In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma (A School for Advanced Research Popular Archaeology Book)

Chaco Canyon is an archaeological site in northwest New Mexico; its heyday was between 1000-1100 CE. It’s characterized by “great houses” – large, multistory stone buildings. The site has raised lots of interesting archaeological questions: were the Chacoans ancestral to the modern Puebloan peoples? Was Chaco a “city” in the sense that people lived there year-round, or was it some sort of ritual center, periodically visited for ceremonies but only occupied full time by a cadre of caretakers? Were the Chacoans a highly stratified society, with a few elite collecting tribute from the surrounding countryside, or were they more egalitarian? What was Chaco’s relation to Mesoamerican cultures? Did the Chacoan society collapse show more due to drought or civic unrest or some other cause, or did the people just decide they didn’t want “great houses” any more and move away? All these questions are addressed to some degree in this interesting book. In addition to essays by archaeologists, there are also chapters by a Navajo, a Hopi, and a Santa Clara Puebloan – all claiming Chaco as part of their own culture. Well illustrated; a “suggestions for further reading” but no formal bibliography; no foot- or endnotes. For some more insights, see House of Rain. show less