According to Hohokam Indians of the Tucson Basin, by Linda M. Though the river has long since dried up, the landscape then was very different. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Los Morteros was a thriving Native American community built along the flood plain of the Santa Cruz River. The bits of broken clay in my hand are common examples of what you could expect to find in one of these areas. For the Hohokam people, they were part of daily life, where broken pottery, animal bones and ash were discarded. It does not take long for us to realize that the gently sloping hill of loosely packed, slightly darkened soil beneath us is not just another hill on the desert landscape, but a communal refuse mound left by the Hohokam people hundreds of years ago.Īccording to archaeologist Rich Lange, of the Arizona State Museum, mounds such as these are not uncommon in the Tucson basin. Our hands sweep carefully over the soil, tracing a path for our over-anxious eyes, and the effort pays off: Piece after piece of fired clay comes into view. Within seconds, another shard of clay pops into view, this one thicker and almost completely gray, with a touch of rust red. Though the ground looks barren-cracked with drought and flat for miles-our eyes are open, unblinking, as we look for subtle pattern variations in the soil.Īnd then we see it: a small shard of clay, about the size of a half-dollar, with a deliberate red stripe running down its center. The sun beats down on our backs, causing beads of sweat to form on our exposed skin.
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