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2019
31
Oct
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make a Stone Axe
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(October 31, 2019)—The stone axe is a fairly common artifact. We find them throughout the Southwest at sites dating from early ceramic times until just before Europeans came. We can tell they were used to chop trees becau...
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2018
04
Nov
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make Adobe Bricks
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(November 4, 2018)—In August, I was invited to participate in an adobe-brick manufacturing workshop hosted by the National Park Service at its Desert Research Learning Center on Tucson’s east side. The instructors were ...
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2018
16
Jan
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Build a Pithouse
Allen Denoyer, Archaeology Southwest, and Gary Owens, Huhugam Ki Museum, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community
(January 16, 2018)—In fall 2017, at Museum Director Gary Owens’s invitation, Allen Denoyer joined Gary’s team at the Huhugam Ki Museum at the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Co...
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2017
25
Sep
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make a Shell Bracelet
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(September 25, 2017)—In this post, I’ll share some insights into how much work goes into making shell bracelets. I suspect my time estimates are high, compared to experienced craftspeople in the past. Shell is not easy ...
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2017
29
Mar
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Tan a Hide
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(March 29, 2017)—In this post I will describe the process of brain-tanning, which I learned last month at Winter Count. I have to admit, though I have seen the process in parts, it always looked like more work than I wanted...
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2017
14
Mar
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make Prismatic Blades, Featuring Greg Nunn
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(March 14, 2017)—I recently attended WinterCount, an outdoor traditional technology gathering near Gila Bend, AZ. More than 650 people attended this sold-out event, more than 100 of whom were instructors. I attend as a st...
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2017
19
Jan
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make a Shell Tinkler
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(January 19, 2017)—Shell tinklers are a relatively common shell artifact we find in Hohokam and Salado archaeological sites in southern Arizona. Most are made of Conus shell or Olivella shell, both of which come from the ...
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2016
22
Dec
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Incise Bone
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(December 22, 2016)—Last-minute holiday gift idea! Review my previous post on how to make bone awls, and then check out this post to learn how to decorate your awl.
For this project, I used a large bone awl made out of...
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2016
12
Dec
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make a Bone Awl
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(December 12, 2016)—You might have seen pictures on our Facebook page from a bone-tool making workshop I did recently. Here they are in case you missed them. And now here's a post on how to make a bone awl. You can also s...
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2016
27
Oct
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Make Flintknapping Tools
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(October 27, 2016)—In this post, I’ll explain how to make a set of tools for flintknapping. Specifically, I will show how to create a set of traditional tools that is very much like what people used in the distant past....
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2016
28
Sep
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Find Good Tool Stone
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(September 28, 2016)—I often have people ask me how to find good stone to flintknap. It’s not easy. I enjoy working rock I have gathered myself from places I have visited or from areas near sites where I have worked. Lo...
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2016
23
Sep
Hands-On Archaeology: How to Heat-Treat Rock
Allen Denoyer, Preservation Archaeologist and Ancient Technologies Expert
(September 23, 2016)—In this post, I show the process I use to heat-treat rocks. I learned this technique years ago and have been using it ever since.
Why heat-treat rock? In short, because it makes tough or grainy roc...
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