Southwest Archaeology Today for March 23, 2006

Archaeology Making the News – A Service of the Center for Desert Archaeology

– Ninth Circuit Court Overturns Convictions of Men Found Guilty of Rock Art Theft: A federal appeals court overturned the conviction of two Nevada men in the theft of American Indian artwork Tuesday even though the three-judge panel said it was clear the men stole the centuries-old petroglyphs. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Justice Department failed to prove the rock art taken from national forest land had market or commercial value of more than $1,000.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nevada/2006/mar/21/032110026.html

– Arizona State Museum Conference to Discus Issues Relating to Tucson’s Spanish Missions & Interpretive Potentials for Reconstruction: The Tucson public is invited to attend “What We Know and What We Need to Find Out About Tucson’s Mission and Garden” Thursday, March 23, 7-8:30 PM, The Hotel Arizona, Starlight Ballroom 181 West Broadway Blvd., Tucson, Arizona. This public presentation will be an overview and preview to the March 24-25 conference: “Tucson’s Mission & Garden: Reconstructing Daily Life and Agriculture in the O’odham/Spanish Borderlands”
http://www.cdarc.org/pages/articles.php?req=read&article_id=247

– Arizona Archaeology Month Events Near St. George: The National Park Service at Pipe Spring National Monument has arranged several special programs, some in partnership with the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, as part of the month long celebration of cultural heritage. These special programs are one-time or infrequent offerings, so the National Park Service encourages the public to take advantage of participation in these opportunities. Programs offered over the next two weeks include the following: Walking tour, “Camp DG-44: The Civilian Conservation Corps at Pipe Spring National Monument” 1:30 p.m., Friday, and “Mu’uputs Canyon, Paiute History and Lifeways” – 10 a.m. Sunday. Join park ranger Benn Pikyavit on this 1.5 mile, moderate hike into scenic Mu’uputs Canyon on the Kaibab Paiute Reservation.
http://tinyurl.com/zkm9v – The Saint George Spectrum

– Archaeological Preservation in Southwestern States Found to be Threatened: Archaeological and historical sites along the U.S. border with Mexico and other valuable cultural resources are being destroyed, including areas held sacred by Native Americans, according to a new report from a presidential advisory panel. The culprits: dynamic population growth and urbanization in Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and California, combined with increased cross-border traffic and illegal immigration through the region and related border enforcement.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0321sacred-damage0321.html

– Society for Californian Archaeology Meetings to be Held in Ventura Beach: Over the four days, not only will there be a Geoarchaeology Workshop (the reconstruction of ancient environments and landscapes), but presentations dealing with such topics as “Understanding Artifacts”, “Archaeology of the Channel Islands” and “California Desert and Great Basin Prehistory”. Also scheduled is a guided island excursion to Santa Cruz Island, which includes briefings and interpretive expertise, provided by the National Parks staff. All of this, along with a Thursday night Reception/Silent Auction at the Ventura County Museum of History & Art and a delectable Friday night Awards Banquet featuring guest speaker Douglas Owsley, head of the Physical Anthropology Program at the Smithsonian, Museum of Natural History.
http://tinyurl.com/gxgqa – The Santa Paula Times

– The Archaeology Channel’s Film Festival Results Posted: The Festival, which took place March 7-11, featured many of the world’s best films and videos on archaeology and indigenous peoples, as well as an in-person presentation (“Chaco Canyon: America’s Stonehenge”) by leading author and archaeologist Dr. Brian Fagan. Producers and distributors from 15 countries worldwide submitted 56 film entries to the Festival, of which 17 films from 7 countries were screened in front of the McDonald Theatre audience. Awards are listed in three categories: Best Film (by jury), Best Use of Animation (by jury), and Audience Favorite, as well as a Special Mention Award designated by the Festival jury. The biggest winner of the event was Queen of the Mountain (produced by Martha Goell Lubell), which was the Audience Favorite as well as Best Film as chosen by the Festival jury. Next year’s edition of TAC Festival will take place May 1-5, 2007, at the same venue and will feature Dr. Louise Leakey as Keynote Speaker.
http://www.archaeologychannel.org/content/TACfestival.shtml