Dissertation Research: Prehistoric Organization on the Pajarito Plateau, New Mexico

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Under the direction of Dr. Patricia Crown, MS Marit Munson will collect data for her doctoral dissertation. Prehistoric rock art (images which are either painted or engraved on rock faces) is common in many parts of the U.S. Southwest and MS Munson will conduct a systematic survey of sites in the Pajarito Plateau region of New Mexico. Her focus will be on the Frijoles Canyon region which formed a boundary between distinct historic Hopi groups and she will conduct a systematic survey to note the position and content of all individual occurrences as well as larger panels. Based on ethnographic documentation as well as study of Hopi art from known religious contexts, she will concentrate her attention on icons which have either probable religious significance or which are indicative of warfare and conflict. She will plot these in relation to this prehistoric boundary. Archaeological evidence indicates that in late prehistoric times Hopi groups formed large village aggregations and likely placed significant strain on available resources. Although villages shared a common cultural heritage and religion, it is not clear either how they interacted or the extent to which clear boundary differences existed. While on the one hand, it is likely that a common set of religious beliefs may have limited conflict, evidence of prehistoric warfare is also evident. MS Munson will examine this question through the study of rock art. Rock art, as well as clothing style and the ceramics prehistoric people used served as markers of identity and denoted individual affiliation as well as group territory. Based on worldwide ethnographic comparison, MS Munson believes that through the analysis of rock art imagery at the boundary between two major groups, it is possible to reconstruct the social interactions between them. The research will apply this approach. The work is important for several reasons. It will produce a data base of interest to many archaeologists. it will develop a new methodology for the study of prehistoric imagery and it will assist in training a promising young scientist.