Two to Four Inches of Lime Dirt: Public Archaeology and the Development of Old and New Interpretations at the Castle A Site, Montezuma Castle National Monument
Guebard M . 2015. Two to Four Inches of Lime Dirt: Public Archaeology and the Development of Old and New Interpretations at the Castle A Site, Montezuma Castle National Monument. Journal of Arizona Archaeology. 3(1 and 2):89-99
This paper addresses recent archaeological work at the Castle A site (AZ O:5:95 [ASM]), located within the Montezuma Castle National Monument boundary. Initially excavated and stabilized in 1933 and 1934 by National Park Service archaeologists Earl Jackson and Sallie Pierce, the project is a historically significant event in the development of Verde Valley archaeology. Based on Jackson and Pierce’s interpretation of stratigraphic evidence, they believed a catastrophic fire destroyed the site long after abandonment, an interpretation that has persisted for over 80 years. A recent reanalysis of field data coupled with archaeomagnetic dating questions this interpretation. Instead, new evidence points to a large fire resulting in the destruction and abandonment of the site at the end of the 14th century.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Guebard, Matt
- Units
- MOCA
- Keywords
- Castle A, Montezuma Castle, New Deal Era, Oral History, Verde Valley