Ancient American events this week April 8-14, 2012

Learn more about the ancient civilizations of North America by attending one of the many lectures or conferences this month:

April 8
The Denver Chapter of the Colorado Archaeological Society Lecture
"A Tale of 3 Caves: Archaeological Exploration and Excavation in the Northern Rio Grande Region of New Mexico"
Dr.Jonathan Kent, Metropolitan State University of Denver and Maxine McBrinn, Curator of Archaeology at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe, New Mexico
During a fire inventory survey, BLM archaeologists and foresters located three small caves west of Taos and the Rio Grande in New Mexico. The caves contained evidence of considerable prehistoric use and/or occupation, including intact pottery vessels. Because the cave sites were on public lands and easily accessible to both hunters and other campers, they were deemed to be at risk. After consulting with various parties, the BLM and Metropolitan State University of Denver agreed to conduct excavations at one of the caves as an archaeological field school. The work was carried out in the summer of 2012, and the data are still under analysis. Preliminary interpretations based on both field work and ongoing laboratory analyses of lithics, fauna, and ceramics will be discussed.
Ricketson Auditorium,
Denver Museum Nature & Science
Denver, Colorado
http://www.aiadenver.org

April 8, 7:00 PM
Agua Fria Chapter; Arizona Archaeological Society Lecture
"Bioarchaeology of the Mimbres River Valley"
Doss Powell, Paradise Valley Community College
Sanctuary at West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church
5904 W. Cholla St. (Corner of 59th Ave and Cholla)
Glendale, Arizona
http://www.azarchsoc.org/AguaFria#Meetings

April 8, 6:00 PM
Southwest Seminars Lecture
“Definition of Mogollon: A Five-Year Archaeological Research Project at Harris Site”
Dr. Barbara J. Roth, Lincy Foundation Professor and Chair, Department of Anthropology, University of Nevada-Las Vegas
Santa Fe Hotel
Santa Fe, New Mexico
http://www.southwestseminars.org/SWS/Ancient_Sites_2013.html

April 9, 6:30 PM
Friends of Tijeras Pueblo Lecture Series
"Scary Climbs: Structural Wood Projects in the Cedar Mesa-Natural Bridges area, SE Utah (2000-2012)"
Tom Windes
For the past 13 years, a structural wood documentation crew has worked in Natural Bridges and in the adjacent Cedar Mesa and Abajo Mountain areas to record in detail cliff sites with intact or partially intact structures with structural wood. The aim is to preserve the wooden architecture in map form, structural wood notes, photographs, and to collect tree-ring samples from this most precious of archaeological resources, the wood. For the most part, it is the kivas that employed the greatest amounts of structural wood, so that we are slowly building a regional database that will help to examine the late settlement of the area during the troubled 13th century and be applicable to many other avenues of research. Many of these sites are located along perilous ledges that provide challenging recording efforts and long treks into deep canyons.
Sandia Ranger Station,
Tijeras, New Mexico
http://www.abqarchaeology.org/events.shtml

April 9, 7:00 PM
Taos Archaeological Society Lecture
"Archaeology and Archival Research of near the Barrio de Analco, Santa Fe, New Mexico"
Steven Lakatos, Cultural Resource Manager, New Mexico Abandoned Mine Lands Program
Recent archaeological and archival investigations between the Santa Fe River and Montezuma Avenue identified numerous intact deposits lying just below a layer of pavement and base course. At first glance, one might assume that any material of archaeological interest has been removed or completely compromised by the installation of buildings, utilities, and roadways. While this may be true in many cases, ongoing urbanization can also had the reverse effect. Through the urbanization process intact archaeological deposits were capped by pavement or hemmed by the built environment lending to their unintentional preservation. Over 700 years of occupation and land use represented by Classic period Native American, Spanish Colonial, U.S. Territorial, and Depression era components were present under buildings, parking surfaces, and roadways. In addition archival research was used to better interpret these successive periods of occupation. Overall this project has contributed much new information to our understanding of occupation and land use south of the Santa Fe River and underscores the importance of urban archaeology.
Kit Carson Electric
118 Cruz Alta Rd,
Taos, New Mexico
http://www.taosarch.org/Default.aspx?pageId=98127&eventId=622270&EventVi...

April 9, 8:30 AM-3:20 PM
The Archeological Society of Maryland, Central Maryland Chapter
"The Uses of Forensic Sciences, the Natural Sciences, and New Technologies in Support of Archeological Research"
Seven scholars will present archeological research that used scientific techniques like those seen on such popular TV shows as CSI, Bones, and NCIS. Come see how tools like DNA and X-ray fluorescence are being used by archeologists.
People’s Resource Center,
Maryland Historical Trust,
Crownville, Maryland
Claude Bowen, (301) 953-1947 and claude.bowen@comcast.net
http://www.marylandarcheology.org/Arch_Month_2011/MAM_2011_Events_V4_11A...

April 10, 7:00 PM
Desert Foothills Chapter Chapter; Arizona Archaeological Society Lecture
"The Rise of the Andean Civilizations"
Join us for an evening in South America! Dr. Doss Powell will show pictures of many unique ruins and artifacts of early South American Andean Cultures.
Community Building, Good Shepherd of the Hills Church,
6502 E. Cave Creek Road,
Cave Creek, Arizona
http://www.azarchsoc.org/Default.aspx?pageId=807571

April 11, 7:00 PM
AIA Lecture
"What's New at Machu Picchu"
James Kus
Montclair Art Museum
3 South Mountain Avenue
Montclair, New Jersey
http://www.archaeological.org/events/9444

April 11, 7:30 PM
Michael C. Carlos Museum Lecture
“ Walking in the Footsteps of our Ancestors”
In conjunction with the first gallery rotation of native North American art which includes a collection of modern Southwestern ceramics, a promised gift to the Museum from Walter Melion and John Clum, scheduled to run for the calendar year 2013. The installation of this collection titled, Walking in the Footsteps of Our Ancestors: The Melion-Clum Collection of Modern Southwestern Pottery will include seed pots, red- and-black ware, vessels inspired by basketry, and a large case of objects made by the famous Quezada family of potters from Mata Ortiz. An additional case in the gallery will feature the Museum's stunning Maria and Julian Martinez signed black-on-black vessel.
Reservations required, 404-727-6118
Michael C. Carlos Museum
Emory University,
Atlanta, Georgia
http://thesga.org/about-the-sga/upcoming-sga-events/

April 11, 7:00 PM
Phoenix Chapter; Arizona Archaeological Society Lecture
"Southwest Archaeology and Sites as Viewed from the Perspective of Hopi Clan Migration Traditions"
Peter Pilles, Coconino National Forest Archaeologist"
Community Room at the Pueblo Grande Museum,
4619 E. Washington St.,
Phoenix, Arizona
http://www.azarchsoc.org/Phoenix

April 11, 7:30 PM
Pacific Coast Archaeology Society Lecture
"Eighty Years of Paleoindian Research on the Southern Plains; what do we know and where are we heading? A view from the Clovis site."
George Crawford
In significant ways, research into the First Americans has come full circle from a broad search to understand the changing climate, biodiversity, and human interactions at the end of the last glacial maximum, through a period of processual excavations, and back to a big picture of landscape archaeology. A real understanding of prehistory comes, not from collecting spear points and animal bones, but from understanding as much as possible about the landscape, weather, plants, and animals that made up the sphere of human interaction. The Clovis site is perhaps best known as the place where humans were proved to have killed and butchered mammoths and other Pleistocene megafauna on a marshy plain, but it is much more than a typical kill-site. The Clovis site is situated in a unique geologic/geographic position of eolian aggradation and extreme stability, preserving pollen, diatoms, and osteological and stratigraphic data as well as the more usual array of artifacts and features associated with large multi-component sites. After all this time, we are just beginning to grasp its full potential.
George Crawford is the current Director of the Blackwater Draw National Historic Landmark, also known as the Clovis site. Mr. Crawford has long had interests in pre-industrial subsistence strategies, tool kits, and craftsmanship. His early academic research was almost exclusive to Atlantic Europe and North Africa, but for practical reasons he changed focus to the prehistory of North America, ultimately becoming interested in the earliest cultures of the Americas. His current work focuses on the interactions of the Southern High Plains and the American Southwest as well as our evolving knowledge of the effects of climate change on hunter-gatherers.
Irvine Ranch Water District,
15500 Sand Canyon Avenue (between the I-5 and I-405)
Irvine, California
http://www.pcas.org/meetings.html

April 11, 7:30 PM
San Diego Archaeological Society Lecture
"Eighty Years of Paleoindian Research on the Southern Plains; What Do We Know and Where Are We Headin? A View from the Clovis site"
George Crawford
In significant ways, research into the First Americans has come full circle from a broad search to understand the changing climate, biodiversity, and human interactions at the end of the last glacial maximum, through a period of processual excavations, and back to a big picture of landscape archaeology. A real understanding of prehistory comes, not from collecting spear points and animal bones, but from understanding as much as possible about the landscape, weather, plants, and animals that made up the sphere of human interaction. The Clovis site is perhaps best known as the place where humans were proved to have killed and butchered mammoths and other Pleistocene megafauna on a marshy plain, but it is much more than a typical kill-site. The Clovis site is situated in a unique geologic/geographic position of aeolian aggradation and extreme stability, preserving pollen, diatoms, and osteological and stratigraphic data as well as the more usual array of artifacts and features associated with large multi-component sites. After all this time, we are just beginning to grasp its full potential.
15500 Sand Canyon Avenue,
Irvine, California
http://www.sandiegoarchaeologicalsociety.com/index.php/eventsmain/upcomi...

April 12-13
Art History Society of USCLA Conference
"Jaguars, Eagles & Feathered Serpents: Mesoamerica Re-explored"
A 2-Day Symposium in Homage to Michael Coe
8:00 am Registration
9:30 am Opening Remarks
9:45 am Leonardo López Luján (INAH)
Urban Archaeology in Downtown Mexico City and the Proyecto Templo Mayor
10:15 am Saburo Sugiyama (Arizona State / INAH) / Tenoch Medina (INAH)
Time and space Materialized in the Templo Mayor Architecture: A New 3D Map of the Sacred Precinct of Tenochtitlan
15 minute break
11:00 am María Barajas Rocha (INAH)
Conservation of the Tlaltecuhtli Monolith and Archaeological Objects Recovered During the 7th Field Season of Proyecto Templo Mayor
11:30 am Ximena Chávez Balderas (INAH)
Effigies of the Dead: Ritual Decapitation and Skull Modification at the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan
12:00 pm Amaranta Arguelles (INAH)
A Cosmogonic Ritual at the Foot of the Tenochtitlan’s Templo Mayor
12:30 pm lunch
1:45 pm Leonardo López Luján (INAH)
Tenochtitlan’s Gold: The Archaeological Collection of Proyecto Templo Mayor
2:30 pm John M.D. Pohl (UCLA)
The Toltec Ballgame: Rewards, Titles and Position in Postclassic Society
15 minute break
3:30 pm Guilhem Olivier (UNAM)
Myth and Ritual of Access to Power in the Central Part of the Codex Borgia: A Proposal
4:15 pm Manuel Aguilar-Moreno (CSULA)
The Millenialist Utopia of the Indian Jerusalem: Indian-Christian Art and Transculturation in 16th Century Mexico
5:30 pm Q & A
6 pm Reception with Mexican Snacks and Mariachi
Saturday, April 13, 2013
8:30 am Registration
9:30 am Opening Remarks
9:45 am Claudia Garcia-Des Lauriers (CalPoly Pomona)
Tlaloc on the Coast: Teotihuacan and Los Horcones, Chiapas
10:30 am Megan O’Neil (BMCC-CUNY)
Topic TBA
15 minute break
11:30 am Oswaldo Chinchilla (Yale)
Atle itlacauhca, without Flaw: The Young Gods of the Maya and Aztec
12:15 am Mary Miller (Yale)
The Bonampak Murals: A Performance at the Maya Court
1 pm lunch
2:15 pm Stephen D. Houston (Brown)
Run, Don't Walk: Sacred Movement among the Classic Maya
3:00 pm Robert H. Cobean (INAH)
Research at Ancient Tula, Hidalgo, Mexico: The Recent INAH Projects
15 minute break
4:00 pm Karl Taube (UCR)
The Living Faces of Maize of Ancient Mesoamerica
4:45 pm Award Ceremony
5:15 pm Michael Coe (Yale)
Chocolate and the Mesoamerican Mind
6:00 pm Q & A
6:30 pm Autograph & Photograph Opportunities
REGISTER AHSMeso2013@gmail.com
ADMISSION: $15 Public / $10 All University Students / CSULA students receive an ASI discount
For more details follow us on Facebook: AHS (Art History Society at CSULA)
http://www.facebook.com/events/426759957409777/

April 14, 1:00 PM
Anasazi Heritage Center Four Corners Lecture Series
"Ancient Skywatchers"
John Ninnemann
27501 Highway 184,
Dolores, Colorado
http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc/exhibits_and_events.html

April 14, 2:00 PM
AIA Lecture
"Early Human Populations in the New World: A Biased Perspective"
James Adovasio
Concordia University,
DeNault Auditorium in Grimm Hall
1530 Concordia West
Irvine, California
http://www.archaeological.org/events/9333

Courtesy Mike Ruggeri.