The Texas Archeological Society's two-day Rock Art Academy will be held in El Paso, Texas, on February 16-17, 2019. Registration will close at midnight on January 17, 2019.

The TAS Rock Art Academy "...explores regional rock art archeological sites, Mogollon archeological sites, and how investigators use this information to interpret the human and natural histories of an area. Classroom sessions for the Academy will be held at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology with field sessions at Hueco Tanks State Park..."

For registration and event details please go to this TAS page.

/s/ webmaster [Photos by Marianne Smith]

Cool people know how wrong it is to carve (photo, left) or spray-paint (photo, right) their own "art" on top of petroglyphs and pictographs.That kind of vandalism stifles the voices of the ancient artists and erases their stories. It also creates some very bad juju for the perp. However, even the most well-meaning visitor to an archaeological or historic site may not be aware of the damage that can be caused by other, seemingly harmless activity.

The American Southwest Virtual Museum describes itself as "...a digital repository of photographs, maps, information, and virtual tours of National Park Service units and museums across the Southwest." However, they offer much more than that to the avocational archaeologist. For example, browse through their Pottery Guide in the home page's right sidebar, or perhaps start with the home page's Featured Exhibit. Their interactive Artifact Exhibits include animal bone, projectile points, shells, and more - with comprehensive identifications that include provenience.

The American Southwest Virtual Museum is an excellent way for anyone to become better acquainted with the cultures, artifacts, and archaeological sites of the US Southwest. Your GCAS Webmaster says check it out!

/s/ webmaster [Style III Mimbres bowl image by Boone/Belnap, Bilby Research Center, Northern Arizona University]

Registration is open and ongoing for the Texas Archeological Society's Rock Art Academy to be held in El Paso, Texas, on February 16-17, 2019.

The TAS describes the Rock Art Academy as "...a two-day Texas Archeology Academy that explores regional rock art archeological sites, Mogollon archeological sites, and how investigators use this information to interpret the human and natural histories of an area. Classroom sessions for the Academy will be held at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology with field sessions at Hueco Tanks State Park..."

The registration period for the 2019 Rock Art Academy continues through midnight on January 17, 2019. For details on this event, go to this TAS page.

/s/ webmaster [Photos by Marianne Smith]

Save the dates: the 21st Biennial Jornada Mogollon Archaeology Conference will be held on October 11-12, 2019 (all day Friday and Saturday), at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology in El Paso, Texas.

Jeff Romney
Director

4301 Transmountain Road
El Paso, Texas 79924
(915) 212-3162 (temporary)
Archaeology.elpasotexas.gov

As noted above, they expect to issue their Call for Papers in January, 2019.

Everyone is encouraged to periodically check for further information and updates via the El Paso Museum of Archaeology's website or their Facebook page.

/s/ webmaster

As the traditional US Thanksgiving feast is hard upon us and one's thoughts turn to a roast bird with all the trimmin's, one might pause to reflect on the turkeys of yore.

Archaeogenetecists have been hard at work collecting and analyzing the DNA of the remains of several dozen turkeys recovered from archaeological sites throughout Mexico and the US Southwest. The remains have been dated within ranges from 300 BCE to 1500 CE and they showed that several distinct species were raised in different regions of the Americas. These birds included the South Mexican wild turkey, the Rio Grande wild turkey (left photo), Gould's wild turkey (center), and the Yucatan's ocellated turkey (right).

Everyone calls him Fumi.

He earned his PhD in Anthropology from Washington State University in 2006, with an emphasis in geology and lithics (the scientific analysis of stone tools, chipped stone artifacts, and their debris).  He has regularly spoken at conferences and written articles in professional publications regarding lithic and pottery analysis, but from the beginning his research expanded to include topics such as the migration and settlement patterns of ancient societies based on the lithic and pottery material they left behind, and the cultural implications of that activity. All of which Fumi delivers to his audiences with his characteristic dry wit.

Your Faithful Webmaster is embarking upon a recurring series of blog posts featuring anthropologists, ethnologists,  and archaeologists whose work focuses on the GCAS’s special area of interest:  Mimbres-Mogollon culture and how it relates to the world as a whole. We plan to feature a different anthro/ethno/archaeologist in a short blog post about once every two months. We want to introduce their background and work to a (hopefully) broader readership than is found in the scholarly community; and to encourage the reader to learn more. We believe the more lightly educated among us should have the opportunity to appreciate the dedication and perseverance of this particular group of scientists. None of them became multimillionaires by doing dirt work. They’re in it for the love of the game.

The University of Arizona Press has published an enticing new volume of the latest in Mimbres area archaeology. Avocational archaeologists as well as professionals will recognize some or all of the 30 contributing authors whose experience in the Mimbres region reflects many decades of dedicated field work and research. Edited by Drs. Barbara Roth, Patricia Gilman, and Roger Anyon, this 288-page book is available in both hard-copy and electronic editions.

List price is $65 but scroll down in the flyer below to find a sweet 30% discount coupon for hip people like you who are In The Know:

Ancient cultures prized jewelry fashioned from the shells of the Glycymeris genus (saltwater bittersweet clams). Various sizes of clam shells were made into rings, necklaces, and especially bracelets. The Glycymeris shells that have been recovered from archaeological sites throughout the US Southwest generally originated from points along the Pacific shore of Baja California, throughout Mexico's Gulf of California, and as far south along the Mexican mainland as Acapulco. It appears some travel was involved to get the clams from their briny homes to the arid pueblos of our region.