Culture and Ecology of Chaco Canyon and the San Juan Basin

270 Chaco Project Synthesiswas not as dependent on technical expertise as it wason a labor pool and some form of leadership that wasresponsible for the construction of the edifices. Thus,because of its local development in place, core-andveneerarchitecture did not represent specializedknowledge brought in by foreigners, but rather thedesire to build multiple stories for some unspecifiedpurpose that provided a need for sturdier constructiontechniques.Lekson (1983a) recognized the absence of someunique architectural forms that are present in Chacobut absent in Mesoamerica (e.g., tower kivas, tri-wallstructures). The great kivas of Chaco, unlike the circularcomplexes of the Rio Bolanos area in westMexico, are roofed. The platform mound in TalusUnit No.1, listed by Ferdon (1955), is actually thebase of a masonry ramp for a roadway that proceedsfrom the top of the north mesa of Chaco Canyon toPueblo Alto (Gwinn Vivian 1983a). Shrines identifiedby Reyman (1971) at Pueblo Bonito and Pueblo Altomost likely had different functions than the Meso~american patio altars with which they were compared.The T-shaped doorways found in Chaco and CasasGrandes in northern Chihuahua are similar, but thistrait is earlier in the north than it is in the south (CasasGrandes dates have been re-evaluated [Dean andRavesloot 1993; M. Love 1975]). Lekson (1999) nowconsiders the Casas Grandes region to be a laterPueblo center in the continued development of Puebloculture. The colonnade, or gallery, concept (at ChetroKetl and Be 51) was similar and may have had somerelationship with the south, but it is a form out ofcontext. Lekson, Windes, and Fournier (2006)recently concluded that the concept of this form wasprobably Mesoamerican in origin and was passedalong via west Mexico, but that construction techniquesrepresent local knowledge and practices. Thetwo rectangular mounds with masonry facings in frontof Pueblo Bonito are most similar to platform moundsof later Hohokam. Stein and Lekson (1992, 1994)proposed that the mounds at Pueblo Bonito, PuebloAlto, Chetro Ketl, and Penasco Blanco are architecturalfeatures that are part of a built landscape thatreflects ritual practices (but see Wills [2001] andChapter 5 for discussions on why these may not beintentionally constructed features). In summary,Lekson (1983a) found only two forms (the colonnadeand the rectangular mound) that were unusual in theSouthwest and most likely to have Mesoamericanparallels. When he examined Cahokia in Illinois,however, these resemblances paled; thus, Leksonsuggested that any Mesoamerican influence was less inChaco than it would have been in the Mississippianarea.Because turquoise was the only major productdesired by the Mesoamerican societies that was notperishable or more easily available at a close distance,Mathien (1981a, 1983, 1986) focused on its procurement,production, and consumption. To date, thesource of Chacoan turquoise has not been wellidentified (Chapter 2). Who, if anyone, controlled theCerrillos turquoise mines also remains undetermined.Warren and Mathien (1984) identified sherds found atthe different sites in the southern Cerrillos Hills.Types such as Kiatuthlanna Black-on white, Gallup(Prewitt) Black-on-white, Chaco-McElmo Black-onwhite,and several gray wares, including corrugatedindented,are similar to those found in Chaco Canyon,but the presence of other contemporary types suggesteduse by peoples living farther south in the RioGrande area. Wiseman and Darling (1986) reportedthat five small house sites close to the Cerrillos minesalso have Red Mesa Black-on-white, Late Red MesaBlack-on-white, Escavada Black-on-white, GallupBlack-on-white, Socorro Black-on-white, PuercoBlack-on-red, and Wingate Black-on-red on thesurface. They were surprised that few contemporaryRio Grande Valley sherds were recovered. Thepresence of Socorro Black-on-white sherds at the sitessuggests the possibility that more southerly tradeinteractions existed between Cerrillos and the centralRio Grande. Because the five sites had a lack ofgrinding implements but a number of mining tools,Wiseman and Darling thought that they may representspecial use sites. If the miners were supported bypeople in the Mount Taylor region rather than thecentral Chaco Basin, then Chaco would have obtainedthe turquoise through an intermediary, who may haveproduced some of the turquoise beads and pendants.Mathien (1981a:221) inspected a private collectionfrom the Andrews community that includes workshopdebris representative of several stages of production.Judge observed similar surface debris at San Mateo.Some jewelry items, therefore, were probably producedin this area. The bulk of ceramics in the fivesmall houses at Cerrillos suggests a tie to the greaterMount Taylor region (which is part of the ChacoWorld) and on to Chaco Canyon. But their tie to