Updated Dec 15 09

Anthropology Notes

Edited by Richard O'Connor

Here is news of anthropological and archaeological studies of the region and particularly of the prehistoric culture of Paquimé and the Casas Grandes Valley whose ceramics attracted Juan Quezada as a boy and inspired the modern pottery movement in Mata Ortiz.

The XII Conference on Archaeology of the Northern Frontier was held at the Museum of Northern Cultures in Casas Grandes October 15-17, 2009. One of a series of conferences sponsored by INAH Chihuahua to understand the florescence of Casas Grandes, this conference focused on regional interaction between western and northern Mexico as evidenced by shared iconography and symbolism. What were the artistic and religious influences of the coastal cultures on the desert cultures of Casas Grandes, Hohokam, and Anazasi? Presenters were Eduardo Gamboa, Jorge Villanueva Villalpando, Otto Shoundube, Arturo Guevara, Francisco Mendiola, Patricia Carot, Marie-Areti Hers, Joel Santos, and José Luís Punzo Díaz. Contact Eduardo Gamboa (636-692-4140, sr_paquime@hotmail.com), Director, Museo Culturas del Norte, Casas Grandes, Chihuahua.

Kiara Hughes ( 505-345-3546, kiarahughes[at]aol.com), passed her dissertation defense in ethnology at the University of New Mexico on May 18, 2009. Dr. Hughes studied the ways in which women's participation in the household production of pottery in Mata Ortiz has affected their personal, economic, and artistic autonomy. Kiara, congrats!

A bevy of archaeologists convened in the summer of 2007 at the Center for Casas Grandes Studies, Pueblo Viejo Courtyards, Casas Grandes. Under the Southern Chihuahua Project, A.C. ”Art” MacWilliams, University of Calgary, and Alberto “Beto” Peña Rodríguez, UNAM, Mexico City, analyzed collections related to agricultural origins in the Archaic Period, specifically the beginnings of corn agriculture. Michael Whalen, University of Tulsa gathered soil samples from agricultural features in the region, particularly Mata Ortiz, the Tinaja Valley, and Cerro Moctezuma. Paleopathologist Chris Casserino, University of Oregon, and osteologist Sophie Kohn, University of New Mexico, studied human bone fragments recovered from Paquimé by Charles Di Peso and Eduardo Contreras. Tucson dendrochronologist Stuart Scott looked in briefly. Todd Pitezel  (pitezel[at]email.arizona.edu), University of Arizona, assisted Jennifer Gutzeit’s and Keith Mendez’ (University of Tulsa) chipped stone analysis with material excavated during two seasons (2005-2006) of excavations at

El Pueblito, a site half-way up the Cerro Moctezuma a few miles east and south of Paquimé. Todd hopes to discover whether and how this site related to Paquimé, and what its purpose might have been at such a high elevation from the valley floor. He returned summer 2008 for a further season of artifact analysis.

Christine and Todd Van Pool [vanpoolc[at]missouri.edu] carried out an extensive archaeological survey, summer 2007, at Janos, Chihuahua. With the help of a crew of more than a dozen volunteers, they recorded over 20 Medio-period sites. They also mapped and photographed Cerro del Diablo. Their analysis of the rock art there suggests that most of it dates to the archaic. (They are also trying to understand the unexpected number of bedrock mortars out there.) They submitted a three-year excavation grant proposal to NSF, hoping to start excavations at three sites near Janos in the summer of 2009. Keep your fingers crossed!

Christine S. Van Pool’s (vanpoolc[at]missouri.edu) comprehensive study of Casas Grandes iconography and cosmology as found chiefly on pottery was published in 2007 as Signs of the Casas Grandes Shamans. Cloth, 6 x 9, some color plates. ISBN 10: 0-87480-874-X. University of Utah Press (801-581-6771), 1793 E. South Campus Drive, #101, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9402.

Elizabeth (“Beth”) Bagwell (bbagwell[at]desert.com, 480-967-8580) has taken a position with Desert Archaeology in Phoenix. Her Domestic Architectural Production in Northwest Mexico, a report on her findings from several seasons of fieldwork in the Tres Rios area of the high Sierra near the Sonora border studying the architectural features of a number of well-preserved cliff dwellings, won the University of New Mexico’s prestigious 2007 Popejoy Dissertation Prize. The dissertation is available for $35, depending on format, from the Bell and Howell Information & Learning web site, http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway

 Robert Estes (estesjrobert[at]aol.com) earned a doctorate from the University of New Mexico in 2006 for his study of the organization of production and pottery standardization in Mata Ortiz. His ethnoarchaeological study of pottery production in the village tested the models and methods archaeologists use to reconstruct prehistoric production organization and, by extension, prehistoric economic organization. The dissertation, Middle-Range Research into the Organization of Production and Product Standardization in Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua, Mexico, is available for $35, depending on format, from the Bell and Howell Information & Learning web site, http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway. Robert Estes, 11352 David Carrasco, El Paso, TX 79936

Selected Publications

Archaeology Southwest

   The spring 2003 number of Archaeology Southwest (17:2) is entirely devoted Chihuahua archaeology. Eleven short summaries of selected topics include Paul E. Minnis, "The Casas Grandes Community;" T. Alan Pitezel, "The Hilltop Site of El Pueblito;" John R. Roney and Robert J. Hard, "Late Archaic Villages on the Rio Casas Grandes;" and Gloria J. Fenner, "Charles DiPeso and Casas Grandes." These articles, with numerous color photos, give an excellent overview of the current state of knowledge of Chihuahua archaeology. Order for $3.00 from Sally A. Thomas (520-882-6946, fax 520-882-6948), Office Manager, Center for Desert Archaeology, 300 E. University #230, Tucson, AZ  85705.  http://www.cdarc.org/

Bradley, Ronna Jane
   2000   “Recent Advances in Chihuahuan Archaeology,” in Greater Mesoamerica: The Archaeology of West and Northwest Mexico, edited by M. Foster and S. Gorenstein, pp. 221-240. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.

Braniff, Beatriz C.
   2001   La Gran Chichimeca: El Lugar del las Rocas Secas. Mexico D.F., Mexico: Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes.

Center for Desert Archaeology

   No Date   “Casas Grandes Archaeology—Some References.” A selected bibliography of some important sources on Paquimé, published on-line at http://www.cdarc.org/pages/library/casas_references.php  The Center for Desert Archaeology (center[at]cdarc.org, 520-882-6946), 300 S. University Blvd #230, Tucson AZ 85705.

Christman, Ernest

  2004  "Casas Grandes Effigy Vessels: Charles C. Di Peso's Premise Revisited." American Indian Art Magazine 29:2 (February). The author cites Charles Di Peso's belief that Paquimé was a Mesoamerican pueblo and shows examples of pottery designs depicting Mesoamerican deities.

Cordell, Linda S. and Don D. Fowler, eds.

   2005   Southwest Archaeology in the Twentieth Century. This survey of Southwest archaeology includes a chapter, “The Development of Archaeology in Northwest Mexico” by Jane H. Kelley and A.C. MacWilliams, giving an excellent overview of the history of archaeology in Chihuahua and Sonora from the late 19^th century through the end of the 20^th. It cites the work of Charles DiPeso to illustrate how bi-national cooperation can provide rich data. The University of Utah Press, 2005.

Di Peso, Charles

   1974   Casas Grandes: A Fallen Trading Center of the Gran Chichimeca. Flagstaff AZ: Northland Press. Edited by Gloria J. Fenner, illustrated by Alice Wesche. 8 volumes. The official report of the excavations of the ruins of Paquimé, Casas Grandes, Chihuahua, 1959-1961. The first three volumes contain text, while the last five contain data and additional commentary. In addition to its reputation as a classic archaeological report, Alice Wesche’s rich and whimsical illustrations make the first three volumes a book collector’s delight.

Estes, J. Robert

   2003   Middle-Range Research into the Organization of Production and Product Standardization in Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua, Mexico. Ph.D. dissertation, University of New Mexico Department of Anthropology. Xx, 388 leaves: ill., map, charts; 29 cm. Order for $35, depending on format, from the Bell and Howell Information & Learning web site, http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway.

Fisher, Richard D., Ed.

   2000   History of Copper Canyon and the Tarahumara Indians.  A historical anthology containing excerpts from Carl Lumholtz' Unknown Mexico (1890), Grant Shepherd's Silver Magnet (Shepherd grew-up in 1880 Batopilas), and two full-color sections by Richard D. Fisher, photographer and editor. The works by Lumholtz and Shepherd are historical classics on Copper Canyon and the Tarahumara Indians. Soft cover, 107 pp., $19.95 plus $2 shipping from Sunracer Publications, PO Box 86492, Tucson AZ 85754.  sunracer[at]cox.net 

Fisher, Richard D.

2006    “Ancient Knowledge of the Chaco Canyon Anasazi,” in Richard

D. Fisher, Grand Canyons Worldwide, pages 77-126. The author’s outside-the-box thinking on the Chaco Canyon Anasazi-Paquimé archaeological enigma includes the following headings: Chacoan Enigma; Chacoan System of Agricultural enterprise and Ritual Landscape; Kivas as Anasazi Granaries?; Styles and Technology of Paquimé/Chaco-Pueblo Bonito Kiva Silos; Human Load Transport Analysis; Fertilizer Production: Anasazi-Hohokam-Paquimé; Agricultural Strategies and Architectural Designs; Natural Fertilizer Harvesting and Production Chaco Anasazi; Where Did the Chaco Canyon Anasazi Come From and Where Did They Go?; Long-Distance Transport Routes—Scarlet Macaw/Shell; Tarahumara/Seasonal Migration—Long Distance Travel; Oasis America Timelines and Mesoamerican Dietary Practices; Chaco Canyon Anasazi: Iron-Deficient Diet—Anemia; Anasazi and Cannibalism; Hohokam Agricultural Strategies; Religious Ceramic/Rock Art/ Architectural Design. Grand Canyons Worldwide: ISBN No. 0-9678907-1-3, soft cover, 340 pages. $29.95 plus $5 shipping from Sunracer Publications (520-882-5341), PO Box 86492, Tucson AZ 85754. ISBN No. 0-9678907-1-3, softcover, 340 pages.  sunracer[at]cox.net   www.coppercanyon.org   www.canyonsworldwide.org

Fisher, Richard D. and Kate Bauer

   2004   "Paquimé: The Anasazi Rosetta Stone; Sophisticated Agricultural Stategies Paquimé /Anasazi/Hohokam Pre-Columbian Cultures A.D. 700-1425-1475." Proposes a unifying theory consisting of seven elemental hypotheses for archaeological interpretations of Oasis America. Contact the author at 520-882-5341.  sunracer[at]cox.net). http://www.canyonsworldwide.org/fisher/site.htm

Foster, Michael and Shirley Gorenstein, eds.

  2000  Greater Mesoamerica: The Archaeology of West and Northwest Mexico. The publisher writes that this book, a compilation of essays by 15 authors from a 1992 conference, “expands the definition of ‘Mesoamerica’ beyond the more traditionally accepted central Mexican areas to both western and northwestern Mexico where sophisticated cultures were flourishing outside the realm of Spanish influence. It is the first comprehensive overview of both regions since the Handbook of Middle American Indians was published in the early ‘70s.” ISBN 0-87480-655-0. 307 pages, hardcover. $65. University of Utah Press (800-773-6672), 1795 E. S. Campus Dr., Suite 101, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9402.  info[at]upress.utah.edu   http://www.uofupress.com/index.html

Frisbie, Theodore R.

 >>______  "The Chaco Phenomenon and the Mesoamerican Pochteca: New Evidences and Redefining Old Thoughts."  A paper presented by the author (618-656-7495), Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, at the Sixth Annual Occasional Anasazi Symposium. Dr. Frisbie’s abstract reads: "The presence of Mesoamerican long-distance traders ("Pochteca") as the Chaco Phenomenon motivating force has had a long history within the annals of Anasazi archaeology. However, the small group of supporters have had little impact on the great majority of Southwestern archaeologists who claim the evidence is non-conclusive, highly speculative, etc. Recent and on-going research conclusively demonstrate a plethora of highly specific artifacts (previously not considered) and associated behavioral correlates are present to strongly substantiate the notion of Pochtecan presence. When combined with dental features reported by the Turners and other recent data, the case becomes even stronger." >>______________

Fuentes, Antonio Vilanova (1907-1970)

   2003   Paquimé: Un ensayo sobre Prehistoria Chihuahuense. An over-all, popular treatment in Spanish of the region around Paquimé from earliest times, with many photographs of the excavations and the pottery. Ciudad Chihuahua: Librería Kosmos. Available from the publisher at Josue Neri Santos #111, Col. Centro, Chihuahua, Chih., Mexico, or for $18 USD from Doblehelice (Tel/fax 614-410-2414), Gómez Farías 404-C, Centro, Chihuahua. Ventas[at]doblehelice.com.mx  www.doblehelice.com.mx

Goodwin, Grenville and Neil

   1999   The Apache Diaries: A Father-Son Journey. University of Nebraska Press. A fascinating record of a search for the last remaining Apache bands in the Sierra Madre west of and in the general vicinity of Casas Grandes. $35 hardcover, $13.56 softcover, from  http://www.amazon.com/.

Hard, R. J., J. Zapata, B. Moses, and J. R. Roney
   1999   “Terrace Construction in Northern Chihuahua, Mexico at 1150 B.C. and the Present.” Journal of Field Archaeology 26:129-146.

Hard, R. J., and J. R. Roney
   1998   “A Massive Terraced Village Complex in Chihuahua, Mexico, 3000 Years before Present.” Science 279:1661-1664.

Hayes, Allan and Carol, with photographs by John Blom

   2006   Desert Southwest: 4,000 Years of Life and Art. The authors of the highly recommended Southwestern Pottery: Anasazi to Zuni (Flagstaff AZ: Northland 1999), have now produced a history of “Little Chichimeca” (the desert area below the Mogollón Rim as far south as Mata Ortiz and from the longitude of El Paso to southern California), beginning with the Tucson Farmers along the Santa Cruz River, 2000 B.C., to today. Besides hundreds of color photos and the promise of “a surprise on every page,” the book includes a significant section on Mata Ortiz. Ten Speed Press (510-559-1600, 800-841-BOOK), PO Box 7123, Berkeley CA 94707. Contact Al or Carol Hayes (415-332-3489), 33 Spencer Ave., Sausalito CA 94965.   al[at]hocadvertising.com

Kokrda, Ken, Barbara Moulard, and Richard F. Townsend, ed.

   2005   Casas Grandes and the Ceramic Art of the Ancient Southwest. This highly recommended book served as the catalog for the exhibition by the same name at the Art Institute of Chicago April 22-August 13, 2006. Hardcover, 208 pages, the book contains more than 140 color illustrations of 90 pieces of prehistoric Casas Grandes pottery and, to give their prehistoric Pueblo cultural context, 50 pieces representing other major styles: Mimbres, Four-Mile Polychrome, Hohokam, Sityatki polychrome from the Hopi Mesas, and some large Tularosa and Socorro ollas (Anasazi not represented). Published by Yale University Press in conjunction with the Art Institute of Chicago. ISBN No. 0300111487. Available for $29.70 from Amazon.com.

Lekson, Stephen H.

   2005   “Chaco and Paquimé: Complexity, History, Landscape.” In Paukertat, Timothy R. and Diana DiPaolo Loren, North American Archaeology (Blackwell Publishing).

Lekson, Stephen H.

   1999   The Chaco Meridian: Centers of Political Power in the Ancient Southwest.  Blue Ridge Summit, PA: Altamira Press (Rowman & littlefield). This engagingly written book is a "must" for anyone interested in Paquimé and Southwest/Mesoamerican relationships. 240 pages, illustrations. $23.95 paper or $62 hard cover, plus $4 shipping for the first copy and $1 for each additional copy, from the publisher (800-462-6420) at 15200 NBN Way, Blue Ridge Summit, PA 17214.

   2001   "Meridian Addendum." >>Unpublished working draft of a paper available on request from the author (lekson[at]colorado.edu), who invites comment. Thought provoking, it contains important new insights on the author's Chaco Meridian hypothesis.

PRO AND CON re: the "Meridian Hypothesis"

Phillips, Jr., David A. (dap[at]unm.edu), and Elizabeth Arwen Bagwell (bagwell[at]unm.edu), "How Big was Paquimé?" Poster presentation, 66th Annual Meeting, Society for American Archaeology, New Orleans, April 19, 2001. Text of the article is found at www.unm.edu/~dap/howbig/howfront.htm 

ABSTRACT: Paquimé (or Casas Grandes) may have been the most important prehistoric center in northwest Mexico. Most archaeologists accept the published description of Paquimé's site core as two massive room blocks flanking a plaza. Other evidence suggests, however, that the site core was a single room block—and that the site's population was much smaller than the excavation report indicates. As such, Paquimé would be typical of the Mimbres-Casas Grandes region, rather than exceptional. The authors explore these conflicting perspectives by comparing maps of the site, including overlays.

Phillips, David A., Jr., "The Chaco Meridian: A Skeptical Analysis." Text of the article is found at www.unm.edu/~dap/meridian/cmtext.htm This also contains Lekson's rebuttal.

          ABSTRACT: Stephen Lekson's new book Chaco Meridian, based in part on an award-winning SAA poster presentation, argues that a single prehistoric elite consciously placed the centers of Chaco Canyon, Aztec Ruin, and Paquimé on the same meridian of longitude. A detailed review of spatial, temporal, and other data indicate that Lekson's hypothesis is incorrect.

Marinas-Feliner, Silvia

   1998   "Paquimé: Architecture, Labor, and Sociopolitical Complexity," The Artifact 36:1, pp 1-62 (El Paso Archaeological Society, Inc., Box 4345,El Paso TX 79914-4345). Prepared in completion of a Masters thesis in anthropology for New Mexico State University Las Cruces, 1999, under Dr. Rani Alexander. This careful study concludes that, based on the architecture and estimated labor alone, Paquimé was not a complex society.  Available from the publisher for $2.50 plus $10 membership in EPAS.

Maxwell, Timothy D.

2002  “Casas Grandes Region: Prehistoric Life in the Chihuahuan Desert,” El Palacio 107:3 (August) pp 12-19. Museum of New Mexico (505-476-5055), PO Box 2087, Santa Fe, NM 87501.  info[at]miaclab.org     http://www.museumofnewmexico.org/

Moulard, Barbara L.

  2002  Recreating the word: Painted ceramics of the prehistoric Southwest. A beautifully crafted art book illustrating the collection of prehistoric Pueblo pottery of Santa Fe painter William Schenk, with a thought provoking text containing original insights into Pueblo prehistory. 240 pages, 10"x11"  ISBN 0-9719150-0-8. $85 + shipping from Schenck Southwest Publishing (505-438-8350, Fax 424-8655), 268 Los Pinos Road, Santa Fe, NM 87507-4315  info[at]schencksouthwest.com  http://schencksouthwest.com/

Newell, Gillian E. and Emiliano Gallaga, eds.

  2004  Surveying the archaeology of northwest Mexico. Fourteen papers presented at a symposium, "Future Directions: The Archaeology of Northwest Mexico," April 6, 2000 at the Society for American Archaeology annual meetings in Philadelphia. Several of the contributions relate directly to Paquimé. Cloth cover, $55 plus $5.95 shipping from the University of Utah Press (800-773-6672), 1795 E. South Campus Drive, Suite 101, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9402.  http://www.upressutah.edu/

Phillips, David A., Jr.

  2002  Archeology of northwest Mexico: A bibliography

http://www.unm.edu/~paquime/bibliography/nwmhome.html  Essential reference for anyone interested in the archaeology of northwest Mexico, especially Chihuahua.

Pitezel, Todd A.

   2007   “Surveying El Pueblito on Cerro de Moctezuma, Chihuahua, Mexico,” Kiva, the Journal of Southwestern Anthropology and History, 72(3).   www.altamirapress.com/RLA/Journals/Kiva/Contact.shtml

**Rakita, Gordon F.M.

   2009   Ancestors and Elites: Emergent Complexity and Ritual Practices in the Casas Grandes Polity. Lanham, MD: Altamira Press, a Division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. Cloth, 220pp. See reviews at www.altamirapress.com. $49.95 from Altamira Press (800-462-6420), 4501 Forbes Blvd, Suite 200, Lanham MD 20706. custserv@roman.com

Ravesloot, John C.
   2003   "El Sacrificio en Casas Grandes." Arqueología Mexicana 11(63):36-39.

Riley, Carroll L.

2008  “Aztlan: The Prehistoric Southwest as a Mexican Civilization”

El Palacio Vol.113 No.4 (Winter), pp/ 27-31. An excellent summary of Southwestern prehistory focussed on Paquimé. For another perspective, see Melisa S. Powell (ed.), Secrets of Casas Grandes, Precolumbian Art and Archaeology of Northern México, and an article by Powell in El Palacio Vol.111 No.4, which can be read at elpalacio.org.

2005     Becoming Aztlán: Mesoamerican influence in the Greater

Southwest, AD 1200-1500. $45 from the publisher (used copies from Amazon.com for less). University of Utah Press.

Roberts, David

   2005   “Stephen Lekson Has a Theory...and He’s Sticking with It.” National Geographic Adventure Magazine (March).

Roney, J. R., and R. J. Hard
   2002   “Early Agriculture in Northwestern Chihuahua,” in Traditions, Transitions, and Technologies: Themes in Southwestern Archaeology, edited by S. H. Schlanger. Boulder: University of Colorado Press.

Sanders, Joe Ben

   2003   Three Rivers petroglyph site: Self-guided tour book—An interpretation of the first thousand feet of glyphs based on Hopi oral traditions. The author, a professional archaeologist, identifies the inhabitants of Paquimé as Hopi and explains the destruction of that city in terms of Hopi traditions recorded in petroglyph sequences at the Three Rivers site near Tularosa, New Mexico. $25 from Center of the Universe Press (575-671-4797), Box 1, Bent, New Mexico 88314.

San Diego Museum of Man

   2001   From Paquimé to Mata Ortiz: The legacy of ancient Casas Grandes. San Diego Museum Papers No.40. Proceedings of the Museum's biennial Latin American Symposium held in San Diego CA on March 26, 2000. Included here is a chronological series of black-and-white photos of 135 Juan Quezada pots from the Spencer H. MacCallum Collection, the majority dating between 1976 and 1979, showing the development of his early painting style. The volume contains eight papers: Robert Estes, “From Agriculture to Art and Industry: The Changing Economy of Mata Ortiz and Its Material Correlates;” Mitch Hendrickson, “Lost Pots and Untold Tales: A Stylistic Recontextualization of Chihuahuan Polychrome Jars from North American Museum Collections;” Kiara Hughes, “Crafting and Keeping Tradition: Women in the Production of Mata Ortiz Pottery;” Stephen Lekson, “Chaco, Aztec, and Paquimé: Centers of Political Power in the Ancient Southwest;” Spencer MacCallum and Grace Johnson, “The Research Pottery Collection of Spencer H. MacCallum Illustrating the Development of Juan Quezada's Art Through a Chronological Series of His Work;” Arthur MacWilliams, “Beyond the Reach of Casas Grandes: Archaelogy in Central Chihuahua;” María Sprehn, “Body Art in the Casas Grandes World;” and Christine Van Pool, “Birds, Burials, and Beliefs at Paquimé” (containing 17 photos of Paquimé bird-effigy pots). ISBN 0-937808-77-6. $16.95 plus $2.50 for shipping first book, 50¢ each additional (California residents add $1.31 sales tax). Order from the San Diego Museum of Man (619-239-2001), 1350 El Prado San Diego CA 92101.

Schaafsma, Curtis F. and Carroll L. Riley, eds.

   1999   The Casas Grandes World (University of Utah Press). Based on a 1995 conference, this volume has 18 chapters (with a total of 28 authors) on the influence of Paquimé over a broad geographic area of the United States and Mexico. ISBN 0-874805-95-3. Hardcover, 287 pages, $60 from University of Utah Press (800-773-6672), 1795 E. south Campus Drive, Suite 101, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9402. info[at]upress.utah.edu

Sharp, Jay W.     http://www.desertusa.com/ind1/ind_new/ind13.html

   2002   Paquimé: The Last Great Center of Puebloan Influence," DesertUSA Magazine (May), a monthly internet-based magazine. This entertainingly written on-line article is one of the best overviews of the archaeology of Paquimé we’ve seen. Contact DesertUSA (858-673-6001, Fax 858-673-6007), Digital West Media Inc., 16855 West Bernardo Dr, Suite 240, San Diego, CA 92127. feedback[at]desertusa.com 

Skibo, James M., Eugene B. McCluney and William H. Walker

  2002  The Joyce Well site: On the frontier of the Casas Grandes world. Located in the southwest corner of New Mexico approximately 10.5 km north of the international line, Joyce Well is a Pueblo ruin of some 200 rooms. One of a number of Animas Phase villages in the boot-heel area, it lies on the northern periphery of the Casas Grandes sphere. Eugene McCluney investigated the site in 1963, but his preliminary report was not published. James Skibo and William Walker carried out excavations in 1999-2000.  This book contains both McCluney's preliminary report and the results of the recent studies. Joyce Well possesses many Casas Grandes characteristics, including shared polychrome style ceramics, scooped metates, adobe pueblos, T-shaped doors, platform hearths, and similar rock art. This book furthers investigation of the Casas Grandes culture at sites removed from Paquimé, where most previous studies have been concentrated, and represents a significant addition to the literature. Order for $35 plus $5.95 shipping from the University of Utah Press (800-773-6672), 1795 E. South Campus Drive, Suite 101, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9402. (Used copies available from Amazon.com from $23)   info[at]upress.utah.edu

Sprehn, Maria Stephanie

   2003  Social complexity and the specialist potters of Casas Grandes in northern Mexico. Doctoral dissertation, University of New Mexico. Order Dissertation No. 3093066 for $35, depending on format, from the Bell and Howell Information & Learning web site, http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway.  http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb

Stewart, Tamara

   2003   "The Grand Enigmas of Casas Grandes," American Archaeology (Spring), pages 12-18. The assistant editor of American Archaeology and the Archaeological Conservancy's Southwest projects coordinator provides a balanced view of the various viewpoints and differences of opinion regarding the origin and importance of Paquimé. 

VanPool,  Christine S., Todd L. Van Pool, and David A. Phillips, eds.

   2006   Religion of the prehispanic Southwest. Archaeology of Religion Series, edited by David S. Whitley. Fourteen papers are presented on prehispanic religion, many dealing with the Casas Grandes region. Scheduled for release March, 2006 by Altamira Press (925-938-7243), 1840 San Miguel Drive, Suite 207, Walnut Creek, CA 94596. http://www.altamirapress.com/

VanPool, Christine S.

   2007   Signs of the Casas Grandes Shamans. The definitive study of the iconography and cosmology of Paquimé, this book opens with the best summary we have seen of what is known of the archaeology of Paquimé. Cloth, 6 x 9, some color plates. ISBN 10: 0-87480-874-X  The University of Utah Press (801-581)-6771), 1793 E. South Campus Drive, #101, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9402  vanpoolc[at]missouri.edu

Van Pool, Christine S.

  2003  "The Shaman-Priests of the Casas Grandes Region, Chihuahua, Mexico," American Antiquity 68(4), pp 696-717.

Van Pool, Christine S.

   2002   "Flight of the Shaman," Archaeology Jan/Feb, pp. 40-43. This (abridged) paper on Casas Grandes iconography analyzes Casas Grandes male effigies that are smoking and relates the smokers to human and human/bird images painted on Casas Grandes pottery.  Layout and illustrations are excellent and include some fine photos of effigies smoking tobacco. The cover picture of the magazine is taken from the article.

Whalen, Michael E. and Paul E. Minnis

1999  Casas Grandes and its hinterlands: Prehistoric regional

organization in northwest Mexico (Tucson: University of Arizona Press). Described as the first major alternative to Charles DiPeso's hypothesis, this book offers a new model for the rise and fall of Casas Grandes, now recognized to have been the largest and most complex community in the Puebloan world. ISBN 0-8165-2097-6. Hard cover, 300 pages, 9 halftones and 52 line illustrations. $45 plus shipping from the University of Arizona Press (520-621-2211).  http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/

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