Foragers and Farmers of the Northern Kayenta Region: Excavations along the Navajo Mountain Road

453 Pages·2011·9.19 MB·English

by  Phil Geib

Foragers and Farmers of the Northern Kayenta Region
John Blake Sr. excavating a Pueblo III pit house on the Rainbow Plateau, August 1997.
Foragers and Farmers
of the Northern Kayenta Region
Excavations along the Navajo Mountain Road
Phil R. Geib
with a contribution by
Jim Collette
The University of Utah Press
Salt Lake City
The interpretations presented in this report are those of the author
and in no way reflect those of the Navajo Nation or Navajo people.
Copyright © 2011 by The University of Utah Press. All rights reserved.
The Defiance House Man colophon is a registered trademark
of the University of Utah Press. It is based upon a four-foot-tall,
Ancient Puebloan pictograph (late PIII) near Glen Canyon, Utah.
15 14 13 12 11 1 2 3 4 5
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Geib, Phil R.
Foragers and farmers of the northern Kayenta region : excavations
along the Navajo Mountain road / Phil R. Geib ; with contribution by
Jim Collette.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
isbn 978-1-60781-003-2 (alk. paper)
isbn 978-1-60781-999-8 (ebook)
1. Navajo Indians — Navajo Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.) —
Antiquities. 2. Navajo Indians — Arizona — Kayenta Region — Antiquities.
3. Navajo Mountain Road Archaeological Project. 4. Excavations
(Archaeology) — Navajo Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.) 5. Paleo-
Indians — Navajo Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.) 6. Hunting and
gathering societies — Navajo Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.)
7. Agriculture, Prehistoric — Navajo Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.)
8. Social archaelogy — Navajo Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.) 9. Navajo
Mountain Region (Utah and Ariz.) — Antiquities. 10. Kayenta Region
(Ariz.) — Antiquities. I. Collette, Jim. II. Title.
E99.N3G355 2010
979.2'59 — dc22 2010004265
Printed and bound by Sheridan Books, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan.
To
Dorothy Richards Geib
for always being there
and
J. Richard Ambler
for getting me started in archaeology

Contents
List of Figures ix Mouse House (AZ-J-3-7) 107
List of Tables xv Sin Sombra (AZ-J-3-6) 109
Acknowledgments xix Hillside Hermitage (AZ-J-3-14) 110
Kin Kahuna (AZ-J-3-8) 112
1. Introduction 1 Dune Hollow (AZ-J-2-2) 114
Project Location 1 Hymn House (AZ-J-2-3) 116
The Project 4 Modesty House (AZ-J-2-5) 118
Project Methods 12 Water Jar Pueblo (AZ-J-2-58) 118
Sapo Seco (AZ-J-2-6) 121
2. Background for the Navajo Mountain Bonsai Bivouac (AZ-J-2-55) 122
Road Archaeological Project 21 Three Dog Site (UT-B-63-39) 124
The Kayenta Region 21 Hanging Ash (UT-B-63-14) 128
Previous Research 24 UT-B-63-19 128
Synopsis of Regional Prehistory 25 UT-B-63-38 131
Environment 48 Tsé Haal’á (UT-B-63-30) 132
Atlatl Rock Cave (AZ-J-14-41) 135
3. Synopsis of the Navajo Mountain
Road Archaeological Project Sites 64 4. Summary and Interpretation of
The Pits (AZ-J-14-17) 64 Archaic Period Forager Remains 140
Ditch House (AZ-J-14-21) 72 The NMRAP Archaic Site Sample 141
Wolachii Bighan (AZ-J-14-20) 74 NMRAP Archaic Chronology 145
Hólahéi Scatter (AZ-J-14-23) 75 Archaic Settlement 160
Pee Wee Grande (AZ-J-14-26) 77 Subsistence Range and Territory 183
Windy Mesa (AZ-J-14-28) 79 Paleoindian Remains and
The Slots (AZ-J-14-30) 82 Archaic Beginnings 193
Polly’s Place (AZ-J-14-31) 83 Settlement Continuity and
Naaki Hooghan (AZ-J-14-11) 85 the Middle Archaic 193
Tres Campos (AZ-J-14-12) 87 Conclusions 204
Panorama House (AZ-J-14-34) 90
Big Bend (AZ-J-14-13) 92 5. Summary and Interpretation of
Ko’ Lanhi (AZ-J-14-35) 95 Basketmaker II Remains 206
Blake’s Abode (AZ-J-14-36) 97 The NMRAP Basketmaker Site Sample 207
Scorpion Heights (AZ-J-14-37) 97 Northern Kayenta Region Basketmaker
Camp Dead Pine (AZ-J-14-52) 101 Chronology 210
Mountainview (AZ-J-14-38) 102 Farming and Foraging 222
Hammer House (AZ-J-14-16) 103 Basketmaker Settlement 234
vii
viii Contents
Architecture 255 7. Conclusion 374
Basketmaker Origins 263 Research Issues 375
Basketmaker II–III Transition 279 A Middle Holocene Bottleneck? 375
Conclusions 286 Forager Territories 377
Agricultural Transition 378
6. Summary and Interpretation of Puebloan Craft Production and Exchange 382
Puebloan Remains, with Jim Collette 290 Social Issues 385
The NMRAP Puebloan Site Sample 291 Final Thoughts 389
Chronology 294
Puebloan Architecture 313 Appendix: Contents of Supplemental
Puebloan Settlement Types Documents 391
and Patterning 333 References Cited 393
Puebloan Mobility 368 Index 419
Regional Settlement History and
Population Trends 370
Figures
1.1. The Four Corners region showing prehistoric 2.11. View from the high divide between
Puebloan “cultural” areas and the general Navajo and Piute canyons. 51
location of the Navajo Mountain road. 2 2.12. View into a part of Upper Piute Canyon
1.2. The Navajo Mountain Road Archaeological from its western rim. 51
Project study area in the northern Kayenta 2.13. View to the southwest of Navajo Mountain
region. 3 from the northern part of the Rainbow
1.3. Excavation under way at Modesty House on Plateau near Hawkeye Natural Bridge. 52
the central portion of the Rainbow Plateau. 13 2.14. Examples of the silicified sandstone that
2.1. Map of the core Kayenta region of northeast outcrops on Navajo Mountain. 59
Arizona and southeast Utah. 22 2.15. Two rim sherds of unfired Tsegi Orange
2.2. Map of the northern Kayenta region and Ware bowls found nested together in the
adjoining terrain. 23 trash midden at Long House. 61
2.3. General cultural-temporal framework used 2.16. Mineralized log within the Petrified Forest
for this report. 26 Member of the Chinle Formation exposed
2.4. Examples of Oshara tradition points from in Lower Piute Canyon. 62
the southern Kaibito Plateau around 3.1. Location of the N16 right-of-way showing
Tuba City, Arizona. 31 the 33 sites excavated by the Navajo Mountain
2.5. Cowboy Cave depositional units and Road Archaeological Project. 69
radiocarbon dates in relation to chronological 3.2. The Pits site plan showing topography,
divisions for the northern Colorado Plateau. 34 work effort, and excavated features. 70
2.6. Actual intervals of Archaic period forager 3.3. Ditch House site plan showing topography,
occupation for the N16 project area relative work effort, and excavated features. 73
to the general chronological framework and 3.4. Wolachii Bighan site plan showing topography,
chief cultural-temporal diagnostics for the work effort, and excavated features. 75
northern Colorado Plateau. 35 3.5. Hólahéi Scatter site plan showing topography,
2.7. Western Basketmaker II cultural-temporal work effort, and excavated features. 76
phases relevant to the northern Kayenta 3.6. Pee Wee Grande site plan showing topography,
region. 42 work effort, and excavated features. 78
2.8. Demographic profiles for six localities of 3.7. Windy Mesa site plan showing topography,
the northern Kayenta region. 46 work effort, and excavated features. 80
2.9. Demographic profile for the entire northern 3.8. The Slots site plan showing topography,
Kayenta region and for the northern mesas work effort, and excavated features. 82
excluding Upper Piute Canyon and 3.9. Polly’s Place site plan showing topography,
Dzil Nez Mesa. 47 work effort, and excavated features. 84
2.10. Schematic cross section along the N16 right 3.10. Naaki Hooghan site plan showing topography,
-of-way plus three orthogonal sections. 50 work effort, and excavated features. 86
ix