NEW MEXICO ARCHEOLOGICAL COUNCIL 2012 FALL CONFERENCE
Chuska and Chaco: Puebloan Relationships
Across the San Juan Basin
Hibben Center, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Co-sponsored by the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, UNM
Preliminary Event
Thursday, Nov. 8: 7:00–9:00 P.M. Public Presentation: A Historic Perspective on the Chuska
Valley Project by Stewart Peckham. — Hibben 105, UNM main campus
Preliminary Agenda (Subject to Change)
Saturday, November 10: All Day — Hibben 105, UNM main campus
9:00–4:00
Standing exhibits and posters (Hibben Atrium)
8:00–9:00
On-site registration; continental breakfast (Hibben Atrium)
8:00-9:00
NMAC Business Meeting (Hibben 105)
Saturday, November 10: Morning Session
9:00–9:05
Welcome and opening remarks
9:05–9:25
Doug Dykeman – A Tour of the Chuska Slope Archaeology and Landscape
9:25–9:45
James Potter – An Introduction to the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project
9:45–10:05
Jason Chuipka and Shawn Fehrenbach – An Overview of Digital Data
Recordation on the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, Northwest New Mexico
10:05–10:25 Cory Breternitz – A Summary of Data Recovery Investigations in the Vicinity of
Tolakai, Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, Northwest New Mexico
10:25–10:35 Break; continue continental breakfast (Hibben Atrium)
10:35–10:55 Lori Stephens Reed – A New Look at the Old Data: Ceramic Trends in the
Chuska Valley
10:55–11:15 Hannah Mattson – Chuska Grayware from the Pueblo Bonito Middens:
Implications for Site Function and Interaction
11:15–11:35 Adam Okun – The Import, Use, and Discard of Chuska Chert at Pueblo Bonito
11:35–11:45 Discussion
11:45–1:30
Break for lunch
NMAC Fall Conference, Nov. 10, 2012, Page 2
_____________________________________________________________________________
1:30 – 1:50
Saturday, November 10: Afternoon Session
Bradley Vierra – Social Landscape and Ecology in the Southern Chuska Valley.
1:50 – 2:10
Ruth Van Dyke – Chuskan Connections and the Rise of Chaco.
2:10–2:30
Heartland?
Paul Reed – The Chuska Valley: Chacoan Colony or Ancient Puebloan
2:30 – 2:40
Break
2:40 – 4:00
Peter McKenna and Tom Windes: Chuska and Chaco Ceramic Workshop
Posters and Exhibits (Subject to Change)
BLM NM State Office - BLM’s Commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of the 1862
Homestead Act and the 200th anniversary of the General Land Office.
Toni Goar, Marron and Associates - Synopsis of the Known Cultural Resources in the Madrid,
New Mexico Area.
Monica Murrell, Statistical Research, Inc - Preliminary Results of the Investigations at Two
Basketmaker III Households along the Chuska Slope.
Robin Gay Wakeland - Preserving Prehistoric Pueblo Architecture.
New Mexico Archaeological Council Publications table.
ABSTRACTS
A Summary of Data Recovery Investigations in the Vicinity of Tolakai, Navajo-Gallup
Water Supply Project, Northwest New Mexico
Cory Breternitz
PaleoWest Archaeology
PaleoWest Archaeology conducted data recovery investigations at four prehistoric sites along the
Navajo-Gallup Water Supply right-of-way north of Gallup, New Mexico. A Basketmaker III site
with two large pitstructures and over two dozen extramural features and two Pueblo II surface
masonry pueblos are discussed. Both of the pueblos have kivas, living rooms, and storage
NMAC Fall Conference, Nov. 10, 2012, Page 3
_____________________________________________________________________________
features that were excavated over one meter into bedrock. The fourth site is an agricultural
locality with a protohistoric terrace that has buried up to 20 juniper trees. An overview of
upcoming survey, testing, and data recovery work in the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project
area is also discussed.
An Overview of Digital Data Recordation on the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project,
Northwest New Mexico
Jason Chuipka and Shawn Fehrenbach
PaleoWest Archaeology
The Bureau of Reclamation’s $1.3 billion Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project was initiated in
the fall of 2011. The project corridor brackets the San Juan Basin, and consequently, crosses
hundreds of historic and prehistoric archaeological sites. PaleoWest has developed digital data
collection methods that are intended to streamline fieldwork and reporting by reducing data
redundancy. The over-arching purpose of the move to digital data collection is to maintain data
quality while at the same time facilitating the timely mitigation of cultural resources along the
project corridor. After the first season of fieldwork, we are addressing the upsides and downsides
of the move to a near-paperless archaeology.
A Tour of the Chuska Slope Archaeology and Landscape
Doug Dykeman
Dykeman Roebuck Archaeology
This paper serves as an introduction to the archaeology and landscape of the Chuska slope for the
Fall Conference. To that purpose, I will take you on a tour of the region by air and land. It begins
on the north end of the Chuska Slope in the vicinity of Ship Rock – the rock, not the town – and
swings southward to Tohatchi Flats. In between is an amazing landscape of weathered and
exposed intrusive features, hogbacks, mountains and valleys. Important to the area is water that
drains west off the Chuska Mountains eastward to the Chaco River. Taking advantage of the
water and diverse regional resources; Anasazi communities, small and large, formed along these
drainages during the Basketmaker III and thrived into the Pueblo III period. This snapshot of the
Chuska Slope frames the discussion of the regional archaeology that is the focus of this
conference.
Chuska Grayware from the Pueblo Bonito Middens: Implications for Site Function and
Interaction
Hannah Mattson
Office of Contract Archeology
Almost 100,000 grayware sherds, nearly half of which are Chuska wares, were analyzed during
the Pueblo Bonito Trash Mound Project. The majority of the assemblage is consistent householdlevel food preparation, and there does not appear to be a functional difference between Cibola
NMAC Fall Conference, Nov. 10, 2012, Page 4
_____________________________________________________________________________
and Chuska vessels in the small-to-medium size range. However, there is clear evidence for the
existence of separate size classes of cooking pots, the largest of which are dominated by Chuska
wares. In addition, it appears that these large Chuska vessels were used less intensively than
smaller vessels. These results suggest that large Chuska cooking vessels were preferred for
occasional supra-household food preparation at Pueblo Bonito.
The Import, Use, and Discard of Chuska Chert at Pueblo Bonito
Adam S. Okun
University of New Mexico
Recently, researchers have begun to reassess the model of Chaco Canyon as a ceremonial center,
noting that the materials within the Pueblo Alto mound (particularly ceramics and fauna) are
more consistent with household use and discard than ceremonial gatherings. Flaked-stone
material – particularly Chuska Chert – has previously been used a supporting evidence for a
model of ritual deposition at great house mounds, although recent reevaluations have not
considered this material. This paper presents the results of analysis of a large lithic assemblage
from the Pueblo Bonito middens and argues that this assemblage supports a model of normal
household use and discard.
An Introduction to the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project
James M. Potter
PaleoWest Archaeology
The Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project will deliver water from the San Juan River near
Farmington, NM to eastern portions of the Navajo Nation, southwestern areas of the Jicarilla
Apache Nation, and Gallup, New Mexico. Approximately 280 miles of pipeline and associated
infrastructure are the focus of one of the largest cultural resources consulting contracts in the
nation. This paper briefly summarizes the first year of work, including a comprehensive research
design, the Class I survey of the project area, new and innovative digital field methods, and
preliminary results from archaeological, ethnographic, and geomorphological field work. The
hope is that the enormous scale of the project, which encircles Chaco Canyon along the edges of
the San Juan Basin, will inform on long-term change in the basin as well as the research themes
of social identity, migration (or movement), and landscape use and construction.
The Chuska Valley: Chacoan Colony or Ancient Puebloan Heartland?
Paul F. Reed
Archaeology Southwest
Salmon Ruins Museum
The Chuska Valley has long been linked to Chaco Canyon in southwestern archaeological
literature. Various items were traded or brought from the Chuska area into Chaco: gray ware
ceramics, Narbona Pass chert, and high elevation construction timbers (ponderosa pine, spruce,
NMAC Fall Conference, Nov. 10, 2012, Page 5
_____________________________________________________________________________
and fir). Aside from the clear economic linkage, however, sociopolitical connections between the
two areas have hardly been explored. In this paper, I’ll approach this problem drawing on
Chuska Valley research over the last 20 years and via comparison to the Middle San Juan
Chacoan colonies at the Salmon and Aztec communities.
A New Look at the Old Data: Ceramic Trends in the Chuska Valley
Lori Stephens Reed
Aztec Ruins National Monument
Trachyte-tempered pottery is mostly known for its association with Chaco Canyon and the
enormous number of Chuskan cooking pots brought into the Canyon during the heyday of
Chaco. Use of trachyte basalt for tempering pottery and the distinctive slip, paint, and paste
characteristics of Chuskan ceramics, however, have a unique developmental history outside of its
association with Chaco. The results of ceramic research over the past several decades in the
Chuska Valley are explored to examine the history of this pottery tradition with a fresh look at
the chronology, technology, and stylistic trends.
Social Landscape and Ecology in the Southern Chuska Valley
Bradley J. Vierra
Statistical Research, Inc.
This paper will present some preliminary findings of excavations conducted along the southern
Chuska Valley in the area of Tohatchi Flats. Numerous highway and pipeline projects have been
conducted along US 491 and adjacent areas of the basin, thereby providing information on
Archaic, Basketmaker, Anasazi and Navajo archaeology. As such it provides a wonderful setting
for evaluating new theoretical approaches to understanding the past including human behavioral
ecology and social theory; however, field excavations are currently ongoing. Therefore, this
paper will present a series of slides that illustrate the range of variability identified during the
project and the potential these data have for future research.
NMAC Fall Conference, Nov. 10, 2012, Page 6
_____________________________________________________________________________
REGISTRATION FORM
New Mexico Archaeological Council
2012 CONFERENCE: CHUSKA AND CHACO:
PUEBLOAN RELATIONSHIPS ACROSSTHE SAN JUAN BASIN
Hibben Center, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque
Saturday, November 10, 2012
To register, complete this form, enclose check or money order (no cash), and mail to:
NMAC 2012 Fall Conference
P.O. Box 25691
Albuquerque, NM 87125
Name(s):________________________________________________________________
Conference Registration - NMAC Membership required to attend conference
I’m a NMAC Distinguished Service Awardee (no charge to attend the conference)
$0.00
I’m a presenter or moderator (no charge to attend the conference).
$0.00
2012 Individual Member: Conference only (U.S. $25.00)
$__________
2012 Student Member: Conference only (U.S. $20.00)
$__________
Enclose a photocopy of student ID
New Member, 2013: Conference Registration (U.S $25.00)
$__________
(Please attach membership form and enclose NMAC dues)
New Student Member, 2013: Conference Registration (U.S $20.00)
$__________
(Please attach membership form and enclose NMAC dues)
Membership:
Renewal, 2013
New Member, 2013
(Please complete a NMAC membership form, attached)
Total from Membership form = $__________
Total Enclosed: $__________
______________________________
DOES YOUR ORGANIZATION HAVE A DISPLAY
ON HISTORIC PRESERVATION OR A RECENT PROJECT?
PLEASE BRING IT TO THE FALL MEET ING!
The Hibben Center atrium (a roofed, climate-controlled space) has room
and electrical power for multiple displays. If your display is the tabletop
type rather than free-standing, we can provide folding tables (please
bring your own tablecloths). To arrange for a display during the
Saturday conference, please contact Dave Phillips at dap@unm.edu.
NMAC Fall Conference, Nov. 10, 2012, Page 7
_____________________________________________________________________________
NEW MEXICO ARCHEOLOGICAL COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP AND ORDER FORM (v 4/06)
MEMBERSHIP*
[ ] ______ (year) Renewal or [ ] New Member Beginning _____ (year)
________ enclosed for membership dues ($25 individual; $35 sponsor or institutional)
$ ________ enclosed to extend membership for an additional _____ years (same rates)
$ ________ enclosed as a contribution to the NMAC Research Grant Fund or NMAC Scholarship Fund (circle one)
* Memberships received after 1 October will be extended through the following year-end
PUBLICATIONS
$ ________ enclosed for ___ copies of NMAC Special Publication No. 1: Current Research on the Late Prehistory
and Early History of New Mexico (2002 reprint of 1992, 350+ pp coil-bound) @ $25 per copy plus s/h
$ ________ enclosed for ___ copies of NMAC Special Publication No. 2: Soil, Water, Biology, and Belief… (2002
reprint of 1995, 370+ pp perfect bound) @ $25 per copy plus s/h
$ ________ enclosed for ___ copies of NMAC Special Publication No. 3: Examining the Course of SW Archeology:
The 1995 Durango Conference, edited by David A. Phillips and Lynne Sebastian (2001, 170+ pp
perfect bound) @ $15 per copy (members) or $19.29 per copy (non-members), plus s/h
$ ________ enclosed for ___ copies of NMAC Special Publication No. 4: Chaco Society and Polity, edited by Linda
S. Cordell et al (2001, 90+ pp perfect bound) @ $15 per copy (members) or $19.29 per copy (nonmembers), plus s/h
SHIPPING/HANDLING
$ ________ enclosed for shipping and handling ($5.00 for up to 2 copies of NMAC Special Publications, plus $2.50 for
each additional copy)
$ ________ enclosed for ___ copies of Anasazi Community Architecture in the Chuska Valley: Site Summaries
and Maps, compiled by Dennis Gilpin, Douglas D. Dykeman, and Paul F. Reed (1996, 70 pp coil bound)
@ $10 per copy, no shipping and handling required
$ ________ TOTAL ENCLOSED
send form and check to
NMAC Fall Conference
PO Box 25691
Albuquerque, NM 87125
CONTACT AND SHIPPING INFORMATION (PLEASE PRINT)
Name:
__________________________________________________________________
Address:
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
City/State/Zip:
Phone:
__________________________________________________________________
(w) ______________________ (h) _________________________ [ ] Don’t list in Directory
Want to receive email messages posted to NMAC-L list server?
[ ] Yes, here is my email address:_____________________________________________________________
[ ] No
NewsMac Preferences:
[ ] US mail delivery
[ ] web read/download (.PDF)