Archeological Investigations at Puerco Ruin, Petrified Forest National Park,Arizona

摘要

During 1988 and 1989, archeologists from the Western Archeological andConservation Center conducted data recovery excavations at Puerco Ruin, Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona. Puerco Ruin is the remains of a 100-plus-room pueblo dating to the late Pueblo III to middle Pueblo IV periods. The data recovery, conducted to mitigate the effects of proposed visitor facilities at the site, included surface collection, excavation, and analysis. In addition, over 1,000 rock art elements surrounding the pueblo were recorded by volunteers from the American Rock Art Research Association. Dating of the site and regional environmental data suggest the pueblo was founded during a period of drought conditions. In the early part of the occupation, there was a heavy reliance on domestic crops, most likely grown in the Puerco River floodplain; later, more wild plants appear to have been used. A wide variety and high percentage of non-traditional food animals, such as carnivores, also appear to have been consumed, possibly indicating environmental stress.