PREHISTORIC INDIANS OF THE SOUTHWEST

by
H. M. WORMINGTON
Curator of Archaeology

SEAL OF COLORADO MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY · 1900
NIL SINE NUMINE

APPENDIX: OUTSTANDING EXHIBIT-SITES, MODERN PUEBLOS, LOCAL MUSEUMS
By Erik K. Reed
Regional Archaeologist, National Park Service

THE DENVER MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
Denver, Colorado

Popular Series No. 7 Seventh Printing, 1966
First Edition, 1947

PREFACE

During the past 25,000 years the Southwest has been invaded many times. Now each year comes a fresh invasion—an invasion of those who have succumbed to its beauty and strange, inexplicable charm. There is something infectious about the magic of the Southwest. Some are immune to it, but there are others who have no resistance to the subtle virus and who must spend the rest of their lives dreaming of the incredible sweep of the desert, of great golden mesas with purple shadows, and tremendous stars appearing at dusk from a turquoise sky. Once infected there is nothing one can do but strive to return again and again.

For many, a good portion of this charm lies in the intangible presence of the “Ancient Ones”, the people who lived in these enchanted deserts and plateaus through many centuries. One can see the places where they lived and often one finds bits of pottery which show the immemorial striving for beauty of some long dead craftsman. It is natural to want to know more of these prehistoric people and how they lived and it is the aim of this book to try to tell that story; not in technical terms intelligible only to the professional scientist but in a way that will make it of interest to the layman and the undergraduate student. It is also an attempt to give at least a partial answer to the two questions which inevitably arise when one considers the cultures of antiquity—“How do you know these things?” and, “How old are they?”

There is always the hope, too, that publications such as this may serve a further purpose. If more people understand some of the complexities of excavation and realize how much information may be obtained by a trained investigator, perhaps there will be less of the unscientific “pot-hunting” which leads to the looting of ancient sites and which every year is destroying an untold amount of irreplaceable data.

Constant references to source material, which are characteristic of technical publications, are impractical in a book of this nature, for they spoil the continuity of the narrative. It would be unfair, however, not to give credit to the many fine archaeologists whose work has provided this knowledge, and it is desirable for the reader to know which publications to consult if he seeks more detailed information. Numbers in fine print which appear throughout the text refer to publications, listed under corresponding numbers in the bibliography, from which the information under consideration was derived.

Although every effort has been made to avoid the use of unfamiliar terms, this has not always been possible. A [glossary] of technical terms will be found in the back of the book.

The task of writing this book has been made a pleasant one by the fine cooperation of archaeologists and anthropologists. It is doubtful if the members of any other profession would have given more unstintingly of their time and have been more wholeheartedly willing to help and cooperate in every possible way. I am deeply indebted to Dr. Harold S. Colton, Dr. Edward T. Hall, Jr., Dr. Emil W. Haury, Dale S. King, Dr. Erik K. Reed, Charles Steen, Dr. Walter Taylor, and Dr. Ruth Underhill for checking and criticizing the manuscript or portions of it. Their suggestions have been of the greatest possible value. They are not, however, responsible in any way for any archaeological sins of commission or omission which may follow.

I am most grateful to Earl H. Morris for graciously furnishing hitherto unpublished data on his excavation of Basketmaker houses and to Harold S. Gladwin and Emil W. Haury for permitting me to use information contained in personal letters.

The kindness of F. H. Douglas, who put his excellent library at my disposal, is greatly appreciated. Without his assistance, and that of Marian Sheets who helped to assemble the necessary references, the work could never have been completed.

My thanks are due to the American Museum of Natural History, the Arizona State Museum, Columbia University Press, Gila Pueblo, the Laboratory of Anthropology, Mesa Verde National Park, the Museum of Northern Arizona, the National Park Service, Peabody Museum of Harvard University, and the Taylor Museum for providing needed photographs. I am also very grateful to Gila Pueblo, the Laboratory of Anthropology, the Museum of Northern Arizona, and the Smithsonian Institution for permission to reproduce plates and figures from their publications.

To Mary Chilton Gray, I wish to express my appreciation of her fine execution of the cover design and the line drawings. The pattern used on the cover is derived from an encircling band on a Mesa Verde bowl. The services of Walker Van Riper, who devoted many hours to checking spelling and punctuation in the manuscript and to proof-reading, were of immeasurable assistance. I am also greatly indebted to Nedra McHenry, to Harvey C. Markman and to Margaret Roush for their assistance in proof-reading. Dr. Alfred M. Bailey and Albert C. Rogers gave valuable aid in the preparation of photographs.

Most especially I am grateful to my husband, George D. Volk, for his unfailing interest and understanding and for the preparation of the maps and the execution of the lettering on illustrations.

My sincere thanks are due to Dr. Alfred M. Bailey, Director of the Colorado Museum of Natural History, who made it possible for this book to be written and published, and to Charles H. Hanington, President of the Board of Trustees, for his constant interest in the project.

H. M. Wormington

Denver, Colorado

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE [Preface] 3 [Chapter I—Introduction] 11 [Chapter II—The Most Ancient Cultures] 20 [Sandia] 20 [Folsom] 20 [San Jon] 22 [Yuma] 22 [Gypsum Cave] 22 [Cochise] 22 [Tabeguache Cave] 26 [Chapter III—The Anasazi Culture] 27 [General Remarks] 27 [The Basketmaker Period] 27 [The Modified-Basketmaker Period] 49 [Summary] 56 [The Developmental-Pueblo Period] 57 [Peripheral Areas] 72 [Summary] 75 [The Great Pueblo Period] 76 [The Largo-Gallina Phase] 102 [Athapaskan People] 105 [Summary] 106 [The Regressive and Historic Pueblo Periods] 107 [Chapter IV—The Hohokam Culture] 118 [General Remarks] 118 [The Pioneer Period] 120 [The Colonial Period] 124 [The Sedentary Period] 132 [The Classic Period] 137 [The Recent Hohokam] 144 [Summary] 146 [Chapter V—The Mogollon Culture] 148 [General Remarks] 148 [Bluff Ruin] 150 [The Pine Lawn Phase] 151 [The Georgetown Phase] 152 [The San Francisco Phase] 153 [Bear Ruin] 155 [The Three Circle Phase] 157 [The Mimbres Phase] 158 [Summary] 161 [Chapter VI—The Sinagua People] 163 [Chapter VII—The Patayan Culture] 167 [Conclusion] 169 [Glossary] 170 [Bibliography] 174 [Appendix by Erik K. Reed] 181 [Outstanding Exhibit-Sites] 181 [Modern Pueblos] 185 [Local Museums] 186 [Index] 187

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE [1. Diagram to illustrate chronology-building with tree-rings] 15 [2. Map showing sites referred to in Chapter II] 21 [3. Projectile points of the most ancient cultures] 23 [4. Folsom diorama] 25 [5. Map showing sites referred to in Chapter III] 28 [6. Basketmaker mummy] 30 [7. Basketmaker diorama] 32 [8. Basketmaker and Modified-Basketmaker sandals] 34 [9. Atlatl and grooved club] 39 [10. Weaving techniques] 41 [11. Basketmaker coiled baskets] 42 [12. Basketmaker carrying basket with tump strap] 43 [13. Basketmaker twined-woven bags] 44 [14. Mummies of two varieties of Basketmaker dogs] 47 [15. Modified-Basketmaker diorama] 48 [16. Modified-Basketmaker house after excavation] 50 [17. Postulated method of Modified-Basketmaker house construction] 51 [18. Modified-Basketmaker figurine and nipple-shaped object] 54 [19. Developmental-Pueblo diorama] 58 [20. Undeformed and deformed skulls] 60 [21. Interior view of a kiva] 65 [22. Corrugated pottery] 66 [23. Black-on-white pottery, Developmental-Pueblo period] 67 [24. Neck-banded vessel, Developmental-Pueblo period] 68 [25. Developmental-Pueblo and Great-Pueblo sandal] 69 [26. Rosa pit house after excavation] 74 [27. Great Pueblo Diorama] 77 [28. Types of Great-Pueblo masonry] 83 [29. Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon National Monument, New Mexico] 85 [30. Chaco black-on-white pottery of the Great-Pueblo period] 88 [31. Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado] 92 [32. Mesa Verde black-on-white pottery of the Great-Pueblo period] 95 [33. Betatakin, Navajo National Monument, Arizona] 98 [34. Black-on-white pottery from the Kayenta area, Great-Pueblo period] 100 [35. Largo surface house and artifacts] 103 [36. Cavate dwellings and talus houses at Bandelier National Monument] 109 [37. Tyuonyi, Bandelier National Monument] 111 [38. Glazed ware from the Rio Grande area, Regressive Pueblo period] 112 [39. Biscuit ware from the Rio Grande area, Regressive Pueblo period] 113 [40. Hopi maiden] 116 [41. Map showing sites referred to in Chapter IV] 119 [42. Hohokam figurines] 123 [43. Hohokam house and ball court, Colonial period] 126 [44. Red-on-buff Hohokam vessel, Colonial period] 128 [45. Hohokam carved stone vessel, Colonial period] 130 [46. Hohokam ornaments of carved shell] 131 [47. Red-on-buff Hohokam jars, Sedentary period] 133 [48. Hohokam stone palette, Sedentary period] 134 [49. Hohokam etched shell, Sedentary period] 136 [50. Salado polychrome ware] 138 [51. Big house built by the Salado people, Casa Grande National Monument] 141 [52. Child’s cotton poncho from Ventana Cave, Desert Hohokam] 143 [53. Pima House in 1897] 145 [54. Map showing sites referred to in Chapter V] 149 [55. Postulated reconstructions of the dwelling units of three Mogollon phases] 154 [56. Mimbres black-on-white pottery] 160 [57. Map showing distribution of cultures referred to in Chapters VI and VII] 164 [58. Montezuma Castle National Monument] 165

CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION

Before beginning any discussion of the Southwest it is best to decide exactly what we mean by the word, for it means many things to many people. For the geographer it has one meaning, for the economist another, and for those who study its ancient inhabitants still another. It is in the latter sense that we shall interpret it. To the archaeologist, that is, to the scientist who studies and seeks to interpret the life and times of prehistoric man, the Southwest usually means New Mexico, Arizona, southern Utah, and the southwestern corner of Colorado. Interpreting the term in its broadest sense, he may include the remainder of Utah, southeastern Nevada, southwestern Texas, and northern Mexico. State lines and international boundaries are, of course, recent man-made devices and we must consider this region, not in terms of present political units, but on a cultural and geographic basis.

In the centuries since the Spaniards first arrived the presence of the many imposing ruins which dot the Southwest has naturally led to much speculation about their inhabitants, and the collecting of antiquities has been inevitable. The collecting instinct is such that some relationship between man and the pack rat might well be postulated if it were not that man takes without leaving anything in place of what he has removed.

From the time when the ruins of the prehistoric dwellings of the Southwest were first observed, until about 1880, there was a period of exploration and the more obvious places of archaeological interest were described and superficially investigated. From then, until approximately 1910, much sound work was done but there was an unfortunate tendency toward digging up specimens for their own sake rather than for the information which they could reveal. In the last thirty-five years or so, however, the emphasis has come to be more on the acquiring of information and less on the collection of examples of material [culture]. This has led to the excavation of less physically spectacular ruins, increasing cooperation with workers in related fields of science, and more careful planning of attacks on specific problems.

In a sense the development of [archaeology] in the Southwest may be compared with the putting together of a great jig-saw puzzle. First came the period of general examination of the pieces, then a concentration on the larger and more highly colored pieces, and finally a carefully planned approach to the puzzle as a whole with serious attempts to fill in specific blank areas. After all, archaeology as a science can justify its existence only as it serves to increase and deepen our knowledge of that strange, and to us most fascinating mammal—man.

Archaeologists in the Southwest have been particularly fortunate for a number of reasons. Perhaps most important is that climatic conditions have made possible the preservation of much material which in most climates would have disappeared in a relatively short time. Under sufficiently arid conditions the bacteria of decay cannot survive and the lack of humidity in the Southwest has insured the survival of much material which would normally be lost. Another thing for which archaeologists may be grateful is that pottery-making came to be so well developed in this area, for pottery fragments are almost indestructible. Furthermore, pottery is a most sensitive medium for reflecting change. Since it is fragile there is constant breakage which leads to the frequent manufacture of new pieces and this accelerates the rate of technical change. Archaeologists have learned to recognize certain styles which are characteristic of specific areas and periods and it is remarkable how much information ancient vessels will reveal about the people who made them.

In the course of the following discussion the reader will no doubt grow weary of the word ‘pottery’. However, before he decides that the ancient Southwesterners did nothing but sit around and make pottery or that the writer is the victim of a pottery mania, it might be profitable for him to cast an observant eye about the room in which he is sitting. After the passage of five hundred or a thousand years how much would survive, if one discounted material not available in the most ancient times such as metal, glass, and plastics? High at the top of the list will be dishes, ashtrays, and vases of china or porcelain—the modern counterparts of prehistoric pottery. Also, it may readily be seen that there are differences in style between older and more recent objects. A vase purchased this year is likely to differ in many respects from one acquired even as little as twenty-five or fifty years ago.

An amazing amount of information can also be derived from the microscopic study of pottery. Trained investigators can examine thin sections under a microscope and identify the materials used in manufacture and often locate their sources. With this information it is then possible to determine whether pottery was locally made or imported. This tells us a great deal about the cultural relationships of ancient people, for trade implies contact between people which will affect other phases of their [culture]. In prehistoric times, when people lacked rapid means of transportation and communication, human groups were naturally isolated as they can never be again, but even then cultural units were affected by the activities of the inhabitants of other regions. Accordingly, we cannot see the ancient life of the Southwest in true perspective if we do not know something of the inter-relations of the various cultures.

One of the great boons to southwestern [archaeology] has been [dendrochronology]—a system which has made it possible to establish an absolute count of years through the pattern combinations of annual growth rings of trees. The inevitable question which arises in connection with anything prehistoric is “How old is it?”, and prior to the introduction of tree-ring dating it was difficult to answer except in relative terms, for in the Southwest we are dealing with a people who left no written records. It is remarkable, however, how much had been accomplished in establishing relative [chronology] through the use of stratigraphic studies and the cross-checking of sites.

It is on the principle of [stratification] that most archaeological work must rest. The word means the characteristic of being in layers or strata. The usefulness of stratigraphic studies lies in the fact that in any undisturbed deposit the lowest layer or stratum will be the oldest since it was laid down first. This may be shown graphically by piling books on a table, one by one. The book at the bottom of the pile must inevitably have been put in place before the ones on top. The same principle is applied to ancient cultures. If the remains of one people are found underlying those of another, those on the bottom are older.

Rarely are the remains of many cultures found lying directly over each other in a complete series but through correlation between sites the sequence may be established. For example, if in one place we find remains of [Culture] A underlying those of Culture B and in another place find material from Culture B underlying that of Culture C we may postulate that C is more recent than A even though the two are not found together. In still another place C may be found to underlie D and eventually a long sequence will be established, although it may not be present in its entirety in any one place.

Objects acquired through trade are also useful in dating sites. For example, if we know the relative or absolute date at which a certain type of pottery was being made at one site, then find pieces of this ware at a site which we are trying to date we may assume at least some degree of contemporaneity.

Stratigraphic studies, of course, do not provide us with absolute dates and for those we must turn to [dendrochronology] or tree-ring dating.[23][121] The story of the development of this method is a strange one. It is a tale of an astronomer and archaeologists, of buried treasure that was only wood, of sun spots, and of purple chiffon velvet. Most important of all was the astronomer, for it was in his keen mind that the idea was born that was to lead to one of the most exciting scientific discoveries of our time.

The astronomer was Dr. A. E. Douglass, who was engaged in the study of the effect of sun spots on climatic conditions. The available meteorological records, of course, went back only a relatively few years and it soon became apparent that a much longer record must be obtained to be of any real value. In searching for information about climatic conditions for past centuries, Dr. Douglass thought of pines, for they may reach a great age and the presence or absence of adequate rainfall, particularly in a climate like Arizona’s, will greatly affect the development of a tree. Every year a new layer of wood is added to the entire living surface of a pine. The size of these layers, which show up as rings when the tree is cut and viewed in cross-section, varies with the amount of food and moisture which the tree has obtained in the course of the year. A dry year will produce a thin ring and a wet year will produce a wide one. By cutting down old trees it was thus possible to learn what the climatic conditions had been during the years of their life. None of the pines which were still living, however, had existed for more than a few hundred years, and the giant sequoias of California which would have covered a longer span did not reflect climatic change in the same way.

Fortunately, through the study of living trees, Dr. Douglass had learned that the tree-rings over a period of years formed a distinct pattern which could be recognized when found on most conifers. Next he began to search for trees which had been cut perhaps many years before, but which contained a pattern which fitted some early portion of that tree whose cutting date was known. This led him to beams made from whole logs which have been a characteristic feature of Southwestern architecture for many centuries. By finding old beams whose outer rings formed the same pattern as the inner rings of living trees the known [chronology] was increased. Through correlating the patterns of progressively older trees with younger ones the pattern was finally established for the period between 1280 and 1929.

Fig. 1—Diagram to illustrate chronology-building with tree rings. Because of space limitation the number of rings in the overlapping specimens has been arbitrarily reduced. (After Stallings.[121] Courtesy Laboratory of Anthropology.)

THE RING PATTERNS MATCH AND OVERLAP BACK INTO TIME A THIS WAS A LIVING TREE WHEN CUT BY US DATE OF LAST RING IS THAT OF YEAR WHEN WE CUT TREE B THIS BEAM CAME FROM A HOUSE THIS DATE OBTAINED BY COUNTING BACK FROM BARK OF A C THIS BEAM CAME FROM AN OLD HOUSE THIS DATE OBTAINED BY COUNTING BACK FROM BARK OF A THROUGH B SPECIMENS TAKEN FROM RUINS WHEN MATCHED AND OVERLAPPED AS INDICATED PROGRESSIVELY EXTEND THE DATING BACK INTO PREHISTORIC TIMES

Next Dr. Douglass began to examine beams from prehistoric sites. From these a continuous sequence of tree-ring patterns was established for a period of 580 years. Unfortunately though, it could not be correlated with the sequence starting in 1280. Relative dates could be obtained and it could be determined how many years had intervened between the occupation of different sites but there was as yet no way of correlating these dates with the Christian calendar. The next step was to seek to bridge the gap between the floating [chronology] of relative dates and that which carried up to the present day and gave absolute dates.

The search for the missing sequence was begun in the Hopi villages in Arizona where one, Oraibi, has been continuously occupied since before the coming of the first white men in 1540. The fact that many of the logs had been cut with stone axes indicated a considerable age. The Hopis, as might be expected, were not overly enthusiastic about the arrival of American scientists who wanted to saw cross-sections from the beams of their buildings and bore holes in other timbers where cutting was not practical. Dr. Douglass did much to solve this problem by presenting the chief with yards and yards of beautiful purple chiffon velvet which delighted him. Dr. Douglass and his associates also did a great deal to mollify the Indians by treating their ancient customs with respect. In many cases, for example, they placed bits of turquoise in holes made in extracting cores in order to “appease the spirit of decay”. One remarkable piece of timber was found which gave an extraordinarily clear series of rings from 1260 to 1344. What made it of particular interest was not only that it lengthened the known [chronology] but that it had been in continuous use from the time it was cut until 1906 when the section of the village in which it was found was abandoned.

Many beams were studied, but no others were found whose inner rings predated 1300. The search was next begun in ruins of villages traditionally occupied by the Hopis prior to moving to their present location. Of particular interest was the Showlow ruin, for pottery finds suggested that it had been the home of Hopis in pre-Spanish times and its proximity to a great pine forest suggested that wood must have been readily available for building purposes. It was here that one of the most famous pieces of wood in the world was found.

The decaying, partially burned, piece of wood to which the field number HH39 was given was not impressive in appearance but it was a treasure, more valuable to those who found it than any buried pirate gold for which adventurers might dig. As it was examined the climatic conditions of year after year were revealed, new ring combinations were established and the [chronology] was carried back to 1237 A.D., the year in which this tree had begun its life. A comparison with the ring patterns of the floating chronology showed that its 551st ring checked with that for 1251 in Beam HH39. June 22, 1929, the date on which this beam was found, is a red letter day in the history of American [archaeology], for from that day it became possible to date many ruins in the Southwest, not only in a comparative sense, but in terms of the Christian calendar. Actually, of course, the floating and the absolute chronology had already overlapped but the evidence had been based on such small fragments as to be unconvincing. Duplication of ring patterns may occur if only a few rings are used. It is only if a pattern covering fifty or more rings is available that one may be assured of correct dating. It was not until the discovery of Beam HH39 that final proof was available.

In the years which have elapsed since 1929 much further work has been done by Dr. Douglass and his associates, who include many brilliant students whom he has trained. The tree ring [chronology] now stretches back to 11 A.D.

Great as was the importance of being able to establish absolute dates for a people who had left no written records, this was not the only contribution made by what have been aptly called “the talkative tree-rings”.[23] The life of man, and particularly primitive man, is greatly influenced by climatic conditions and in an arid climate such as that of the Southwest the difference between drought and adequate rainfall may, quite literally, be the difference between life and death.

It is naturally an inestimable boon to the archaeologist to know the conditions under which the people he is studying lived and it enables him to understand many things, such as periods marked by expansion or by the abandonment of certain areas, which would otherwise be unintelligible.

Important as [dendrochronology] is, it is far from being the only outside science upon which archaeologists must depend. The records left by Spanish historians, who found the Pueblo Indians in the 16th century still untouched by European civilization and living essentially the same sort of life as their ancestors, have provided invaluable information. Also of great importance has been the work of ethnologists, scientists who analyze the [culture] of living primitive people. In the Southwest archaeologists are particularly fortunate, for in many cases descendents of the prehistoric people whom they study are still living in the same general area and under very similar circumstances. In spite of the outside influences to which they have been subjected there is still much to be learned from them. The knowledge of these people garnered by the historian and the ethnologist, added to that obtained by the archaeologist, gives us a far better picture of the life of prehistoric times.

Although a study of material [culture] tells a great deal about a people, there is much of their social, political and religious life which it cannot reveal unless supplementary information is available. There are grave dangers inherent in too great a concentration on material culture. It has been said of the archaeologist that “sometimes he cannot see the people for the walls”[125] and it is the people themselves, after all, who are important.

Two examples will show how [ethnology] and [archaeology] may complement each other. In certain prehistoric sites are found circular underground rooms with highly specialized characteristics. The objects found in these are usually non-utilitarian so that, even if no further information were available, archaeologists would consider them chambers having some religious significance. However, thanks to the fact that similar rooms or kivas, as they are called, are still in use in the modern Pueblo villages, the archaeologist may not only be sure of their ceremonial nature, but he is in a position to understand more of their significance through studying their function in modern Pueblo society. One point demonstrates very clearly how, through correlating ethnological and archaeological evidence, it is possible to understand something of the religious beliefs of people who died hundreds of years ago leaving no written records.

In prehistoric kivas are found small tubelike pits in the floors. If no other information were available the archaeologist would be forced to fall back on simply calling these holes “ceremonial”. The quip that when archaeologists do not know what a thing is they designate it as ceremonial is sufficiently close to the truth to be uncomfortable. In many modern kivas, however, the same type of hole is found. It is symbolic of the mythical place of emergence or route from the underworld from which it is believed that the first people and animals came into the world. Archaeologists refer to it by the Hopi name [Sipapu]. Taking into account the conservatism and dependence on tradition of religions in all parts of the world in all times, it is not too rash to assume that the builders of the prehistoric kivas held some beliefs similar to those of their present day descendents.

Similarly, by equating what we know of the social organization of the Pueblo Indians of today with the evidence from prehistoric times we may postulate that an essentially democratic form of government existed in this section of America long before the signing of the Magna Carta and many centuries before the signers of the American Declaration of Independence were born. It may be asked, what possible information can be gained from ruins which would indicate a democratic way of life. In all the ruins which have been examined all the living quarters were essentially equal. Most anthropologists feel that had there been a marked differentiation between classes, or if all power had been lodged in the hands of a limited number of individuals this would have been reflected in the dwellings. Certain leaders and priests undoubtedly had authority, as they do among the Pueblo Indians of today, but there is no evidence of an autocracy or a ruling class.

This is, obviously, a greatly simplified explanation of some of the many techniques employed by archaeologists in seeking to reconstruct the life of ancient times. No one approach will suffice, but by utilizing many methods numerous scattered bits of information are obtained. These are studied and correlated and at length it is possible to produce an account which is at least a reasonable approximation of the truth.

CHAPTER II
THE MOST ANCIENT CULTURES

At least 25,000 years ago there were men in New Mexico who lived in caves and hunted animals, many of which no longer exist. Over 10,000 years ago there were already distinct groups of people in the Southwest, some of whom were primarily hunters and some of whom were largely dependent on the gathering of wild foods. Since the most ancient cultures of North America have already been covered in detail in a previous book in this series,[130] only a very brief resume will be given here.

Sandia

The earliest [culture] of the Western Hemisphere, about which we have any information, is the Sandia,[64] so named because the cave whose deposits showed that it had been occupied by men about 25,000 years ago is located in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico. In the bottom layer of this cave were found fairly large, crudely flaked stone spear points with a more or less leaflike shape and a slight basal inset on one side. With these points were found bones of prehistoric horse, bison, camel, mastodon, and mammoth, probably the debris from meals of ancient hunters who lived in the cave. Space does not permit a detailed consideration of the geological studies[9] which enable us to assign a date to this early occupation, but above the layer in which the Sandia points were found there were other layers which included one of calcium carbonate and one of yellow ochre. Geologists can interpret the climatic conditions under which such deposits were formed and they have correlated them with geologic periods when such conditions prevailed. Great humidity, such as is indicated by the Sandia Cave deposits, is characteristic of certain areas during glacial stages and the lowest level of Sandia Cave has been assigned to the period preceding the last major ice advance in the Pleistocene Period or Ice Age. This glaciation is believed to have occurred about 25,000 years ago.

Folsom

The most famous of the ancient cultures is the Folsom whose name is derived from the town of Folsom, New Mexico, near which the first generally accepted American discovery of man-made objects associated with the bones of extinct animals was made.[25] Prior to this find, which was made in 1926, it had been believed that man had not reached the New World more than a few thousand years before the beginning of the Christian era. At the Folsom site, however, were found finely flaked projectile points in clear association with the articulated bones of a type of bison known to have been extinct for many thousands of years. These were fluted or grooved points characterized by the removal of longitudinal flakes from either face. Geological evidence from the Lindenmeier Site in Colorado, which was a camp site of the makers of the grooved points, indicates that the Folsom people lived between 10,000 and 25,000 years ago.[11] This conclusion was reached by correlating the valley bottom in which the site occurs with river terraces and moraines, which in turn could be related to glacial stages. A number of important discoveries of fluted points have been made in the Southwest. Two notable sites are the one near Clovis, New Mexico, and Burnet Cave in the Guadalupe Mountains.[65]

Fig. 2—Map of the Southwest showing sites referred to in Chapter II.

1. Burnet Cave 2. Clovis 3. Cochise sites 4. Folsom 5. Gypsum Cave 6. Lindenmeier Site 7. Sandia Cave 8. San Jon 9. Tabeguache Cave 10. Yuma

San Jon

Probably contemporaneous with the Folsom people were others who made thick, roughly flaked, square-based points with parallel sides. These points were first found near the town of San Jon, New Mexico, and are named after it.[114]

Yuma

From a somewhat later period we have evidence of ancient hunters who made some of the most beautifully flaked stone projectile points that have ever been created. These points, which were first found in Yuma County, Colorado, are known as Yuma or Parallel Flaked Points. They are of two types.[130] One is marked by the removal of long narrow spalls running obliquely across the blade and the other is characterized by the removal of shell-shaped spalls from either side which tends to give the point a diamond shaped cross-section.

Gypsum Cave

Evidence of another early hunting [culture] of the Southwest was found in Gypsum Cave, Nevada.[47] Here were found lozenge-shaped projectile points, about two inches long, with small convex stems. They were associated with the remains of now extinct ground sloth and llamalike camels. The time of the first occupation of Gypsum Cave may have been several thousand years B.C. One thing which makes this find of particular interest is that, due to the protection afforded by the cave, some normally perishable material was preserved. Painted dart shafts and foreshafts were found and also a piece of basketry. Lacking direct association with Gypsum Cave type points or extinct animal remains, it is impossible to state with certainty that the basketry belonged to this ancient culture, but there is every reason to believe that it did, since it was found under a stalagmitic growth and is of a type different from that of later cultures.

Cochise

While hunters roamed the plains farther north there were other people, with a different type of economy, living in what is now southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico.[118] This [culture], to which the name Cochise has been given, is believed to have begun over 10,000 years ago and to have lasted until 500 B.C. or later. The chief characteristic of the Cochise culture is the extensive use of grinding stones which suggests that the people were primarily dependent on the gathering of wild grains, nuts, roots, and similar foods. The finding of some split and burned animal bones in the sites where they lived indicates that they did hunt, but the lack of projectile points in the earliest period and their scarcity until the most recent [phase] provides additional evidence that the economy was based on food gathering rather than on hunting.

Fig. 3—Projectile points of the most ancient cultures. a. Sandia, b. Folsom, c. San Jon, d. Eden Yuma, e. Oblique Yuma, f. Gypsum Cave.

As may be imagined, we know comparatively little about the most ancient inhabitants of this continent. However, when one considers the thousands of years which have elapsed and how little of their material [culture] could be preserved since they had neither pottery nor metals, it is rather remarkable that we know as much as we do. At least we know something of the tools and weapons which they used, the animals which they hunted, and the conditions under which they lived.

Apparently the earliest Americans had a rather simple [culture] and did not practice agriculture nor have fixed habitations. Little is known of their physical appearance since only two skeletons have been found in this country which are accepted as being of relatively great antiquity by any considerable number of competent scientists.[69][70] What evidence we have suggests that the first men to enter the new world were sufficiently modern in morphological type to differ very little in appearance from many present day Indians.

The question naturally arises: Where did the aboriginal inhabitants of America come from? Man did not evolve on this continent; therefore he must have come to this hemisphere from the Old World where he had existed for many thousands of years. All evidence points to migrations from Asia and the logical route is by way of Bering Strait where the two continents are separated by only fifty-six miles of water broken by three islands. Later migrants may also have arrived from Asia following a route through the Aleutian Islands. It must be emphasized that it is not believed that there was only one immigration. Actually there must have been many and they apparently continued into relatively recent times.

From the time of the earliest cultures until the early centuries of the Christian era we have little knowledge of prehistoric life in America. Work is being done and reports are expected which will eventually clarify much which is now shrouded in darkness. It is not that the Southwest was uninhabited at this period, it is just that we know very little about it. It may readily be seen how difficult it is to assemble evidence for this time. There was undoubtedly only a very simple material [culture] with little save stone tools which would survive. Even though we find implements of this period, however, how are we to assign them to their proper chronological position? With the most ancient cultures some approximation of age may be made on the basis of association with the remains of extinct animals, the climatic conditions indicated by deposits containing artifacts, and other geological data. In the case of fairly recent cultures, the invaluable tree-rings come to our aid and through stratigraphic studies the chronological positions of the cultures immediately preceding them can be established. For the intermediate period only stratigraphy can help us very much and stratigraphic evidence is hard to find. In the Cochise [Culture], a sequence lasting until about 500 B.C. has been worked out and the report on Ventana Cave in Arizona, when it is published, will undoubtedly give us much additional information.

Fig. 4—Folsom diorama in the Museum at Mesa Verde National Park. (Courtesy Mesa Verde National Park.)

Tabeguache Cave

In the Tabeguache drainage of southwestern Colorado have been found caves containing stratified deposits, the lowest of which are believed to be quite old although considerably more recent than the really ancient cultures previously discussed.[66][67] These deposits contained lined and unlined firepits and there were little holes, dug in the cave floor, filled with ashes and charcoal. These are thought to have been too small to have served any utilitarian purpose and it has been suggested that they may have been ceremonial in nature. Also found were grinding stones and a distinctive type of long slender [projectile point] with side notches to which the name Tabeguache Point has been applied. There was no pottery.

Obviously, a great deal of work will have to be done and probably many years will elapse before we have any clear picture of what was happening in various parts of the Southwest prior to the time to which we assign the letters A.D. If only all the descendants of the first people had stayed in the same place and placed their cultural remains neatly on top of those of their ancestors, archaeologists would find everything more simple, though probably rather dull.

CHAPTER III
THE ANASAZI [CULTURE]

GENERAL REMARKS

Once we pass on to a time which is separated from our own by hundreds instead of thousands of years we are on firmer ground. Two main basic cultures have been differentiated by archaeologists and it now seems probable that two more may be recognized. The best known and the first to be considered is often called the Anasazi. This is a Navajo name for the “ancient ones” and is applied to the prehistoric inhabitants of the plateau area of the Southwest which includes the drainages of the San Juan, Little Colorado, Rio Grande, Upper Gila and Salt Rivers, much of Utah and some of eastern Nevada. The term plateau must not be interpreted as referring to a plain. Actually, it is a vast expanse of territory with a greater elevation than the surrounding areas, but with many drainage sources which have formed gorges in the tableland. It contains prairies, mountains, and terraced mesas.

The Anasazi cultural sequence is a continuous one but can be divided into successive horizons: the earlier of which are called Basketmaker and the later ones, Pueblo. The end of the Basketmaker era is placed at approximately 700 A. D. in most areas, but it is as yet impossible to give any beginning date for it. The earliest date provided by tree-rings for wood from a Basketmaker site is 217 A.D.,[122] but the [culture] was well established by that time. Some charred wood found in a primitive Basketmaker site near Durango, Colorado, has yielded information which is still considered tentative but which seems to indicate occupation well before the birth of Christ.[95]

The beginning date for the Pueblo era coincides with that given for the end of the Basketmaker period which preceded it. No terminal date may be given, for Pueblo Indians still live in New Mexico and Arizona.

THE BASKETMAKER PERIOD[1]

The first evidence of the Basketmaker people was discovered in 1893 when ninety bodies accompanied by a great many finely woven baskets were found in a cave in Butler Wash in southeastern Utah. It was apparent that these people were older than the builders of the cliff houses, and of a different [culture], and the profusion of baskets led to the term, Basketmakers, being applied to them to differentiate them from the later people. The name soon found its way into scientific literature and has continued to be used. It soon became apparent, however, that all the Basketmakers were not of the same age, and archaeologists found that they had to have names to distinguish the different cultural periods.

Fig. 5—Map of the Southwest showing sites, towns, and areas referred to in [Chapter III].

1. Ackmen 2. Alkali Ridge 3. Allantown 4. Aztec 5. Betatakin 6. Butler Wash 7. Canyon de Chelly 8. Canyon del Muerto 9. Chaco Canyon 10. Durango 11. El Paso 12. Flagstaff 13. Gallina Creek 14. Governador Wash 15. Hopi Villages 16. Kayenta 17. Keet Seel 18. Kiatuthlana 19. Kinishba 20. La Plata River 21. Largo River 22. Lowry Ruin 23. Mesa Verde 24. Pecos 52. Piedra River 26. Puye 27. San Juan 28. Santa Fe 29. Taos 30. Tyuonyi 31. Village of the Great Kivas 32. Zuñi

In 1927 the leading archaeologists of the Southwest gathered at Pecos, New Mexico, and worked out a system of terminology.[74] An early stage characterized by a nomadic life with no knowledge of agriculture had been postulated although no direct evidence had been found. This hypothetical period was named Basketmaker I. The early semi-agricultural, semi-hunting [culture] which produced fine baskets but no pottery, and for which there was evidence, was called Basketmaker II. To the third and final [phase], when pottery was made, the term Basketmaker III was assigned. Clear-cut evidence for Basketmaker I has been lacking and the term is little used although the finds in the Tabeguache Caves may be attributed to this period. A simpler terminology than that proposed at the Pecos Conference has since been suggested and it will be used in this book.[110] The term Basketmaker is applied to the people formerly assigned to Basketmaker II and their immediate successors are called Modified Basketmakers.

The Basketmakers were widespread over the Southwest and remains of their [culture] have been found in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. We know them best from the San Juan Drainage. It is probable that they really reached their highest development here, but we must also take into consideration the fact that here we have ideal conditions for the preservation of much normally perishable material, and this gives us far more information than is available for many sections of the country.

Many Basketmaker remains are found in caves along cliff faces. The term cave, although widely used, however, is perhaps misleading, for it has a connotation of darkness and of deep enclosed places. Actually the so-called Basketmaker caves are fairly shallow rock shelters, worn in the rock by the action of water and wind, and open to the sun. In them are found ash and dust deposits which contain the bodies of the ancient inhabitants and their possessions.

Many references are found to Basketmaker “mummies”. It is quite true that, due to the aridity of the climate and the protection offered by the shelters, which make it difficult for the bacteria of decay to survive, many of the bodies were “mummified” with the dehydrated flesh still on the bones and the hair looking much as it did in life. These must not be confused with Egyptian mummies, however, which were preserved by artificial means and highly specialized techniques. It is simply a happy accident that these people buried their dead in places which permitted the preservation of their bodies.

Fig. 6—Basketmaker mummy. (Courtesy Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)

Probably, though, in the Southwest as in ancient Egypt, belief in a life after death is shown by the mortuary offerings placed in the graves. With the bodies are found baskets, food, weapons, and various personal possessions. With almost every corpse is found a pair of new, unworn sandals. This would suggest that they were not a possession of the deceased but a special offering which, it is logical to assume, was designed for use in a later life.

We may now return to the Basketmaker [culture] as archaeologists have reconstructed it from the evidence which they have painstakingly dug out of the dust and ashes of rock shelters which had not echoed with the sound of human activity for many centuries. The problems which these ancient people faced stagger the imagination of modern man. They had no metal, no pottery, no cotton or wool, no draught animals. Really all they did have was their own ingenuity to wrest the necessities of life from a none too favorable environment. It is remarkable how, by utilizing wood, bone, stone, plant fibers, and even their own hair, they not only produced all that they needed to survive, but also provided a base from which arose the high culture which culminated in the great communal dwellings of later times.

Were we able to project ourselves back into the time of the Basketmakers and watch the people of that day we should find men and women not too different from many Indians of today. The Basketmakers were rather short. They had coarse, black hair which, while straight, had slightly more of a tendency to waviness than that of present day Indians. Their skins were brown and they had little body hair.

What clothing the Basketmakers wore, besides sandals, is not certain. Woven bands, sometimes referred to as “gee strings,” have been found in a number of sites but no mummy has ever been found buried with any loin covering. Many little “aprons”, consisting of waist cords to which was attached a fringe of strings of cedar or yucca fiber, have been found. Some of the longer ones, usually of cedar bast, were used as menstrual pads, but there are also a few shorter, finely woven, little aprons which probably served as skirts for women. Their scarcity, however, would suggest that they were not considered essential garments. Since the country in which these people lived is cold in the winter and can become quite chilly after nightfall even at other seasons of the year, they undoubtedly had some covering to give them warmth. Almost every body is found wrapped in a blanket made of fur and it is probable that these served as wraps and blankets for the living as well as shrouds for the dead.

The manner in which these coverings were constructed is most ingenious. Strings were made of yucca fibres, then narrow strips of rabbit fur were wrapped around them. These fur covered strings were then tied together in close parallel rows, producing a light warm blanket. Sometimes they were ornamented with borders made of cords which had been wrapped with strips of bird skins. Some mantles of tanned deerskin were also made and it may be that there were some woven robes, for a few fragments of woven cloth have been found. These fragments bear patterns similar to those shown on the chests of individuals depicted in Basketmaker paintings on cliff faces, and they may have been parts of shirts or ponchos. It is also possible, however, that the designs shown in pictographs simply indicated body painting.[38]

Fig. 7—Basketmaker diorama in the Museum at Mesa Verde National Park. (Courtesy Mesa Verde National Park.)

Diagram showing the method of making a fur-cloth blanket. The upper figure shows the construction of a fur strip; the lower shows the manner in which the strips were held together.

The major item in the limited Basketmaker wardrobe was sandals. Anyone who has walked much in the canyon country of the Southwest can readily see how vital such equipment would be, and apparently the Basketmakers devoted much time and energy to keeping themselves shod. Sandals were woven of cord made from the fibers of yucca and [apocynum], a plant related to the milkweed. They were double-soled, were somewhat cupped at the heel, and had a square toe which was sometimes thickened, but was usually ornamented with a fringe of buckskin or shredded juniper bark. To attach them to the foot there were heel and toe loops with a cord passing between them. These cords were often made of human hair. Hair was also sometimes used to provide the secondary warps in the sandals themselves. A few pairs of large coarse sandals have been found coated with mud and it is thought that they may have served as overshoes for wear in bad weather.

Fig. 8—a. Basketmaker sandal. b. Modified-Basketmaker sandal.

Whatever the Basketmakers may have lacked in clothing, they compensated for with jewelry and ornaments. Our information is derived not only from mortuary finds but also from pictures painted on cliff faces by the Basketmakers themselves. Hair ornaments were widely used. Most of them consisted of bone points tied together to form comblike objects and topped with feathers. Feathers have also been found made into little loops and worn as pendants. Beads of all sorts were among the favorite means of decoration. They were used in making necklaces and as ear pendants. Some were of stone, carefully ground and polished, some of bone, sometimes engraved. Seeds and acorn cups were also used to make necklaces. Shells were very widely used, and it is interesting to note that many of them were olivella or abalone which can have come only from the Pacific coast.

It seems unlikely that either the Basketmakers or their contemporaries along the coast were much given to transcontinental tours when their only means of transportation was their own sandal-shod feet, but the shells prove some sort of contact. Probably it was a contact by trade carried on through the peoples who inhabited the country between the two locales.

This preoccupation with ornamentation might suggest some degree of vanity, and it is probably true that Basketmaker men gave a good bit of time and thought to their personal appearance. Basketmaker women, however, seem to have been a practical lot, far more concerned with material for their weaving than with their own appearance. The hair of female mummies is hacked off to a length of two or three inches. Of course cutting with a stone knife could hardly be expected to provide a particularly glamorous hair-do, and the fact that strands of hair seem to have been cut off at different times, presumably as the need for weaving material arose, added nothing to the general effect. While Basketmaker women would hardly furnish “pin up” material according to our standards, they presumably seemed attractive to Basketmaker men which, after all, was far more to the point.

Basketmaker men usually wore their hair long and formed into three bobs tied with a string, one on either side of the head and one in the back. In some cases the hair was clipped away to form an exaggerated part and tonsure, and from the hair at the top of the head was formed a queue about the thickness of a pencil, which was wound with cord for the entire length. The reason for this variation in hair dressing is not known. Perhaps the rare form with the clipping and the queue had some ceremonial significance, or was a mark of rank. Brushes made of yucca fibers have been found, which we know were used for the hair. Human hair is found clinging to them and they are a form still used by some modern Indians.

Having determined how these people looked we may now turn to the consideration of how they lived. For a great many years lack of evidence of house construction, coupled with the fact that most Basketmaker caves do not contain any great amount of ash and refuse, led to an acceptance of the belief that the Basketmakers either had no dwellings, or perhaps erected flimsy brush shelters which had since disappeared. Recent excavations near Durango, Colorado, however, have yielded evidence of well developed Basketmaker houses. Dates, tentatively assigned, fall in the early part of the fourth century. Doubtless, in other parts of the Anasazi province there were many other Basketmaker houses which have been destroyed by erosion, root, and frost action. Some of those found in the Durango area were in a cave and others on a terrace which had been made by cutting into the talus and removing the earth until a level surface large enough to accommodate the intended dwelling was produced.

“The house floors ranged in diameter from eight to thirty feet. They were saucer-shaped, formed of adobe mud not too smoothly spread over the surface of the excavation. The rim of the saucer was plastered against a series of short horizontal foot logs, laid to conform to the arc of the circle. These served as the foundation of the wall, the construction of which may be characterized as wood-and-mud masonry. Sticks and small timbers were laid around horizontally, and the interstices were crammed full of adobe to produce a strong, tough shell. The wall leaned somewhat inward as it rose to a convenient head height. Roofs were cribbed. Since the roof rested directly on the wall there was no necessity for stout vertical supporting timbers such as have been found in dwellings of the succeeding period.

“In no instance did a room boundary remain to a height sufficient to reveal the position, size, or shape of the entrance. At the approximate center of each floor was a heating pit (heating pit is used advisedly, because fire does not seem to have been maintained in the pits). Metates, varying from basin to trough shape, were a normal feature of each living surface. Interior storage devices occurred with great frequency. Some were merely slab-lined pits dug into the floor. Others were mud domes built entirely above the floor. The most common variety consisted of a combination of the two—a sub-floor, slab-lined basin surmounted by a mud dome with an opening in the top.”[96]

Even before these discoveries were made it had been known that the Basketmakers had some knowledge of construction. In the caves or shelters they built cists which provided storage space for corn and which often served a secondary purpose as a final resting place for the dead. Some were lined with grass and bark and may have been used as temporary sleeping places. The cists were oval or circular pits, usually dug in the cave floor. The average diameter was between three and five feet and the average depth about two feet. There were also larger cists which reached a diameter of over eight feet and were four feet deep. Some were divided into bins by slab partitions. Cists were sometimes simply pits but in other cases they were lined with stone slabs and reinforced with adobe. Covers were usually provided. For the smaller cists they were normally only sandstone slabs. The larger cists often had more elaborate roofs of wood and plaster and some even had above-ground superstructures of poles, brush, and bark, sometimes capped by adobe.

Clothing and shelter are, of course, subordinate to man’s main physical need—the need for food. In the period in which we first find evidence of the Basketmakers they were no longer solely dependant on hunting and the gathering of wild foods but had two cultivated crops, corn and squash. Where the Basketmakers gained their knowledge of agriculture is not known with certainty. Everything seems to point to the first domestication of corn far to the south in Central[126] or South America and it Is believed that knowledge of corn and its cultivation spread to the north by [diffusion].

Most of the corn cultivated by the Basketmakers was a tropical flint with small ears. Agricultural implements were so primitive that a modern farmer would be appalled at the thought of using them, even under the most favorable climatic conditions. They consisted simply of digging sticks of hard wood some forty-five or more inches in length. In most cases two thirds of the stick was round and the remainder was worked down to form a thin blade a few inches wide, with a rounded point and one sharp edge. Others had plain flattened points instead of blades.

The implements available, as well as climatic conditions, naturally influenced planting techniques which remained unchanged for many centuries. Probably several kernels were placed in a hill at a depth of a foot or more. This type of planting gives the seeds access to the subsurface water on which they must depend to a great extent in a climate like the Southwest’s. Fields were usually in the flood plains of intermittent streams, and if there was any irrigation it was of the flood type.

Corn was undoubtedly stored for the winter and for emergency use in case of crop failures. Shelled corn found in skin bags and in baskets suggests that selected seed may have been kept for the following year’s planting. Squash plants were apparently grown not only to provide food, but the fruit, when hollowed out, served as vessels. Other vegetable foods were provided by nature and included roots, bulbs, grass seeds, sun flower seeds, pinyon nuts, acorns, berries, choke cherries, and probably yucca and cactus fruit. The suggestion, that cactus fruit served as food, stems from a find which shows clearly the detective methods which archaeologists employ to gather evidence from tiny clues. No cactus fruits have been found in Basketmaker refuse, but a cactus seed was found in the decayed molar of a skull.

Meat was undoubtedly an important component of the diet and quantities of animal bones are found in all sites. Many smaller animals such as rabbits, prairie dogs, gophers, badgers, and field mice, and some birds were snared or netted. The Basketmakers developed some remarkable snares and nets. One particularly interesting net, found at White Dog Cave near Kayenta, weighed twenty-eight pounds, and contained nearly four miles of string.[38] It was two hundred and forty feet long, over three feet wide, and somewhat resembled a tennis net. It is thought that such a net was placed across the mouth of a narrow gorge or canyon and that animals were driven into it and shot or clubbed. The specimen from White Dog Cave had two sections, one nine and one six feet long, woven of a hair and [apocynum] mixture which gave them a darker color. It is thought that this may have been done to produce the effect of an opening toward which a frightened animal would rush. Various ingenious snares, many made of human hair, were also used.

Larger animals, including deer, mountain sheep, and mountain lion, were also hunted, and their bones and skins utilized as well as their flesh. These animals were shot with darts propelled by atlatls. An [atlatl] is a rather remarkable weapon which gives great propulsive force to the missile and which produces the same effect as would lengthening the arm of the individual throwing the dart. It consists of a throwing stick about two feet long, two inches wide and half an inch thick, with a prong in one end into which was fitted the hollow butt of a spear or dart. Near the middle were two loops through which the fingers of the thrower passed. The spear portion consisted of two parts, a feathered shaft five to six feet long and about half an inch in diameter with a hollow end which fitted into the prong on the atlatl and a foreshaft of hard wood, some five or six inches long, tipped with a stone point. It was set into a hole in the end of the main shaft. This foreshaft was probably used to prevent the loss of the entire spear or dart while removing it when the fore part was buried in an animal’s body. Also, if a wounded animal ran away the shaft proper would shake loose from the imbedded foreshaft and fall out.

Polished stones are often found lashed to the under-sides of atlatls. It may be that they were designed to act as weights to give proper balance to the weapon, but another possibility, suggested by their unusual shapes and careful finish, is that they were charms or fetishes and served no utilitarian purpose.

Fig. 9—a. [Atlatl], b. Reverse side of atlatl showing stone, c. Dart showing shaft (mid-section removed), foreshaft, and point, d. Method of using atlatl, e. Grooved club.

Often found associated with atlatls are curved sticks two to three feet long, marked by longitudinal grooves, extending from the handle to the top and usually with one or more interruptions in the lines. These are sometimes referred to as rabbit-sticks and it was first thought that they represented a form of non-returning boomerang such as is used in hunting rabbits by the Hopi Indians. Now, however, they are believed to be “fending sticks” such as were used by the Maya for defense against the [atlatl].[95] A dart or spear thrown with an atlatl moves fairly slowly and could be deflected by the skillful use of such a club. They could also serve as weapons in close fighting. There is not much evidence of violent death among the Basketmakers, but there is some and the atlatl must have been used to kill men as well as animals. Although the Basketmakers did not use the bow and arrow, they apparently were in contact with people who did. In Canyon del Muerto in Arizona evidence of a massacre of Basketmakers was found. Among the bodies which had been allowed to decay before burial was that of an old woman with an arrow foreshaft between the ribs and skin of her left side.[92]

Once the Basketmakers had acquired their food, there naturally arose the question of cooking it. Meat presented no real problem, for it could be baked or roasted without culinary vessels or could even be eaten raw. Dried corn, however, which comprised so important a part of the Basketmaker diet, was something else again. From the grinding stones found in Basketmaker sites we know that corn was ground, as it is by Indians even today. To grind corn only simple implements are needed. The dry corn is placed on a flat stone, known as a [metate]. The kernels are then pounded and rubbed with a stone, of a size which can be held easily, called a [mano]. Once the corn is made into meal it can be moistened and formed into little cakes to be baked on hot stones.

Probably, even without having any utensils which would seem suitable for cooking to us, it was possible for the Basketmakers to cook a variety of foods by boiling or stewing. To speak of boiling foods when the only available container is a basket may seem incredible but it can be done. The Basketmakers, as their name implies, made many baskets. These were remarkably fine and often so closely woven as to make suitable receptacles for liquids. Even though the baskets could hold water, however, the problem remains as to how they could be heated, since the baskets obviously could not be subjected to fire. The technique employed by other people faced with the same problem has been to drop hot stones into the liquid, replacing them with other hot stones as they cool, until the necessary temperature is achieved. Skin receptacles can also be used in the same way. In Basketmaker sites are found scooplike wooden objects, charred, and with worn edges. They are excellent digging implements and were probably used in digging cists, but the charring suggests that they may have been used in pairs to lift hot rocks from the fire and drop them into baskets or skin bags in which food was being stewed.

The most distinctive feature of the Basketmaker [culture], as is implied by the name, was the making of basketry. Most baskets were made by the coiled technique in which a basket is built up from the base by a growing spiral coil. As the basket progresses, each coil is sewed to the one below with a thin splint. The coil itself consists of two rods, usually willow, and a bundle of fibrous material. In sewing the coils together a bone awl is used to pass the splint through the fiber bundle.

Fig. 10—Weaving techniques. a. coiling, b. [twining], c. [twilling].

The most common basket forms were shallow trays anywhere from three inches to three feet in diameter. Smaller baskets tended to be deeper than the larger models. There were also bowl forms, with steeply flaring sides and flat bottoms, which may have been used for cooking. Small baskets with restricted openings, which are called trinket baskets, were probably used to store seeds and small objects. Two distinctive forms are carrying and water baskets. Both are large, with flaring sides and pointed bottoms. Water baskets had smaller constricted openings, presumably to keep the water from splashing out. They were lined with pitch made of pinyon gum. Some of the other baskets are so tightly woven as to hold water, but these specialized forms were specially treated, possibly because water was kept in them for a sufficiently long time that, without the protection of the pitch, they would have become water-logged and lost their usefulness.

Both the carrying and water baskets are so shaped as to fit against the shoulders and it is believed that they were carried on the back, probably with a tump strap running from the basket over the forehead of the bearer. This type of woven strap, which is commonly found in Basketmaker sites, is a device which helps to support and keep in place a burden carried on the back while leaving the hands free. It would be particularly useful in cases where there were cliffs to be negotiated and it was essential to be able to utilize hand holes pecked in the rock faces. Some of the water baskets are nearly two feet high and could have held some two or three gallons of water. Since all the water used in the caves would have to be carried up from streams below, or brought down from mesa tops where rain water had accumulated in natural basins or depressions, supplying the needs of a household would be no light chore, and the Basketmakers must have needed all the help which their tump straps provided.

Fig. 11—Basketmaker coiled baskets. (Courtesy Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)

Although baskets and carrying straps were utilitarian objects, their decorative possibilities were not overlooked. Many of the baskets had red and black designs formed by dyeing the sewing splints.

Another technique which was employed, primarily for the production of bags and to a limited extent in the making of baskets, was [twining]. In twining, splints or threads are intertwined around a foundation of radiating rods or threads. Twined bags are very characteristic of the Basketmaker [culture]. These are soft, seamless sacks which vary in size from a few inches to two or more feet in length. They are egg-shaped with slightly pointed bottoms and somewhat constricted necks. Usually they were made of the fiber of [apocynum], but some yucca fiber was also used. Most of the bag was of the warm yellowish brown of the undyed fiber but decoration was provided by dyeing some of the threads red or black and weaving in designs in horizontal bands. There was no introduction of specially dyed elements. When a change in color was desired, weft threads were simply rubbed with color. Possibly the finished article was treated in some way to fix the dye. Burden or tump straps and narrow sashes were also twined-woven and similarly decorated.

Fig. 12—Basketmaker carrying basket, with tump strap. (Courtesy Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)

A few examples have been found in which the designs were painted on finished bags. These painted designs were placed on the bag interior as well as on the exterior and ingenious markers were woven into the fabric to serve as guides for duplicating the pattern on the reverse side.[37] The smaller bags have been empty when found. Medium sized ones have been found containing corn meal and something resembling dried fruit. The largest ones were often split and used for mortuary wrappings, particularly for children. Other bags were woven of cedar bast. They had a large mesh and could have contained only large objects.

Another type of bag represented in Basketmaker sites is made of skin. Most of these were formed from the skins of two small animals, usually prairie dogs. The animals were skinned forward from the back legs to the nose. The two skins were then sewed together with the neck of the bag formed by the two heads. They are usually found to contain oddly-shaped stones or other objects thought to have some ceremonial significance.

Fig. 13—Basketmaker twined-woven bags. (Courtesy Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)

Although the Basketmakers did not have true pottery, they did have some sun-dried clay dishes. These usually contained a vegetable [temper] or binding material, such as cedar bark, to prevent cracking, and were molded in baskets. It is not known whether the idea of pottery, but not the technique for producing it through firing, had reached the Basketmakers from some other people, or if the idea of making the sun-dried dishes was one which they developed themselves. Most archaeologists believe that the whole concept of clay containers came from other people, but it is not impossible that the idea developed from the practice of putting clay in baskets while constructing cists.[93][95] If clay were left for some time in a basket it would naturally harden and, if the center portion had been scooped out, the hardened residue in the basket would produce a vessel of sorts. Toward the close of the Basketmaker period some vessels were made without molds, and sand began to replace vegetable fibers as a tempering material.

Most of the information we have about the Basketmakers we owe to their burial practices and to their habit of placing extensive mortuary offerings with their dead. There may have been some graves in the open, but these have not been found. Those we know are from caves. Where cave floors were covered with rocks, bodies were sometimes placed in crevices. Usually, however, they were placed in pits or cists which had originally been constructed for storage. There were many multiple burials and up to nineteen bodies have been found in a single grave, although two or three is the normal number. Usually all the bodies seem to have been buried at the same time and, since there is rarely any indication of violence, we may assume that epidemics must sometimes have occurred. It is rare that the cause of death can be determined, but in an occasional case, it is possible. The body of one young man was found with a bladder stone, large enough to have caused death, lying in his pelvic cavity.[37]

The bodies were tightly flexed, with the knees drawn up almost to the chin. This must have been done soon after death occurred and before the body had stiffened. Bodies were usually wrapped in fur blankets, but occasionally tanned deer skins were used. In some cases a large twined bag split down one side provided an inner covering. A large basket was usually inverted over the face. In addition to these and other baskets, mortuary offerings included sandals, beads and ornaments, weapons, digging sticks and other implements, and cone-shaped stone pipes. It is not known what was smoked in these pipes, but some form of wild tobacco may have been used. It is unlikely that they were smoked for pleasure. More probably the blowing of smoke had some ceremonial significance, as it does with many living Southwestern Indians who connect smoke clouds with the rain clouds which play such an important part in their lives and which are accordingly represented in their religious rites. Bodies were sometimes incased in adobe, but this was rather rare. Usually the pit was lined with bark, grass, or fiber, and the body covered with the same material.

Some quite unusual graves have been found.[37] One contained the mummy of a man wearing leather moccasins, the only ones ever found in a Basketmaker site. This individual had been cut in two at the waist and then sewed together again. Another interesting burial was that of a girl about eighteen years old and a young baby.[76] Under the shoulders of the girl’s mummy was the entire head skin of an adult. The scalp and facial skin had been removed in three pieces, dried or cured in some way, then sewed back together again. The hair was carefully dressed, and the face and tonsure part of the scalp painted with red, white, and yellow. It had apparently been suspended around the girl’s neck and may have been some sort of a trophy.

There was a high mortality rate for children and infants. Their burials were handled somewhat differently from those of adults. Young children were sometimes buried in baskets, sometimes in large bags. Babies were usually buried in their cradles. These were ingeniously constructed with a stick bent to form an oval and filled with a framework of rods placed in a criss-cross arrangement and tied. The cradles were padded with juniper bark and covered with fur-cloth blankets, often made of the white belly skins of rabbits. Babies were tied in the cradle with soft fur cord. The cradle could be carried on the mother’s back, hung on a branch, propped against a rock or tree, or laid on the ground. Diapers were made of soft juniper bark. Pads were used to prevent umbilical hernia. These were made of wads of corn husks or grass or a piece of bark, wrapped in a piece of prairie dog skin and tied in position with a fur cord. The umbilical cord was dried and tied to a corner of the outer blanket used in the cradle.

The only domesticated animal which the Basketmakers possessed was the dog, and two burials have been found where dogs were interred with people.[38] One large dog resembling a collie was buried with a man, and a smaller black-and-white dog which looked rather like a short haired terrier was found with a woman. Since these dogs are not related to coyotes and other doglike animals found in America, it is believed that they must have been domesticated in the Old World and accompanied their masters when they came to this hemisphere. Probably the dogs were pets, for the scarcity of their bones in refuse heaps indicates that they were not eaten. Some dog hair was used in weaving, but not to a sufficient extent to make it seem probable that dogs were kept entirely for the purpose of providing material.

The exigencies of survival cannot have left the Basketmakers too much leisure, but all of their time cannot have been taken up by work. Undoubtedly religious ceremonies occupied them to some extent. Rattles made of deer hoofs and bone were probably used to set the rhythm of ceremonial dances. These may have been worn around the waist or ankles or mounted on handles. Whistles have been found made of hollow bird bones. There is reason to believe that the Basketmakers were not unfamiliar with gambling. Gaming sticks and bones, similar to those used by modern Indians, have been found in Basketmaker sites. The sticks are of wood, about three inches long, flat on one side and convex on the other, and marked with [incised] lines. The gaming bones are lozenges about one inch long and roughly oval in shape. Doubtless even in that far off time the canyons sometimes echoed with the prehistoric version of “Seven come eleven, baby needs some sandals.”

Fig. 14—Mummies of two varieties of Basketmaker dogs. (Courtesy Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)

On cliff faces are found pictures, sometimes [incised] but more usually painted, which are attributed to the Basketmakers. These usually show square-shouldered human figures or hand prints. The latter were normally made by dipping the hand in paint then placing it against the surface to be marked, but in some cases they were painted. The significance of these and later pictographs is not known, although there are innumerable theories. The most probable explanation seems to be that they had some religious significance but it is also possible that they were records, were designed to give information, or were done for amusement.

Fig. 15—Modified-Basketmaker diorama in the Museum at Mesa Verde National Park. (Courtesy Mesa Verde National Park.)

THE MODIFIED-BASKETMAKER PERIOD[1]

During the succeeding period, there was a continuation of the same [basic culture], but there was great development and sufficiently important changes occurred to warrant recognition by the application of another name. The later [phase] is known as the Modified-Basketmaker period or as Basketmaker III. Some archaeologists believe that the cultural changes were so great that it would have been better if the term “Basketmaker” had not been applied to both periods.

The Modified Basketmaker period is marked by the beginning of a sedentary life and the establishment of regular communities. The essential continuity of the [culture] makes it difficult to assign specific dates to the period. A typical Basketmaker site is readily differentiated from a Modified Basketmaker site, but it is difficult to give a precise year for the time when the transition from one to the other occurred. The beginning is usually placed between 400 and 500 A. D. The earliest date yet established by tree-rings for a Modified-Basketmaker site is 475 A. D.[87] There is general agreement that, in most places, the Modified-Basketmaker period ended about 700 A. D., but some archaeologists place the terminal date as late as the ninth century for certain areas.

One difficulty in trying to establish fixed dates for cultural phases is that change and development were not equal in all areas. Dates which may be correct for the main, or nuclear, area may be entirely incorrect if applied to peripheral regions where development was slower and fewer changes were made. During Modified Basketmaker times the San Juan drainage was still the nuclear area, but the [culture] was quite widespread and extended north into Utah, as far west as southwestern Nevada, and south to the Little Colorado in Arizona, and beyond Zuñi in New Mexico.

The Modified Basketmakers usually lived in villages made up of irregularly grouped houses with granaries clustered about them. In some cases there were only a few dwellings, in others there were as many as a hundred. Houses were usually of the pit variety, sometimes built very close together but not contiguous. The earliest structures were circular, but later they became more oval and eventually a rectangular form prevailed. At first houses were entered through a passageway leading from the ground outside. Sometimes there was a small antechamber at the outer end of the entrance passage. The pit depth varied from three to five feet and the diameter of the structures ranged between nine and twenty-five feet. The pit walls were sometimes plastered, but more often they were lined with stone slabs. Occasionally a few rows of adobe bricks were placed over the slabs. In some cases a combination of slabs and plaster was used, in others, poles or reeds covered with mud formed the wainscoting.

Fig. 16—Modified-Basketmaker house after excavation. (Courtesy Mesa Verde National Park.)

The pit was covered by a conical or truncated superstructure with a hole in the center, designed to permit smoke to escape from the fireplace on the floor below. Later in the period the entrance passageways were so reduced in size as no longer to permit the passage of a human body, and entrance to the houses seems to have been through the hole or hatchway in the roof in which was placed a ladder leading to the room below. The roof surface may, in some cases, have provided extra living space since metates, manos, and pottery, have been found overlying roof timbers. Usually the basis of the superstructure was formed by four posts, imbedded in the floor, and supporting a platform of horizontal timbers. Smaller timbers or poles, set into the ground, leaned against the platform and others were laid horizontally across it. The whole was covered with mats or brush, then topped with a layer of plaster and earth reinforced with twigs, grass, and bark.

Fig. 17—Postulated method of Modified-Basketmaker house construction. (After Roberts,[105] Courtesy Smithsonian Institution.)

The side entrance was retained in a reduced form, apparently to provide ventilation. An upright slab, often found standing between the fire pit and the passage opening, is believed to have served the purpose of keeping the inrushing air from putting out the fire, and is known as a [deflector]. There was often a bench or shelf running around the inside of the house. This was sometimes omitted along the south side. Some storage bins were built against the walls of the house.

Floors were usually of hardened clay, but in a few cases they were paved with stone slabs. A basinlike fire pit with a raised rim lay near the center of the floor. Extending from the south side of the pit to the walls there were often ridges of mud. These were later replaced, in some areas, by partitions, sometimes several feet high, made of slabs or adobe. Metates are commonly found in the southern section, and it has been suggested that this may have been the women’s part of the house. A short distance on the other side of the fire pit is a small hole, known as the [Sipapu]. Similarly placed holes in present day ceremonial structures of the Pueblo Indians represent the mythical place of emergence from the underworld from which the first people came to the earth. The partitioning of the Modified-Basketmaker houses may have served to segregate religious from secular activities. It is believed that originally each house had its own shrine. In later times highly specialized structures were built for ceremonial practices. This is foreshadowed in the Modified-Basketmaker period for one site belonging to this [horizon] has been found which contained a larger structure, similar to the houses, but apparently not used as a dwelling place.[105]

Toward the end of the period in some areas, particularly in Southwestern Colorado, some surface houses were built which presaged the type of structure found in the next period. Villages have been excavated in which separate pit houses were still used for living quarters, but there were also some dwellings which were above ground and had contiguous rooms.[83][95]

Another important development in this period was the manufacture of true pottery. Some unfired forms were still made. Sometimes they were molded in baskets and in other cases they were started in baskets and finished by a coiling technique. To produce a vessel by this method, a thin rope of clay is formed, then wound around in a circle with each row or coil being attached to the one preceding it. Each added ring adds to the height of the vessel wall. If a smooth surface is desired, the depressions which mark the joining of the coils are obliterated. The Anasazi achieved this by scraping with a thin gourd or wooden implement, or sometimes with a piece of broken pottery. The principle of the potter’s wheel was never discovered in the Southwest.

At one time it was felt that pottery making might have been a local development of the Modified Basketmakers, but this theory has been largely abandoned although it has not really been disproven. The belief most generally held is that knowledge of pottery manufacture, as well as maize, originally spread from Middle America to the Southwest by [diffusion]. Some archaeologists now believe that the Modified Basketmakers may have learned about pottery from people living in southwestern New Mexico who were making pottery at an earlier date.

The first Modified-Basketmaker pottery was crude and limited in form with many globular shapes somewhat reminiscent of those of gourds or baskets. Perforated side lugs were very characteristic. The dominant ware was a light to medium gray with a coarse granular paste tempered with quartz. This occasionally became black from smoke carbon. Exteriors were often marked with striations, suggesting that the vessels were rubbed with a bunch of grass while still wet. There were some bowls with interior decorations applied with black paint. The paint is believed to have been made by boiling the juice of some plant, such as bee weed, which still provides pigment for Indian potters. Brushes were probably made by chewing the end of a yucca splint until the fibers separated and were soft and flexible. Designs appear to have been taken, to a great extent, from basketry. They usually consist of bands or ribbonlike panels and the most common design elements are dots, small triangles, rakelike appendages, and crude life forms.

No kilns were used and pottery was probably fired with a conical pyre of firewood placed around the vessels. When the air is kept out and there is no excess of oxygen in the atmosphere in which pottery is fired, a white or gray colored background, such as is found in Basketmaker wares, results. Such pottery is said to have been fired in a [reducing atmosphere]. When air is allowed to circulate and there is an excess of oxygen in the atmosphere, red, brown, or yellow pottery is produced, and the vessels are characterized as having been fired in an [oxidizing atmosphere].[15]

In a few sites there has been found a highly polished red ware, sometimes plain and occasionally with designs in black, and a pottery with red designs on a brown or buff background.[95] These wares are much better made than those previously described and this, coupled with their rarity, indicates that they were foreign to the Modified-Basketmaker [culture]. It has been suggested that they may have been imported from the south and that the red pottery, which owes its red color to firing in an [oxidizing atmosphere], may be the product of the Mogollon people, of southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona, who will be discussed in a later section. Certain Modified Basketmaker vessels were covered with a wash of red pigment which was applied after firing and which was impermanent. This is known as fugitive red. The theory has been advanced that this may represent an attempt on the part of the Basketmakers to produce red pottery without knowing the firing technique which was responsible for it.[7]

Fig. 18—Modified-Basketmaker figurine and nipple-shaped object.

There are two other classes of articles made of clay, sometimes lightly fired but more often unbaked. These are human figurines and nipple-shaped objects believed to be cult objects with no utilitarian purpose. The figurines almost invariably represent human females. Faces are indistinct except for the nose, which, like the breasts, is clearly marked. Arms, if shown at all, are sketchily indicated. Legs are scarcely ever shown. Necklaces and pendants are indicated by punctures and [incised] lines. The nipple or funnel-shaped objects are hollow cornucopias, about two inches long, decorated with punctations. They are perforated at the base, which suggests that they were once tied to something, possibly masks or clothing. There are many theories as to the significance of these traits. It has been suggested that they may have come with the introduction of maize and may be connected with fertility rites.

Pottery did not entirely supplant basketry and many fine baskets continued to be made. There was greater use of red and black designs than in the previous period. Sometimes these were woven in and sometimes they were painted. Sandals reached their highest level of development at this time. They were finely woven of [apocynum] string over a yucca cord warp. Fringing was abandoned, and the toe was marked by a crescent-shaped scallop. The heel was puckered. Soles were double with designs worked in colored cord in zones on the upper surface and raised designs on the underside produced by variations in weave or by knotting. Carrying bands continued to be very finely woven but twined bags degenerated.

Fur blankets were still manufactured but the use of feather cord became progressively more common. Some blankets were made partially of fur cord and partially of feather cord. Strips of bird skin were no longer used exclusively in the manufacture of the latter type. Small downy feathers were employed, as well as heavier feathers from which the stiffer part of the quill had been removed. Much turkey plumage was utilized, and it is believed by some archaeologists that turkeys were domesticated at this time,[87] although others do not think that domestication took place until later. There is no agreement as to whether turkeys were kept to provide food. It is most generally believed that they were not eaten.

At this time new varieties of corn were cultivated, which tended to be somewhat larger than the earlier forms, and the people’s diet was changed to some extent by the introduction of beans as a food crop. The addition of beans to the daily fare may have been quite important for it would increase the protein content of the diet. Such a crop also indicates a more settled life, for, while corn may be planted and then left for long periods of time, beans require almost constant attention.

Atlatls were still the principal weapons, but late in the period the bow and arrow came into use. This new and superior weapon may have been brought by small groups of newcomers to the Southwest or, perhaps, simply the idea spread to the Anasazi from neighboring people. In any case, the bow is believed to have been introduced from some other area. Two new implements which also appeared at this time were grooved mauls or hammers and axes notched for hafting. Before the introduction of axes it is believed that timbers for house construction were felled by fire.

Much of our information about these people still comes from burials. These were more often single interments than was the case in the preceding period. There were no definite cemeteries in the villages, and bodies were placed wherever it was most convenient, often in refuse heaps where digging was easiest. In caves the dead were commonly laid in abandoned cists or in crevices. Baskets were still the chief mortuary offerings, but some pottery was placed with the dead, as well as a variety of other objects including ornaments, pipes, food, gaming sets, and flutes. The latter are of particular interest, for they indicate some knowledge of music. In the grave of one old man, believed to have been a priest or chief, were four finely made flutes. They could still be played when they were excavated and had a clear, rich tone. A characteristic offering, found in almost all graves, is a pair of new unworn sandals. Ornaments interred with the dead show that turquoise was now being used for beads and pendants. It was sometimes employed with shell pieces for mosaic work set in wood. In other cases it was combined with whole shells, as in one magnificent cuff, found on the wrist of an old woman, which was five inches wide and consisted of hundreds of perfectly matched olivella shells with a fine turquoise in the center.[2]

One of the most interesting of all interments was the famous “burial of the hands” in Canyon del Muerto in Arizona.[92] This find consisted of a pair of hands and forearms lying side by side, palms upward, on a bed of grass. Wrapped around the wrists were three necklaces with abalone shell pendants, one of which was as large as the hand itself. An ironical, yet strangely pathetic offering, consisted of two pairs of some of the finest sandals which have ever been found. Over the entire burial lay a basket nearly two feet in diameter. Doubtless a fascinating story lies behind this strange grave, but what it was we shall never know. Of all the theories which have been advanced the one which best explains this remarkable occurrence is that the individual may have been caught under a rockfall and that only the hands and forearms could be released and given suitable burial; but of course all this is pure conjecture.

SUMMARY

In summarizing the Basketmaker [horizon] as a whole, we may say that the [culture] was fully established in the San Juan drainage in the early centuries of the Christian era, and it may have been developing for quite some time. Later it spread to include a larger area. This part of the Anasazi sequence ended, in most places, at the beginning of the eighth century.

The earliest people were dependent on both hunting and agriculture. The only propulsive weapon used was the [atlatl] or dart-thrower. Squash and corn were the only two crops produced. Houses had saucer-like floors of adobe, wood-and-mud masonry walls with a log foundation, and cribbed roofs. These people made beautiful baskets and sandals, produced some exceptionally fine twined-woven bags, and made blankets of fur-covered cord. Fired pottery was not manufactured but some unfired clay vessels were produced.

In the second part of the period the [culture] was more widespread and developed, and was modified in various ways. Several types of corn were grown, and beans were added to the list of cultivated foods. Pit houses were the usual form of dwelling, and village life began. Baskets were still widely made. Sandals reached their highest point of development, but twined-woven bags degenerated. Cord used in the making of blankets came to be more commonly wrapped with feathers. Fired pottery was manufactured, and the bow and arrow came into use. This was a most important period, for it provided the foundation for the later culture which, some centuries later, achieved a golden age that marked one of the high points of aboriginal development in North America.

THE DEVELOPMENTAL-PUEBLO PERIOD

Following the Basketmaker era comes the Pueblo [horizon], the second major subdivision of the Anasazi [culture]. The name comes from that given to the village Indians by the Spaniards. “Pueblo” is simply the Spanish word for a community of people, but in the Southwest it has come to have a definite connotation and is used to refer to communal houses and towns and to the inhabitants, both prehistoric and modern.

The Pueblo period, like the Basketmaker, is divided into various phases. Under the classification decided on by archaeologists, meeting at the conference at Pecos in 1927, five phases were recognized. The earliest was called Pueblo I and was defined as “the first stage during which cranial deformation was practiced, vessel neck corrugation was introduced, and villages composed of rectangular living-rooms of true masonry were developed.” The next was named Pueblo II and was characterized as “the stage marked by widespread geographical extension of life in small villages; corrugation, often of elaborate technique, extended over the whole surface of cooking vessels.”[74]

At the present time many archaeologists group both phases under the name Developmental Pueblo.[110] This term, which is used in this book, seems apt, for this was a period of transition which led to the classic Pueblo era. In many ways the [culture] was still a generalized one, as was the one which preceded it, but specialization, which was to become so marked later, was already beginning. Sites belonging to this [phase] are found throughout the Plateau area.

Fig. 19—Developmental-Pueblo diorama in the Museum at Mesa Verde National Park. (Courtesy of Mesa Verde National Park.)

Assigning dates to this period is rather complicated. It might be thought that in dealing with somewhat more recent sites, where tree-ring dates are more commonly available, it would be easy to say that a specific period began at a definite time and ended at another. Actually, such is not the case, for development was far from uniform in all places. In some sections the period which we define as Developmental Pueblo began toward the end of the seventh century; in other areas the earliest date which can be given is in the middle of the ninth century. Terminal dates are equally variable. In some regions this period had ended and the next [phase] of development had begun by the middle of the tenth century, and in others this change did not take place until the twelfth century. In general, the dates 700 to 1100 A. D. may be assigned to the Developmental Pueblo phase, but this represents a simplification of a very [complex] situation.

For many years it had been thought that the people of Basketmaker and those of Pueblo times were of entirely different physical types. The Basketmakers were considered dolichocephalic, or long-headed, and the Pueblos were believed to be brachycephalic, or broad-headed. The first appearance of the latter was thought to mark the advent of an entirely different racial group which became dominant and caused the disappearance of the earlier inhabitants of the region. It was not believed that the Basketmakers were entirely exterminated, but rather that many were assimilated and absorbed by the new group while some were killed and others driven into peripheral areas. Some archaeologists and anthropologists still hold this theory.

Recently, however, a long and detailed study of fairly large groups of crania of both people has been made.[119] The results of this investigation suggest that, while there are some differences between the two series, they are not of great significance and that, therefore, the Basketmakers and the Pueblos were basically the same people. This is confirmed by cultural evidence, for, although changes occurred, there is a strong continuity of development from Basketmaker to early Pueblo times. Possibly there was some coming in of new people, who introduced new ideas which gave impetus to the cultural development; but it is now difficult to accept the theory of a mass invasion by a racially different group and of a radical change in physical type. In the light of this new evidence some archaeologists feel that the term “Anasazi” should be dropped, and the entire [culture], including the Basketmaker and Pueblo phases, should be called “Pueblo” or “Puebloan.”[7]

One factor which tended to make the Pueblo people seem extremely broad-headed was the habit of deforming the skull posteriorly, a practice which became almost universal in Pueblo times. A skull markedly flattened in back inevitably appears broader than one which is undeformed. This effect is believed to have been produced by strapping babies against hard cradle-boards or by using a hard head-rest. The soft skull of the infant was flattened by pressure in the back and, as the bones grew and hardened, this deformity became permanent.

Fig. 20—a. Undeformed skull, b. Deformed skull.

The question naturally arises: Why did people wish to have deformed skulls? We cannot be sure of the answer, of course, but it seems possible that it represents nothing more than a matter of fashion and a change in ideals of beauty. Even in our own society there are fashions in physical appearance as well as in clothing and adornment. One need only compare the corn-fed curves of the Floradora sextette with the emaciated lines of “flappers” of the 1920’s to realize that we have little eccentricities of our own which might seem incomprehensible to a prehistoric Indian.

Important changes which mark the transition between the Basketmaker era and Pueblo times occurred in the realm of architecture. There are also differences between the first half of the Developmental Pueblo period, sometimes known as “Pueblo I,” and the second half which is sometimes called “Pueblo II.” In a general way we can trace the evolutionary development from pit houses, with associated granaries, to the fairly [complex] surface domiciles and subterranean ceremonial chambers of the final [phase] of the period.[113] Progress did not follow the same pattern in all places, however, nor did all similar changes occur at the same time.

As was noted in the preceding section, a few surface houses were built in the Modified-Basketmaker period, but this type of architecture did not become well established until Developmental-Pueblo times. In the beginning of the period, in most areas, pit houses were still the usual form of dwelling. To the west and north of these houses, granaries were built with superstructures in the form of truncated pyramids. Sometimes stone slabs and sometimes crude masonry were used in their construction.

Later, [jacal] structures as well as pit houses served as dwellings. The name jacal is applied to a type of construction in which walls are made of poles set at short intervals and heavily plastered with adobe. At first, walls sloped inward, as they had in the superstructures of the earlier granaries from which it is believed that this type of house was derived. Later, walls were perpendicular and the jacal construction was sometimes combined with masonry. Still later, masonry was used almost exclusively. As time went by, floors became progressively less depressed. In early forms, rooms were not connected, but eventually contiguous rooms became the rule, and, in the course of time, there arose multiroomed structures, sometimes called unit houses. Associated with these were highly specialized subterranean structures, used for religious purposes, but apparently derived from the old domiciliary pit house.

It cannot be stressed too strongly that these are all general statements, designed solely to show evolutionary trends during this period. Actually the situation is far more [complex] than this would indicate. In some sections, big pueblos were built very early in the period.[7] In peripheral regions, pit houses continued to be used as dwellings long after they had ceased to serve such a purpose in the main area, and, even in the nuclear portion, the rate of progress was by no means constant, nor was it always in the same direction. For a somewhat clearer picture, it is best to consider some of the different places where excavation of Developmental-Pueblo sites has been undertaken.

At Kiatuthlana, Arizona,[107] forty miles southwest of Zuñi, pit houses and [jacal] structures were contemporaneous during early Pueblo times. The latter were flat-roofed, four-sided buildings, trapezoidal, rather than rectangular, in outline. Some were single rooms, and others had three or four chambers.

In the Piedra district of southwestern Colorado[106] are found [jacal] buildings in clusters of from three to fifteen. The different structures were often close, but did not touch. A number of clusters, laid in a crescent shape around a circular depression, comprised a village. These depressions are thought by some to have served as reservoirs, or possibly sometimes as plazas or dance courts. Others hold the opinion, based on the results of more recent excavations in other areas, that they may contain pit houses.[41] The earliest houses were pits with sloping jacal walls. Later the floors were merely depressed, and walls were perpendicular. This type was eventually combined with two-room storage buildings of crude masonry. Next, the jacal construction disappeared and the rooms made of masonry were enlarged and became dwellings instead of storerooms.

In the nearby region of the La Plata drainage,[95] houses in the beginning of the period differed little from those of Basketmaker times, except that they were somewhat more massive and more masonry was used. There was some [jacal] construction, but usually a variant form was employed in which only a few widely spaced wooden supports were used. Sometimes the entire wall consisted of clay pressed into position with the hands, and the posts were absent. Stones were sometimes added to the clay, and some crude [coursed masonry] has been found. Stone slabs commonly formed the wainscoting. Houses were usually grouped in a crescentic form along the north and west sides of a depression containing a subterranean chamber. No dance courts or plazas have been found.

During the latter part of Developmental-Pueblo times in the La Plata area, [jacal] and slab construction were replaced by stone and adobe, and walls became more massive. At first the adobe was considered the important mass and only a few stones were incorporated, but, as time went by, the ratio changed and stone predominated with mud serving only as a mortar. Crescent-shaped room-placement changed to a rectangular structure.

In the Ackmen-Lowry region[82] of southwestern Colorado most early Developmental-Pueblo sites consisted of one or two above-ground rooms associated with a pit house which may have served as a domicile as well as provided a place for the celebration of ceremonies. The surface structures were of slabs topped by masonry, or were of [jacal] construction. Later houses were built of [coursed masonry] and usually contained from four to six rooms. The associated pit houses seem to have been used exclusively as ceremonial chambers. Also found in this area was a good-sized Pueblo, known as Lowry Ruin, which was occupied late in Developmental-Pueblo times as well as during the succeeding period. Thirty-five rooms have been uncovered, but there is evidence that the pueblo was modified six or seven times, and it is estimated that probably no more than fifteen or eighteen rooms were occupied at any one time.

At Alkali Ridge in southeastern Utah,[7] thirteen sites have been excavated which have yielded valuable information about architectural development. Ten of these contained Developmental-Pueblo structures. In this area, even as early as the eighth century, pueblos with as many as three hundred above-ground storage and living rooms were being built in association with large and small pit houses. These pueblos consisted of long curving rows of contiguous rooms with the larger dwelling units in front of the small chambers used for storage. A variety of wall types was used, often in combination. They include upright stone slabs, [jacal], and some [coursed masonry].

During the latter half of Developmental-Pueblo times in this area there were buildings made of [jacal] with stones imbedded in the adobe. Those found range in size from one to twelve rooms, and some may have been larger. There were also structures of [coursed masonry]. Some of these contained only one or two rooms but others may have been fairly large.

In excavations near Allantown, in eastern Arizona,[112] the evolution from simple masonry granaries to multi-roomed houses, and the development from simple, partially subterranean houses to highly specialized kivas, or ceremonial buildings, is clearly shown. There the change from domiciliary pit house to unit house seems to have occurred in the period between 814 and about 1014 A. D. This, however, was a slower development than in other areas. In the Chaco Canyon area of New Mexico, for example, great communal houses, with several stories and hundreds of rooms, of which the unit-type house seems to have been the forerunner, apparently were started by 1014.

Unit houses, which were commonly built in the second part of Developmental-Pueblo times and in the following period, were above-ground structures built of stone and adobe. They were one story in height and usually contained from six to fourteen rooms. These rooms were sometimes placed in a long row, sometimes in a double tier, and, in other cases, were arranged in the shape of an “L” or rectangular “U”.

Unit houses are occasionally referred to as [clan] houses, for some archaeologists believe that they may have been occupied by single family groups. Present day social organization in the western pueblos is based on clans, and it is believed that this is of long standing and probably extends far back into prehistoric times. Descent is traced in these pueblos in the maternal line. In such villages a clan is a group made up of individuals descended from the same female ancestor. Houses belong to the women, and a family group which lives together usually consists of a woman and her daughters and their families. The husbands belong to other clans. They live with their wives’ groups, but their religious affiliations are with their own clans. The kivas, or ceremonial chambers, belong to the men of the clan and serve as club rooms as well as providing a place where secret religious rites may be performed.

In Developmental-Pueblo times, kivas were very similar in form to those used at the present time in the eastern pueblos. They were circular, subterranean structures which lay to the south or southeast of houses. Walls were of masonry, and there were encircling benches in which pilasters were often incorporated. Roofs were normally cribbed, and entrance was usually through the smoke-hole in the center; although, in some unit-type sites in southwestern Colorado, stone towers are found containing manholes which led into tunnels connecting with kivas.[83]

It is interesting to note the apparent derivation of kivas from the old domiciliary pit houses which had, at least in a rudimentary form, all of the features of the later religious structures and which also lay in the same position in relation to the surface masonry structures. It is believed that originally each house had its own shrine. When special structures came to be built exclusively for the performance of religious rites, the people clung to the old form of building, although their dwellings were developing in a different direction. There is an innate conservatism and traditionalism in religion which is well represented in architecture. In our own cities, where we erect medieval cathedrals and sky scrapers, we can see a lag of from four to seven centuries between religious and secular architecture.

In some parts of the Southwest, kivas were not the only places available for the performance of religious rites. At Allantown[112] was found a great circular area, paved with adobe and enclosed on three sides by upright stone slabs, which is believed to have been a dance court. On the north side is a platform or dais. Probably in that long ago time there were many days and nights when moving feet beat out the intricate rhythms of the dance against the hard packed adobe, as the gods were importuned to bring life-giving rain for the crops.

Fig. 21—Interior view of a [kiva] showing distinctive features. Note the ventilator, [deflector], fire-pit, [sipapu], bench, and pilasters.

In addition to the houses, kivas, and dance courts, there were also brush shelters with firepits, ovens and storage places. These probably provided outdoor cooking facilities during the summer.

In the field of pottery, important changes were taking place, and specialization was increasing all through the Anasazi area. Developmental-Pueblo pottery had a finer paste and was better made than that of Modified-Basketmaker times. Some tempering was done with pulverized potsherds. More different types were represented. Plain gray ware was still made. Pottery with black designs on a white background was very common, except in the Alkali Ridge[7] area of southeastern Utah where early Developmental-Pueblo painted pottery had a pinkish-orange ground color with designs in red paint. In referring to painted pottery it is customary to mention first the color of the design and then the color of the background, as, for example, black-on-white or red-on-orange ware. Minor types of Developmental-Pueblo times included a lustrous black-on-red ware and bowls with more or less polished black interiors and brownish or reddish exteriors. The differentiation between culinary and non-culinary pottery became more marked. The former came to be characterized by corrugations in the clay, and the latter chiefly by painted designs.

Fig. 22—[Corrugated Pottery]. (Courtesy National Park Service.)

Specialization in particular areas is best shown in the black-on-white wares. There are two main groups—an eastern one which centered around the Chaco Canyon area of New Mexico, and a western one which centered around the Kayenta region of Arizona.[110] Both extended far beyond these nuclear areas. The former was characterized by a wide use of mineral paint. Designs stand out from the background. Possibly they were applied after the vessel had been polished. In the western form, designs were usually applied with a paint made from plant juices and they seem to fade into the surface of the vessel. This may be due in part to the application of paint before the polishing of the vessel had been completed.

In all sections there was a greater variety of forms and designs than in the preceding period. Designs were no longer confined to the interiors of bowls and ladles but were placed on all kinds of vessels. Basketry patterns were still used, but others were taken from textiles, and still others seem to have been developed only for the medium of pottery. Designs show a certain lack of skill in execution, but they were elaborate and boldly conceived. There is every evidence of people still experimenting with a new medium. The principal elements were parallel lines, sometimes straight and in other cases stepped or wavy; zig-zags, triangles, checkerboards, and interlocking frets. Both curvilinear and rectilinear designs were used. In the latter part of the period parallel lines were scarce, and elements became broader and heavier.

Fig. 23—Black-on-white pottery. Developmental-Pueblo period.

Fig. 24—Neck-banded vessel. Developmental-Pueblo Period. (Courtesy National Park Service.)

Techniques of production and finishing differed from those of Modified-Basketmaker times. The practice of using slips developed. A [slip] is a coating of very fine, almost liquid, clay which is smeared on a finished vessel before firing to give a smooth even finish. In the second part of the period, spiral coiling began. In the earlier forms, short clay fillets, which made only one turn around the vessel, were used. With the spiral technique, longer rolls of clay were used and each made several circuits around the vessel. During the first half of the period, vessels were either entirely smoothed or, in the case of many culinary vessels, the bottom was smoothed while the neck portion was characterized by flat, relatively broad, concentric clay bands. These neck-banded jars are quite characteristic of early Developmental Pueblo. During the second part of the period corrugated ware appeared. This is pottery in which the alternate ridges and depressions resulting from a coiling and pinching technique of manufacture have not been obliterated. Sometimes the corrugations were embellished by indentations produced by pinching the clay between the fingers or by incising them with the fingernail or some small implement. In this way simple patterns were formed. The use of this type of pottery for cooking may stem from the fact that this is the only type of decoration which would not soon be obliterated by soot. Objects made of clay also included tubular pipes or cloud-blowers. Stone and wood were also sometimes used in making these objects.

Baskets continued to be made, although pottery vessels were used for many purposes for which baskets had formerly been employed. The number of baskets made undoubtedly diminished, and the large flat trays so characteristic of Basketmaker times seem to have almost entirely disappeared. The great decrease in number of baskets made, however, may be more apparent than real, for most Developmental-Pueblo sites are in the open and little perishable material remains. Examples which have been found indicate that the coiling technique continued and designs became more elaborate. Twilled baskets were also manufactured.

Fig. 25—a. Developmental-Pueblo sandal, b. Great-Pueblo sandal.

Sandals of fine string, with coarse patterns on the under side, were still being woven. They had rounded toes. A new material and new techniques in weaving appeared with the introduction of cotton at this time. Cotton was grown and used to produce thread which was woven into fabrics with looms. Fur and feather blankets, primarily the latter, were still being made, but light cotton blankets were probably also worn. It is thought that kilts and breech cloths were made of the same material. Various ornaments, including beads, pendants, and bracelets, were worn. The former were largely of colored shales, turquoise, and alabaster. Some bracelets were of glycymeris, a shell which must have been imported from the Gulf of California.

Cotton was the only addition to the list of cultivated plants, but squash and beans continued to be grown. Corn was still the staple food. It was ground on scoop-shaped trough metates. In one case three graded manos, of varying degrees of roughness, were found with one [metate]. This foreshadowed the later Pueblo practice of having mealing bins with series of metates ranging in texture from relatively coarse to very fine. Corn was first coarsely ground on the roughest metate, or with the roughest [mano], and then worked over with progressively smoother stones until a very fine meal resulted. Crudely flaked hoes began to be used in cultivating the crops. Some were hafted, but many were not.

Meat continued to be included in the diet. Bear, elk, buffalo, wolf, mountain sheep, deer, and rabbits were among the animals hunted. The bow and arrow were almost universally used. Arrowheads were well flaked, usually long and narrow, with long, sharp barbs. Late in the period a new type appeared which became increasingly numerous later. These points were short, broad, and notched at right angles.

Dogs and turkeys were the only domesticated animals. One reason for the belief that they were not kept to provide food is that they have been found buried with mortuary offerings. Corn was provided for the turkeys and bones for the dogs which were buried. There was also pottery, sometimes miniature vessels, sometimes sherds rubbed down to form shallow vessels.

Axes are relatively scarce, but are found in this period. Edges were smoothed by grinding. On the whole these were not very efficient cutting implements, for the edges were quite dull.

Human burials varied widely according to locality. For the most part they are found in refuse heaps. These characteristic mounds, as the name indicates, were formed of the refuse thrown away by the inhabitants of a village and are composed of ashes, dirt, broken pottery, and general debris. There was no disrespect for the dead in burying them in such a place; it was simply that, with the primitive implements available, it was desirable to make interments where digging was easiest. The difficulties of excavation also led to the placing of bodies, in some cases, in abandoned storage pits or houses. Children are often found buried under floors near firepits, possibly because mothers felt that the dependence of an infant extended to the soul and they wished to keep it near.

Bodies were inhumed in a more or less flexed position. There was no fixed orientation, as there was in later periods. Undoubtedly there were some mortuary offerings of a perishable nature, but these have not survived. Pottery was placed in graves in many cases. At Kiatuthlana[107] there was a strong degree of consistency in the offerings. Each grave contained a culinary jar covered by a bowl with a blackened interior, and a black-on-white bowl. Certain graves contained more than three pieces of pottery, but they were in multiples of three, with an equal number of each type.

There are some very puzzling features about the disposal of the dead in Developmental-Pueblo times. In most of the San Juan area and in the Kiatuthlana region the number of graves found is about what would be expected on the basis of the population indicated by habitations. In other places, however, and particularly in the La Plata region,[95] only a very few burials have been found and they undoubtedly represent only a fraction of the deaths which must have occurred. What happened to the remaining bodies is a question which has not been answered. Some particularly baffling finds are: skulls buried without bodies, and bodies buried without heads. In the case of skull burials it has been suggested that warriors may have been killed some distance from home. Bringing the entire body back would have been impracticable, and only the heads were returned to be given suitable burial among the kinsmen of the dead individual. This, however, does not explain the headless skeletons which are also found, for it seems unlikely that the body of an enemy which had been left behind, after the head had been removed, would be given burial.

At Alkali Ridge[7] there was the usual baffling scarcity of burials in early Developmental-Pueblo times, and no evidence of cremation. A number of burials were found in the later [horizon], however, and they provide an interesting example of how much we can learn of how people lived from a study of their physical remains. Evidence of various bone diseases indicates that the Alkali Ridge people suffered from malnutrition and vitamin deficiencies. The fact that one individual, so badly crippled that she could not have been a productive member of the community, lived to be sixty years old or more, tells us that these people were willing to care for handicapped members of their group. The communities must have been subject to hostile attack. Two individuals appear to have died from blows on the head. One of these men had also been shot by an arrow, and scratches on his head indicate that he had been scalped. Evidence of local inbreeding is provided by the finding of three people with fused ribs, a very rare abnormality not likely to appear so frequently except in a highly inbred group.

Peripheral Areas

Outside of the central area of the Anasazi region there were other developments during this period. In marginal areas, certain phenomena are almost invariably present. There will be some lag in the [diffusion] of new traits, and in some ways the [culture] of the marginal section will be less advanced. Early elements may survive for a long time. Traits which are chronologically distinct in the main area may arrive together in the outlying sections. Other features may not spread or may be rejected by the people of the peripheral area. In general, there is a progressive fading of the basic pattern as one goes farther away from the nucleus. Certain traits may have been acquired from other cultures, and there is usually also a tendency to develop new traits and to modify and adapt those which have been imported, in accordance with local needs.

All of these characteristics are to be found in the region north and northwest of the Colorado River which is known as the Northern [Periphery] of the Southwest. During Developmental-Pueblo times a number of early traits persisted in the Northern Periphery after they had disappeared in the San Juan country. People continued to live in earth-covered pit houses and lodges after these had been replaced by surface masonry structures farther south. In some cases the side passage still served as an entrance instead of being reduced in size for use as a ventilator. Slab cists, identical with Basketmaker structures, were quite common. In the south and east of the periphery some unit houses were built during late Developmental-Pueblo times, but they were far inferior to those of the main district. Much crude, gray pottery was produced, and fugitive-red paint was widely used. Clay figurines and nipple-shaped objects, characteristic of the Basketmaker [culture], continued to be widely made in the north long after they had disappeared in the nuclear area. Gaming bones are among the most common artifacts. Throughout, there is an amalgamation of traits which were separate elsewhere. In some cases early pottery types are found associated with houses of a later type; in others it is the pottery which is more advanced than the houses.

Certain features characteristic of the main Pueblo [culture] either did not reach the Northern [Periphery], or were not accepted by the inhabitants. North of the San Juan drainage, sandals and cotton cloth were not produced. The turkey was not domesticated. There were no grooved axes and mauls. True kivas have not been found, although there are some structures which are believed to have been used for ceremonial purposes.

Other features, which are characteristic of the Northern [Periphery], are not found farther south. Many of these are clearly shown in sites found in the drainage of the Fremont River of Utah.[97] Here leather moccasins replaced sandals. These were made of mountain sheep hide with the hair left on. The portion of the hide containing the dewclaws of the sheep was attached to the sole in such a way that the dewclaws served as hobnails. Clay figurines, most of which depicted human females, were quite elaborate. Also characteristic of the [culture], were remarkably fine rock paintings and pecked drawings of [Katchinas] or supernatural beings. In the field of pottery, traits which characterize northern peripheral wares include raised or appliquéd ornaments and punched designs. Another distinguishing feature is a unique form of grinding stone, sometimes called the Utah-type [metate]. This is a shovel-shaped stone with a deep trough and a platform at one end containing a secondary depression.

Although the [culture] of the Northern [Periphery] is basically Southwestern in character and is largely of Modified-Basketmaker and early Developmental-Pueblo origin, it seems probable that the Anasazi was not the only influence and that there was some immigration and [diffusion] of ideas from the east and the north. People living farther to the north may also have affected the life of the inhabitants of the Periphery in other ways. At approximately the end of Developmental-Pueblo times, most of the marginal area was abandoned. Some archaeologists think that this was due to pressure from northern nomadic tribes. Only along the Colorado River, did northerly sites continue to be occupied during the following period.

Anasazi traits also penetrated to other peripheral areas. Evidence of Anasazi influence is found in southwestern Texas sites, particularly those of the Big Bend area, occupied after about 900 A.D. Modified Basketmaker and Pueblo traits are also found in sites in the valleys of the Muddy and Virgin rivers in southeastern Nevada. In the Nevada sites[46] both pit dwellings and above-ground houses with many rooms have been found. Most of the painted pottery is black-on-gray but some black-on-white and black-on-red wares also occur. Culinary ware was corrugated. As in Utah, there were no axes, and the turkey does not appear to have been domesticated.

Fig. 26—Rosa pit house after excavation. (Courtesy Columbia University Press.)

One of the most interesting marginal manifestations is known as the Rosa [Phase].[41] Rosa sites have been found in the drainage of the Governador Wash which lies between the towns of Aztec and Dulce in north-central New Mexico. Between about 700 and 900 A.D. this region was occupied by people who lived in very large pit houses. They were also familiar with surface construction and had above-ground granaries, made of adobe, which sometimes contained several contiguous rooms. Houses and granaries were surrounded by stockades made of posts interlaced with brush. Pottery was not very well made, and consisted to a great extent of undecorated ware. Many of the vessels were started in baskets. The small amount of decorated pottery which was produced seems to represent imitations of other already developed types.

The bones of a great many dogs and turkeys are found in the rubbish heaps and it is thought that they may have been an important element in the diet of the people. Dogs, however, probably had some significance other than as a source of food, for some were so old and toothless that they may have died of old age. Also, dogs were found buried in every grave.

Burial customs differed from those of other areas. In some cases, bodies seem to have been exposed and allowed to decompose, at least partially, before the bones were buried. There was no deformation of the skull in any of burials uncovered.

SUMMARY

Returning to the subject of the Developmental-Pueblo period in the nuclear portion of the Anasazi region, we may summarize by saying that this was a time of transition. Pit houses were first used as dwellings, and then, becoming more highly specialized, were used as ceremonial structures. Surface granaries gave rise to above-ground houses. Walls were first predominantly of poles and adobe, later of masonry. Large structures with numerous contiguous rooms became increasingly common. Pottery improved in quality and an increasing number of wares were represented, including corrugated cooking ware. Axes and hoes were added to the assemblage of implements. Cotton began to be grown, and fabrics were produced by loom weaving. These statements, however, only indicate general trends, for there was no real uniformity of cultural development. There were differences between various sections of the country, and there were also variations within the same area. With the end of Developmental-Pueblo times, however, all of the basic Pueblo traits were established, and the stage was set for the flowering of the high [culture] of the next period which has been called the “Golden Age” of the Anasazi.

THE GREAT-PUEBLO PERIOD

The [phase] which followed Developmental-Pueblo times is the one best known to the general public, for it was during this time that there were built the great communal houses, whose impressive ruins in our National Monuments and Parks draw thousands of fascinated visitors every year. This is the period of the Cliff Dwellers who built the remarkable structures of Mesa Verde and then, apparently, disappeared into the mists of time. Much of the mystery which surrounds these people in the public mind is unnecessary, but there is still enough of the remarkable in their achievements, and in their disappearance from their old haunts, to intrigue the imagination.

This period is also known as Classic Pueblo or Pueblo III, but is now aptly called the Great-Pueblo[110] period, for it marks the time when this [culture] reached the pinnacle of its development. Its general characteristics were summarized in the Pecos classification which defined Pueblo III as: “the stage of large communities, great development of the arts, and growth of intensive local specialization.”[74]

There is some disagreement as to the date which should be assigned to the beginning of Great-Pueblo times, for cultural development was not equal in all sections of the Plateau. In some areas, people were still living as they had in Developmental-Pueblo times, while, in others, Great-Pueblo traits were well established. Since specialization became so marked that various cultural centers must be considered separately, it is best, in most cases, to give dates for this period in terms of specific areas. There is, however, some agreement as to the ending date. In general it may be said that Great-Pueblo times began, in most places, about 1050 A.D. and lasted until the end of the thirteenth century, when the whole northern portion of the Plateau was abandoned.

The greatest change from the preceding period was in the realm of architecture. There were a great many unit houses, in which a fairly large percentage of the population lived, but big “apartment houses,” up to five stories in height and containing hundreds of rooms, were also built. This change naturally affected not only the living conditions of the people, but influenced their whole life, for people living together in a closely-knit community will develop differently from the way they would in widely scattered settlements.

Fig. 27—Great-Pueblo diorama in the Museum at Mesa Verde National Park showing Spruce Tree House. (Courtesy Mesa Verde National Park.)

When a population is broken up into small independent units and scattered over a wide area, there is not likely to be any need or desire for overall government, and authority is usually vested in the person of the head of the family or [clan]. As the size of the group increases and life becomes increasingly [complex], some centralization of power is inevitable. Cooperation between individuals and groups of individuals becomes not only desirable but essential. In such an undertaking as the building of a huge structure, containing hundreds of rooms, there must be cooperation. With the occupation of such a building, when as many as a thousand people may be living under one roof, the need for working together continued. With greater cooperation, leisure is likely to increase, although sometimes this greater freedom is limited to a ruling caste which makes great demands on the time of other individuals. This does not appear to have been the case among the ancient Pueblo people as they seem to have had an essentially democratic form of government.

With added leisure, there is usually increasing development in the arts and in religion. As more time can be devoted to religious practices, ceremonies tend to become more elaborate and more formalized. Often a priestly caste will arise which, as in the case of the concentration of secular power, may result in autocracy. The Pueblos seem to have avoided this danger too. The many kivas suggest that religion and its ceremonial expression must have played a strong part in their daily lives, as it does today. Undoubtedly there were priests who were figures of importance in the community, but there is no evidence that they wielded an autocratic power which gave them great material advantages over other members of the group.

Community living will have other far-reaching influences. When only a small family group is living together, it must be almost entirely self-sufficient and must produce practically everything which it uses. As the group increases in size, specialization also tends to increase. For example, a woman who makes exceptional baskets, but is not a particularly skillful potter, may come to specialize in the making of baskets which she can exchange for pottery made by someone who produces a finer ware. Familiarity with the work of others will also stimulate development, for new ideas will have a wider distribution and competition will serve as a stimulating factor.

There was no basic change in type of structure, for the great houses were, in a sense, much enlarged and modified unit houses. The great change lay in the joining together of great numbers of people. It must not be thought, however, that all of the people lived in huge communal dwellings such as those of Mesa Verde or Chaco Canyon. Actually many groups continued to live in unit houses at a considerable distance from the main centers, and many of the so-called great houses contained only a small number of rooms. The really big houses were in the minority and would appear to have been capable of sheltering only a small fraction of the total population.

There was undoubtedly a general trend toward a coalescence of the population, however, and it is interesting to speculate on the reason for this tendency. The fact that the great houses were admirably suited to defense has given rise to the theory that the people began to move together for protection against an outside enemy. There can be no doubt that the need for defense was taken into consideration in the building of the big structures, but this cannot be the whole answer. There is some evidence of violence, but not a great deal. The utmost care was taken in the construction of the great houses, and much time-consuming work went into decoration. When danger threatens, speed becomes the primary consideration, and the amenities of life are sacrificed. There were many small houses in which a good portion of the population lived, and these were not always in locations suitable for defense. Since defense obviously was a consideration in the minds of the builders of the great houses, and since there is some evidence of violence and bloodshed, we cannot discount the role which warfare may have played in architectural development, but it seems certain that this was not the only factor which influenced this development.

Another interesting theory has been proposed.[81] It is based on the fact that, not only was there great building activity during this period, but also that there was much restlessness and moving about. Walls were torn down and rebuilt, and many buildings were abandoned and new ones erected, without any reason that is apparent from archaeological evidence. It has been suggested that this restlessness and the intensity with which building activities were pursued may have been an outlet for the repressions and inhibitions of a group which had a cultural pattern with set rules against violence and excess. There is great variation among the different groups which make up the Pueblo Indians of today, but, in many cases, they have a cultural pattern that upholds the golden mean and discourages all extremes.[4] Such a way of life might well produce certain repressions which would result in a general restlessness and desire for change and activity.

The chief objection to this theory lies in the defensive character of the great houses, which would suggest that violence was not unknown. In times of war, desire for change and action is readily satisfied, and socially approved reasons are provided for breaking away from many of the established rules of society. Undoubtedly, though, the urge which resulted in the creation of great community dwellings which were in essence city-states, came to some extent from within the people themselves and was not entirely the result of outside influences. Many factors undoubtedly played a part, but the building of the big houses must, in some measure, be regarded as an architectural vogue which, to a great extent, stemmed from the desires as well as the needs of the people.

The causes which led to the abandonment of the great houses and which resulted in the end of this [phase] of Pueblo development are just as difficult to understanding as are those which led to their being constructed in the first place. By 1300 A.D., the entire northern section of the Plateau had been deserted. This was not the result of a single mass migration, but rather of a wide general movement. First one big center and then another was deserted. Even in these centers themselves, all the inhabitants did not leave at the same time; rather it seems that small groups drifted away, a few at a time. Eventually, though, the entire northern frontier was deserted, and no living person who had contributed to the growth and flowering of the [culture] remained. Naturally, this strange departure has given rise to much conjecture. It would be pleasant to be able to say that such and such a cause produced this result. Unfortunately, anything connected with the human race is rarely quite so simple.

The invaluable tree-rings have not only provided us with dates for various events, but have given us information about climatic conditions which undoubtedly had a tremendous effect on the movements of the people with whom we are concerned. From tree-ring records we know that during the centuries when the hopes and fears of the prehistoric Pueblo Indians were centered on their crops there were bad years as well as good ones. We know of periods when rainfall was below normal, and of others when there were real droughts. Most of these were of short duration, however, until the disastrous period between 1276 and 1299 when there was practically no rain, and the Southwest suffered an extremely severe drought. It was during this period that the northern frontier was finally abandoned, and the people moved to new localities. Some archaeologists have felt that the disappearance of the Pueblos from their old homes can be traced entirely to this disastrous drought. If all the communities had been abandoned at the same time, this would be a logical assumption. Actually, the time of the abandonment of all of the main centers does not fall between these two dates. Some were deserted prior to the beginning of the great drought and a few continued to be occupied after the dry period had begun.

One of the most interesting theories yet advanced is based on the suggestion that a really severe drought was not necessary to upset the economy of the Pueblo farmers.[10][39] Some dry farming was practiced and there was some ditch irrigation, but the greatest dependence seems to have been on flood-water farming in valley bottoms. This is a system whereby water is simply diverted and distributed through the fields when floods come down the valley. During periods when rainfall is deficient, although not sufficiently so to warrant the use of the term drought, steep channels, known as arroyos, are cut into flood plains; the water-table is lowered, and flood-water fields become useless. Not only may the fields themselves be dissected by the arroyo cutting, but water can no longer be diverted for flood irrigation. If, as seems probable, the great drought was only the climax of a period of increasing dryness when much farmland was lost through arroyo-cutting, it is not hard to understand why the Pueblo farmers might move on to more favored localities.

Another theory advanced to explain the departure of the ancient agriculturists, and one which has enthusiastic supporters, is that they were driven from their homes by fierce nomadic tribes who were attracted by the wealth of food stored in their granaries.[73] Much of this thinking is based on what we know of nomadic raids in general, and the records of the terrible Navajo and Apache depredations from the middle of the seventeenth century until their comparatively recent subjugation by the United States Army. For years it has been the practice simply to accept the belief that fierce warlike tribes had preyed on the peaceful Pueblos for centuries. More recently, however, some searching questions have been asked, and this theory is under close scrutiny.[80]

It is granted that the type of construction employed in the Great-Pueblo era indicates some need for defense, but it does not show against whom the defense was needed. Assuming that there were nomadic tribesmen, ready and anxious to carry away the patiently accumulated wealth of the Pueblos, we must ask ourselves what advantage they would have had over their victims which would have enabled them to carry out their depredations. If the nomads had been mounted, as they were in later times, they would have had the advantages of speed and mobility which are essential for surprise attacks—the only type which would be of much avail against a heavily fortified structure. Only much later, however, were horses introduced into the Southwest; and at this time the attackers would have had to travel on foot.

Greater numbers, or superior organization, might have given them an advantage, but we can hardly believe that the nomads were as numerous or had as good an organization as that of the people of the Pueblos. The region in which they presumably lived would certainly not support a large population, and particularly one with an essentially parasitic economy which did not produce. With such an economy, people cannot live too close together without exhausting the available resources, and a thinly spread population is unlikely to be highly organized.

Great physical superiority may be another factor in the winning of battles between people who have not yet become so civilized as to have machines which will enable one individual to kill thousands of his fellow men. Any physical superiority, however, would seem to rest with the sedentary people who had an assured food supply. Moreover, their life was still sufficiently rugged so that there can hardly be any question of their having been greatly weakened by soft living.

Doubtless, there were sporadic raids by nomads, and these may have had a cumulative effect in upsetting Pueblo economy. The role played by periods of arroyo-cutting and by droughts can certainly not be overlooked. These may well have done more than reduce the food supply. When food is scarce, raids are more likely to occur, and it is entirely probable that the relationship between various groups deteriorated as prosperity decreased. Toward the end of Great-Pueblo times we find increasing signs of warfare in the form of burned buildings and unburied bodies, many of which show evidence of violence. The latter are of the characteristic Pueblo type, however, and would seem to indicate warfare between people of the same blood.

Fig. 28—Types of Great-Pueblo masonry. a. Chaco, b. Mesa Verde, c. Kayenta.

The most logical theory seems to be that many factors contributed to the great change which occurred in the Anasazi province. Doubtless, climatic conditions were the great underlying cause, but there may have been others. We cannot afford to confine our attention entirely to material causes, but must take into consideration even the possibility that fears, engendered by religious beliefs, may have played a part. All this, however, is largely in the realm of conjecture, for, with no written records, there can be no first hand information.

Whatever the causes, the end of the Great-Pueblo period was marked by a redistribution of population and a general trend toward concentration in places where conditions were most favorable. While the chief movement was from the north, there was also some withdrawing from the south. By the beginning of the following period, which is sometimes known as the Regressive-Pueblo [phase], much territory throughout the Plateau area was deserted. Main population centers were confined to the central area of the Plateau. This includes the Little Colorado drainage, particularly the section in the vicinity of the Hopi mesas and the Zuñi region, and the Rio Grande drainage.

Although there were certain traits which characterized the [culture] as a whole during the Great-Pueblo period, there was a somewhat different development in each of the three main culture centers which flourished at this time. In each of these there was an intense local specialization in architecture and in pottery making.

The latter, in fact, became so highly specialized that products of the various areas may be identified no matter where they may be found. No two pieces of pottery of each kind will be exactly alike, but they all conform to a common ideal. It must be stressed that, by [culture] center, we do not mean an entirely restricted area, but rather a nuclear section in which specialization was most intense and from which influence spread, often over a large area.

The oldest settlement, and one which continued to be a cultural leader with far-reaching influences for centuries, lies in the Chaco Canyon of New Mexico.[61][73][95] The Chaco River is a tributary of the San Juan which flows through northwestern New Mexico. Within the canyon are found twelve large ruins, which include some of the most spectacular of the ancient buildings erected in North America, and innumerable smaller ruins. The twelve great communal buildings were more or less rectangular, oval, or D-shaped structures, with up to four stories on three sides, and a single-storied row of rooms which bowed out to the southeast. Within the walls was a great open court or [plaza] which contained numerous kivas. Other kivas were incorporated within the building mass. It is interesting to note that the traditional underground character of the ceremonial chamber was preserved through filling in the space between the circular walls of the [kiva] and the straight walls of the other rooms.

Fig. 29—Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon National Monument, New Mexico. (Courtesy National Park Service.)

One of the largest and most famous Chacoan structures is called Pueblo Bonito.[71] It was a town, consisting of a single building, which covered over three acres of ground and contained at least eight hundred rooms. It has been estimated that it could have sheltered 1200 inhabitants, and it was the largest “apartment house” in the world until a larger one was erected in New York in 1882. Building had begun at Pueblo Bonito as early as 919 A.D., but it did not reach its final form until 1067 A.D. or later. It is believed that the more definitely planned settlement may have been the work of new and more progressive people who moved into the area.

Pueblo Bonito, as it stands today after archaeologists have cleared away the dust of centuries and exposed it to view, is truly a remarkable structure. Even in ruins, it is not too difficult to picture it as it must have been during those long ago times when it was one of the great cultural centers of the Southwest. On three sides of the center court was the main building, terraced back from a one-story level in front to four stories in the rear. With each succeeding row of rooms the height was increased by one story. Extending from the ends and enclosing the side to the south was a one-story row of rooms. Outside of this single tier was the rubbish heap around which retaining walls were built. The center court contained numerous kivas, and others were incorporated in the building mass.

In addition to the regular kivas, whose diameter rarely exceeded twenty-five feet, there have also been found in Chaco Canyon, Aztec, and other sites with Chacoan architecture, big circular structures with diameters of from forty to sixty feet ringed by a concentric row of small rooms. These are known as Great Kivas. They are thought to have been religious edifices which served an entire community, while the smaller kivas probably belonged to various clans or societies. Great Kivas, though in a simpler form, were apparently present as far back as Modified-Basketmaker times when most rites were performed in dwellings, but a larger place was needed for ceremonies in which the people of a whole community or district participated.

Architecture in general reached its highest development in Chaco Canyon, and there was real beauty as well as solidity of construction. The walls were massive, although there was a decrease in thickness with succeeding stories, as the weight resting upon them was reduced. The most distinctive type of masonry consisted of a center portion of stone and adobe or rubble, faced on two sides by a veneer of horizontally laid thin, tabular stones. These are so perfectly fitted together that a knife blade can scarcely be inserted between them. Sometimes this particular type of stone was not available and it was necessary to use more massively bedded stones which had to be dressed to the proper shape, but the masonry was uniformly good. Great beams, stripped of bark and beautifully dressed, were placed across the chambers. Small poles, which were finished with equal care, were placed at right angles to the main beams and so spaced as to form patterns. Over these lay carefully fashioned mats of peeled willow, followed by a cedar splint layer. A thick coat of earth overlay the entire mass, forming a floor for the room above as well as a roof for the one below.

The use of big logs, which do not bear the scars indicative of transportation over a long distance, and the common use of willow, which must have been abundant, suggest conditions different from those of today. It is not known with certainty whether there has been a real climatic change. Many believe that, when hoofed animals were introduced by the white man, the grass cover was destroyed, and that this led to the cutting of arroyos which carried off flood waters and lowered the underground seepage and as a result the land became progressively drier, but others believe that there were earlier periods of arroyo-cutting.

Although severe erosion did not occur until a later time, it was a process with which the ancient inhabitants of Pueblo Bonito were familiar. Overlooking the Pueblo was a tremendous rock with an estimated weight of 30,000 tons, detached from the cliff and seeming so precariously balanced as to threaten the building. At the foot of the rock the prehistoric inhabitants erected a brace of wood and stone masonry. At first glance it seems a rather pathetic effort, but actually it may not show any ignorance on the part of the ancient Bonitians, but rather a familiarity with certain engineering principles which suggested that protecting the base of the rock would curtail erosion and help to prevent the threatened disaster. The fears of the prehistoric inhabitants were never realized in their time, for it was not until January 22, 1941, that the threatening rock finally fell. It damaged one hundred feet of the back wall of the pueblo and twenty-one adjacent rooms.

Rooms in Chaco-Canyon structures were relatively large and high ceilinged, with plastered walls. The inner rooms, which lacked light and air, were used for storage. Household activities were not confined to the rooms, for the roofs of the lower tiers provided additional living space, and much work, such as the preparing of food, the making of pottery, and the flaking of arrowheads, probably took place in the open. Fire places are rare in the rooms, and it seems likely that much of the cooking was done outside—in the courts and on the roofs. At first there were doorways and high windows in the outer wall, but these were later blocked off with masonry. The single gateway in the front of the pueblo was first greatly narrowed and then entirely closed, so that the great house could be entered only by means of a ladder which, if necessary, could be withdrawn. This is some of the best evidence of the fear of attack which must have existed.