Archaeological Community Continues the Struggle against Televised Looting

Archaeological Community Continues the Struggle against Televised Looting
John Muir once observed that nothing “dollarable” was safe. He meant that no matter how important something was to our future, no matter if important to our nation as a whole, nor even sacred, if its ruination could bring someone a dollar, then someone would try to get that dollar. He spoke of giant trees in national parks, but his point is applicable to cable television, where anything that will draw viewers, quantified as “ratings,” is dollarable, and therefore not safe no matter how important. Today, the point applies to the archaeological heritage of the United States, rendered dollarable by the ratings of tacky television programs. http://bit.ly/16VBD7x – Santa Fe New Mexican

Concerned Archaeologist’s Petition from Change.org
Petition requesting that National Geographic Channel, Travel Channel and Spike TV pull their Digger programming immediately as they promote looting and disrespect of our national heritage. http://chn.ge/19Oynvq – Change.org

The Society for American Archaeology Takes a Stand Against the “Apache Leap” Land Swap
The Society for American Archaeology (SAA), the American Cultural Resources Association (ACRA), and the Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA) respectfully request that the House defeat the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange Act (H.R. 687) when it is considered on Thursday, September 26. Passage of the bill would prevent those cultural resources potentially impacted by the project envisioned in the legislation from receiving the full amount of protection afforded to them under federal law. http://bit.ly/1bTx58z – (PDF) via the SAA

Innovative Digital Archaeology Used to Document Rock Art in Texas
The work of photographer Mark Willis combines advanced imaging and fabrication technologies with archaeological exploration, often producing breath-taking images, 3D models, and highly accurate virtual environments from ancient sites in the U.S. Southwest.  http://bit.ly/19gXsyl – Gizmodo

Mesa Grande Cultural Park Opens on the Third of October
Mesa Grande Cultural Park is set to open for the new season Oct. 3, and the historic site already has a program scheduled approximately two weeks into the season. Located at 1000 N. Date Street, the park is a prehistoric Hohokam site and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Arizona Museum of Natural History and the Southwest Archaeology Team preserve Mesa Grande. http://bit.ly/18C5ENs – East Valley Tribune

Did Ancient Puebloans Practice Mummification?
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, archeologists and plunderers excavated mummies of dozens of ancient Anasazi Indians buried in caves and rock shelters in southeast Utah and other Four Corners states. Experts have believed that they were mummified naturally by the area’s dry climate. But a Peruvian physician-anthropologist says that decades-old photographs and reports of two mummies from Utah and Arizona provide evidence that the Anasazi sometimes mummified their dead intentionally. http://lat.ms/17f5X0m – LA Times

National Park Service Prepares for Government Shutdown
National Park Service officials hope it won’t happen, but are preparing their staffs in case Capitol Hill forces a partial government shutdown on Tuesday.For Fredericksburg-area residents, that calamity would shutter George Washington Birthplace National Monument and most of Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, putting thousands of acres off-limits. By 11:59 p.m. Monday, managers at those parks will know what the future holds. http://1.usa.gov/16VDSYx – Stars and Stripes

Public Archaeology and Public Education in the Verde Valley
Through education and research, the Verde Valley Archaeology Center in Camp Verde endeavors to cultivate an understanding of prehistory and Native American history in the Verde Valley. So it makes sense that VVAC’s Educational Programs Department has an archaeology presentation geared toward schools in the Verde Valley. http://bit.ly/1biPfOk – Camp Verde Bugle

Reminder – Archaeology Southwest’s Sixth Season of Archaeology Café Begins Tuesday, October 1st
On Tuesday, October 1, 2013, Dr. David Doyel will share his expert perspective on archaeology in the Great Bend of the Gila, an enduring cultural crossroads that may become a national monument. We gather after 5:00 p.m., and presentations begin by 6:15 p.m. Seating is open and unreserved, but limited. http://bit.ly/14TLLlY – Archaeology Southwest

Lecture Opportunity – Phoenix
The public is invited to a free lecture on Secrets of the Hohokam Economy offered by the Agua Fria Chapter of the Arizona Archaeological Society at 7:00 PM on Monday, October 14, 2013 at the West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, 5904 W. Cholla St.,Glendale, AZ (off 59th  Avenue, south of Cactus).  Membership in the Society is not required. Sophia Kelly has worked as a professional archaeologist in Arizona since 2003. She received her MA and PhD from Arizona State University and currently works as the Cultural Resource Manager and Site Stewardship Coordinator for Arizona State Parks. The Agua Fria Chapter of the Arizona Archaeological Society also offers classes and field trips. Check the website at www.azarchsoc.org. For more information contact Tim Cullison, 602-863-9744, tcullisonaz@gmail.com.

Lecture Opportunity – Santa Fe
Southwest Seminars Presents Dr. Thomas E. Chavez, who will give a lecture Segesser Hide Paintings: Discovery, History, and Art today, September 30 at 6pm at Hotel Santa Fe as part of the annual Native Cultures Matter Lecture Series held annually to acknowledge the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI). Admission is $12 at the door or by subscription. No reservations are necessary and refreshments are served. Contact Connie Eichstaedt at 505 466-2775, email: southwest seminar@aol.com website: http://bit.ly/YhJddr

Lecture Opportunity – Santa Fe
Southwest Seminars Presents Dr. Jo Anne Van Tilburg, director of the Easter Island Statue Project, University of California at Los Angeles and the UCLA Rock Art Archive; and Fellow, Cotsen Institute of Archaeology who will give a lecture The Easter Island Statues Have Bodies! on October 7 at 6pm at Hotel Santa Fe as part of the annual Native Cultures Matter Lecture Series held annually to acknowledge the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI). Admission is $12 at the door or by subscription. No reservations are necessary and refreshments are served. Contact Connie Eichstaedt at 505 466-2775, email: southwest seminar@aol.com website: http://bit.ly/YhJddr