Another Friday in Pueblo Bonito

After someone broke into the excavation area, the Park Service has asked that we keep comments about what we are finding to a minimum.  So we will primarily talk about the architecture and fill we are encountering here.  Those of you who have read previous posts may notice that they have now been updated to remove mention of artifacts.  Because we are still in the backfill in Room 28, we are finding mostly broken pottery and chipped stone—nothing out of the ordinary for Chaco sites of this time period.  However, it has become clear that the backfill we are digging through includes primarily fill from Room 28, with some mixture from adjacent rooms.

We seem finally to be getting to the bottom of the burned material—there is much less charcoal and burned daub in the 8^th layer we are currently excavating; 8 layers means we are now excavating down to 160 cm from were we began two weeks ago.  The complex system of screw-jacks in place make it hard to excavate, but our hardhats help keep our heads safe as we duck under the steel pipes! 

We have been starting the day at 7 AM, but will start earlier as it gets hotter.  It’s wonderful to be the first people out at Pueblo Bonito— the birds and animals provide the only sounds.  Crows like to tease us from atop the Canyon wall.  Sometimes we encounter the elk herd in the morning before they find shade for the day. 

Friday was a busy day, with visits from the Sierra Club (led by Karen Grief), Steve Lekson/Cathy Cameron and their students, William Walker and the NMSU field school students, and finally Barbara West and friends.