An Archaeological Survey of the Altar Valley, Sonora, Mexico

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This grant permits Dr. McGuire to continue his archaeological survey of the Altar Valley region which is located in the northern part of Sonora, Mexico. Preliminary work has confirmed the presence of many sites referable to the Trincheras culture, which dates from approximately 200 to 1500 A.D. Trincheras sites seem to be multi.functional and include defensive works, agricultural terraces and habitation structures. Preliminary work indicates a relatively complex prehistory with major shifts in adaptations, changes in social organization and shifting inter.regional contactsMcGuire and his team will survey selected portions of the Altar Valley to locate sites. They will record site size, features and environmental context. They will collect surface artifacts . which consist primarily of shell, ceramic and lithic remains . and analyze these. The goal of this work is to establish the basis for a longer term field project. What makes this region of special archaeological interest is that it lies between the "high" culture areas in Central Mexico, to the South, and the Southwest U.S., to the North. Shell, which appears at a trade item in the Southwest sites is plentiful in the Altar Valley and this suggests that the region played a role in a widespread shell trade. It is clear that a complex society developed in the Altar region but the extent to which trade served as a causal factor is unclear. Archaeolologists have theorized about the relationship betwen trade and the growth of such societal complexity and the Altar Valley provides an excellent area to examine this question. This project should also shed a new light on the development of prehistoric Southwest cultures. This research is important for several reasons. It will shed new light on the question of how complex societies such as our own develop and are maintained. Secondly there is a long history of archaeological research in the Southwestern U.S. While the Rio Grande River has prevented, for the most part, investigation in Northern Mexico, the river did not serve as barrier in prehistoric times. Thus McGuires work will provide important new archeological data.