide us through six paw-some lectures, covering everything from the role of dogs in past societies to their impact on art, stories, and daily life. Whether you’re a dog lover or just eager to learn, this series will be a real treat! Join us in person at the vibrant Catalyst in Tucson Mall from October through April (skipping January). Doors open at 5:30 p.m., where you’ll be greeted with charcuterie, libations, and great company—and well-behaved pups are welcome to come, too. Programs start at 6:00 p.m. Can’t make it to Catalyst? Don’t worry! You can still fetch the talks on our YouTube channel a few days later. Archaeology Café (Archaeology Southwest) | Learn more »
Oct. 1: Celebrating the Song Dogs with R. E. Burrillo | More »
NAGPRA Compliance at Oberlin College
“When the original 1990 NAGPRA law went into effect, the Allen [Memorial Art Museum] did go through its collections of Native American or Indigenous American works, and sent relevant information back to the federal government,” AMAM Director Andria Derstine said. “That item, because it was cataloged as Peruvian, which we’ve determined to be a mistake, wasn’t included in that.” The piece has already been deaccessioned from the Allen’s collection. Derstine worked alongside [Amy] Margaris, who also serves as NAGPRA Compliance Officer for the College, to complete the necessary correspondence for repatriation to three Cherokee tribes in the aforementioned area. Throughout this process, Margaris and Derstine worked closely with Sundance, a member of the Muskogee people. Sundance works as the executive director of the Cleveland American Indian Movement and business coordinator for the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association, and sits on the Oberlin Indigenous Peoples’ Day Committee. He also is a fervent advocate for Indigenous self-determination, including work with repatriation and rematriation. Eloise Rich in the Oberlin Review | Read more »
Publication Announcement: SAA Archaeological Record
September 2024, Vol. 24, No. 4, includes articles by Thomas J. Pluckhahn, John W. Hoopes, Monica L. Smith, and Ruth Van Dyke with Julia Coverdale, Daniel Hampson, Jessica Weinmeister, and Liv Winnicki. Society for American Archaeology | Read now (open access) »
September Live Lectures (Santa Fe NM)
Sept. 16 Nicolasa Chavez, M.A., History of Flamenco; Sept. 23, Dr. D. Clark Wernecke, Peopling of the Americas and the Central Texas Gault Site; Sept. 30, Iva Honyeestewa (Hopi Second Mesa), Hopi Second Mesa Weaving. 6:00 p.m., Hotel Santa Fe. $20 at the door of $90 for the series of 5 lectures. Southwest Seminars | Learn more »
REMINDER: Sept. 16 Online Event: Community Landscapes, Community Identity
With Suzanne Eckert. The Lion Mountain area is located at the boundaries of three cultural traditions: the Rio Grande region, the Cibola region, and the Mogollon region. Over time, residents of the region built a Chaco Great House, built several post-Chacoan great houses, and witnessed the arrival of immigrants from the Four Corners region. Steve Lekson aptly described this area as one with a “mixed but interesting cultural-historical dynamic”. Understanding this dynamic has been the focus of the Lion Mountain Archaeological Project (LMAP) since 2015. Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society | Learn more and register (free) »
Sept. 17 Online Seminar: Archaeological Collections Careers: A Guide for Developing the Skills to Land the Job You Want
Are you interested in a career working with archaeological collections? Perhaps you’re drawn to preserving and organizing artifacts and associated records in a repository. Maybe conservation in the field most intrigues you. It could be broadening access to digital data, creating custom object mounts to meet the needs of Indigenous communities, or countless other tasks that collections personnel undertake daily. Whatever the case, this two-hour seminar will introduce participants to the types of collections jobs across archaeological sectors (cultural resource management, academic, government, and tribal) and provide a framework to develop the necessary skills for different positions. Registration fees apply. Society for American Archaeology | Learn more »
Sept. 18 In-Person Event (San Lorenzo NM): MUD
With Allen Denoyer. Allen will use examples from his years of experimental archaeology projects to introduce us to the wonderful world of MUD, ranging from how mud is utilized in pithouse construction, to excavations of mud-built agricultural fields, to the amazing impressions that can be found in prehistoric mud. 6:00 p.m.: the GCAS in-person monthly meeting begins with the last potluck of the summer at the Roundup Lodge in San Lorenzo (Mimbres Valley). As usual bring your own plates & utensils, and a dish for yourself or to share. A brief business meeting follows at about 6:45 p.m. Grant County Archaeological Society | Learn more »
REMINDER: Sept. 19 Online Event: Archaeology on the Rocks: Investigating an 18th-century Spanish Land Grant in Tijeras Canyon, NM
With Kelly L. Jenks. In 1763, New Mexico’s Spanish colonial Governor Cachupín approved an application by 19 petitioners for a grant of community land east of Albuquerque in Cañón de Carnué, now known as Tijeras Canyon. The grantees were expected to defend these lands by building a fortified plaza. The governor also stipulated that these lands were to be used for agricultural purposes. Seven years later, Apaches attacked this settlement and the survivors fled the canyon. When they refused to resettle, they were ordered to go back and destroy their homes. The New Mexico State University Archaeological Field School resurveyed the site of this 18th-century plaza in 2021 and returned in 2022 to do test excavation, stabilization work, and more survey, and to investigate artifacts from a 1946 field school at this site. These projects offer intriguing new insights into who these people were, why they settled in this place, how they made their living, and what happened when they left. Third Thursday Food for Thought Series (Old Pueblo Archaeology Center) | Learn more and register (free) »
REMINDER: Sept. 19 Online Event: The Legacy of Paquimé
With John Douglas. Was this agriculturally fertile valley truly abandoned after a single cataclysmic event? Could there be continuities between ancient Paquimé and the Indigenous people whom the Spanish attempted to missionize? Addressing the first question, contemporary researchers increasingly find reason to doubt [archaeologist Charles] Di Peso’s apocalyptic vision. The second question fuels this presentation, focusing on the enigmatic Suma and their relationship to Paquimé. The webinar will begin with reconsidering the colonial documentary evidence and then turn to the archaeological record at Mission San Antonio. There, Dr. Douglas explores architecture, burial data, and ceramics, looking for linkages with the ancient past. Crow Canyon Archaeological Center | Learn more and register (free) »
Sept. 21 In-Person Event (Blanding UT): Edge of the Cedars Open House
10:00 a.m.: Artist/archaeologist Joe Pachak will lead a tour to discuss the Solar Sculpture on the museum’s campus; noon: Meet the artist and exhibit opening for “Sinagua,” an exhibit by photographer Steve Bridgehouse that considers the pueblo architecture and landscapes of Wupatki National Monument (in nearby northern Arizona); 2:00 p.m.: Archaeologists Connie Massingale and Jonathan Till will present a discussion of the whole vessel collection in the Edge of the Cedars Visible Storage Room (over 800 vessels) as a part of the Four Corners Lecture Series. Throughout the day Hopi artist Duane Tawahongva will be on-site demonstrating his work as a jeweler. Visitors may also see the recently installed exhibit, “100 Years of Silence” (with thanks to the communities of White Mesa and Towaoc). Tours of the museum’s repository and the Edge of the Cedars Pueblo will also be offered. For more information call 435-678-2238. Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum | Learn more »
Sept. 26 Online Event: Caretakers of the Land: A Story of Farming and Community in San Xavier
With Jacelle Ramon-Sauberan. Farming has always been the way of life for the Tohono O’odham community in San Xavier, located just south of Tucson. Their way of life depended on access to the land and to the water, namely the Santa Cruz River, which nourished agriculture in the area for generations. But a history of division sown through government land allotments and land development plans, coupled with the declining flow of the Santa Cruz, fractured community farming. How did the community come together to revitalize the land for future generations? What lessons can we learn from their story? Crow Canyon Archaeology Center | Learn more and register (free) »
Sept. 28 In-Person Event (Cortez CO): Sand Canyon Clean-up
Celebrate National Public Lands Day by helping BLM rangers clean up along Road G into Sand Canyon! Southwest Colorado Canyons Alliance and Canyons of the Ancients National Monument | Learn more »
Oct. 9 In-Person Event (Cave Creek AZ): Triangulating Piipaash History along the Lower Gila River
With Aaron Wright. Good Shepherd of the Hills Episcopal Church, Maitland Hall 6502 E. Cave Creek Rd., Cave Creek, Arizona. Talk begins at 7:30 p.m. Arizona Archaeological Society (Desert Foothills Chapter) | Learn more »
Oct.10–11 In-Person Event (Tucson AZ): Used Book Sale & Benefit
AAHS will hold its annual fall Book Sale on Thursday afternoon, October 10 (1–4 p.m.), and Friday, October 11 (10–4 p.m.), in front of the Arizona State Museum Building. Proceeds from the sale support the Arizona State Museum Library. Come browse and buy anthropology, history, biography, and general non-fiction books. New inventory including many beautiful American Indian Art books. Books are priced from $2.00 to $20.00. Due to ongoing restoration work at the Arizona State Museum, this may be our last book sale for some time, so don’t miss it. Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society | Learn more »
Oct. 17 Online Event: New Archaeological Insights from Ancient DNA
With Jakob Sedig. Ancient DNA data from over 300 individuals are providing new insights on the peoples who lived in central, western, and northern Mexico hundreds and thousands of years ago. These data have shed light for answering long-standing questions about migration and interaction of different archaeological cultures in key eras of Mexico’s past. Third Thursday Food for Thought series (Old Pueblo Archaeology Center) | Learn more and register (free) »
Remember to send us notice of upcoming webinars and Zoom lectures, tours and workshops, and anything else you’d like to share with the Friends. Thanks!