Southwest Archaeology Today for Nov. 6, 2006

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

– Ethnobotany and Landscape of Baja California to be Topic of Next Pacific Coast Archaeological Society Meeting: The November 9, 2006 meeting will feature Lynn Gamble speaking on “Kumeyaay Cultural Landscapes in Baja California.” Dr. Gamble will describe her recent work among the Kumeyaay of northern Baja California where she is investigating the Native American “cultural landscape” based upon interviews with tribal members while in the field. Her research involves the study of botanical resources used for food, medicine, and building material; gathering locations for other useful materials; and places of sacred and social importance. Meeting information: Thursday, November 9, 2006, 7:30 pm at the Irvine Ranch Water District, 15600 Sand Canyon Ave., Irvine, CA. Meeting is free and open to the public. For information:
http://www.pcas.org

– Drilling for CO2 Questioned Within Canyon of the Ancients National Monument: Kinder Morgan wants to drill two carbon-dioxide wells in the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is seeking comments on the proposal. The wells would be located in the Yellow Jacket and McElmo Dome units near Mockingbird Mesa and Burro Point, with surface disturbance expected to be 7.43 acres. Canyons of the Ancients National Monument contains American Indian ruins, covers about 164,000 acres and is home to more than 6,000 recorded archaeological sites. The monument is managed for multiple use. Amber Clark, public lands coordinator with the San Juan Citizens Alliance, said she is disappointed to see more oil-and-gas development in the monument.
http://tinyurl.com/y4tjqy – Cortez Journal

– Tucson Cemetery Will not be Open to Public During Excavation: Prying eyes won’t be welcome for at least a year at the downtown site of a future joint Justice Court/City Court complex on Stone Avenue. Certainly not when archaeologists are uncovering graves in the former city cemetery where the new court complex will sit.
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/ss/history_culture/31388.php

– Travelogue – A Trip to Chaco Canyon: Whoever wrote the brochure describing this area as one of “marginal rainfall” definitely didn’t visit when we did. Driving into Chaco Canyon after an early October downpour was one not-so-excellent adventure: Our first attempt to negotiate 16 miles of unpaved road leading to the entrance of Chaco Culture National Historical Park involved slipping and sliding through so much mud that we turned around (with great difficulty) and drove out again.
http://www.chieftain.com/life/1162731601/1

– (Related Story) Ancient Trade at Chaco Canyon: During its Classic period from A.D. 1020-1120, Chaco Canyon was the center of a far-flung trade network that extended into modern-day Mexico. The Chacoans exchanged goods within their own “empire” and with distant Mesoamerican cultures. Their distinctive black-on-white pottery and corrugated-surface pottery may have entered the canyon through trade with outlying communities to the south and west, respectively; seashells, copper bells, macaws and parrots came from western and central Mexico, perhaps representing contact with the ancient Toltecs.
http://www.chieftain.com/life/1162731601/2

– Employment Opportunity – Project Director :PaleoWest Solutions in Archaeology – Prescott, Arizona. In this midlevel position that offers advancement opportunities in a growing firm, you will run archaeological projects in Arizona and other Western states. You’ll receive health and leave-time benefits, as well as cash bonuses for productivity, performance, and academic publication. You must be fit, resourceful, dedicated, organized, advance-degreed, and an outstanding writer. You must also be willing to live and work in a mountain-city community 75 minutes from Phoenix that loves its archaeology and offers an outstanding quality of life. Starting salary will be at or near $38,000. Contact Tom Motsinger at tmotsinger@paleowest.com.
http://www.paleowest.com