2017
19
Jan
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make a Shell Tinkler
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(January 19, 2017)—Shell tinklers are a relatively common shell artifact we find in Hohokam and Salado archaeological sites in southern Arizona. Most are made of Conus shell or Olivella shell, both of which come from the ...
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2016
22
Dec
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Incise Bone
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(December 22, 2016)—Last-minute holiday gift idea! Review my previous post on how to make bone awls, and then check out this post to learn how to decorate your awl.
For this project, I used a large bone awl made out of...
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2016
21
Dec
New Site Protection Acquisition: The Taylor Site
Andy Laurenzi, Southwest Field Representative
(December 21, 2016)—Beginning with a visit in 1692, Padre Eusebio Francisco Kino and various representatives of the Spanish crown traveled on several occasions along much of the San Pedro River within what is now Arizona. They encountered a number o...
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2016
20
Dec
Celebrating a Mammoth Dust-Up in Bluff
R. E. Burrillo, University of Utah
San Juan County is no stranger to controversy. A divisive and tragic bust of archaeological looters took place in Blanding between 2007 and 2009. In 2014, a group of fed-up locals followed a county commissioner on an illegal “protest ride” through a popul...
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2016
16
Dec
Disappointing Discoveries
Aaron Wright, Preservation Archaeologist
(December 16, 2016)—Some of the most exciting dimensions of archaeological work are the instances of discovery—identifying new sites on survey; unearthing features at the bottom of an excavation unit; finding interesting artifacts in the screen; peer...
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2016
12
Dec
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make a Bone Awl
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(December 12, 2016)—You might have seen pictures on our Facebook page from a bone-tool making workshop I did recently. Here they are in case you missed them. And now here's a post on how to make a bone awl. You can also s...
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2016
06
Dec
The Fornholt Retrospective: An Introduction
Katherine Dungan, Preservation Archaeologist
(December 6, 2016)—The archaeological site that we call Fornholt sits on a ridge overlooking the grassy, well-watered valley that surrounds Mule Creek, in southwestern New Mexico. Today, the most visible parts of the site are the two architectural moun...
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2016
14
Nov
The Power of Symbols
Karen Gust Schollmeyer, Preservation Archaeologist
(November 14, 2016)—As an anthropologist, I think about the power of symbols, and their power to unite or divide.
When I taught traditional classroom anthropology courses, this was one of the key concepts we discussed. As a young teaching assis...
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2016
03
Nov
Learning the Secrets
Andy Ward, Potter and New Media Consultant
(October 27, 2016)—Yesterday afternoon I drove out onto the Willcox Playa, where I dug down about a foot deep and found a rich layer of greenish clay, and now that clay is soaking in a bucket on my back porch. Over the last couple of weeks I have sampl...
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2016
28
Oct
Salad Spinners, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometers, and Bones
Karen Gust Schollmeyer, Preservation Archaeologist
(October 28, 2016)—October introduced me to an unexpected new archaeological research tool: the salad spinner.
I’ve just returned from a very busy two weeks in southwest Colorado, where archaeological chemistry expert Jeff Ferguson and I...
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2016
21
Oct
Department of Interior Announces BLM-BIA Cooperative Effort on Oil-Gas Leasing across the Greater Chaco Landscape
Paul F. Reed, Preservation Archaeologist
(October 21, 2016)—The Department of Interior has just announced that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Farmington Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will be partnering on an expanded analysis of oil & gas leasing and management on public and tribal ...
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2016
13
Oct
Bridges
As International Archaeology Day (October 15, 2016) approaches, we’re celebrating by sharing posts about what we’re working on now—the daily work of archaeology.
Lewis Borck, Preservation Archaeologist
(October 13, 2016)—Hey, all. I wanted to chat a bit about what I’m doing outside o...
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