The Pueblo Indians, whose name is Spanish for
"stone masonry village dweller", are one of the oldest
cultures in the U.S. Their ancestors, the Anasazi (Navajo for
"ancient ones") have a history that has be traced back 7000 years, well into
prehistory. The most important development in the evolution
of the Anasazi culture was the changeover of the tribe from a nomadic to
sedentary lifestyle, and their settling in
Southeastern Colorado, New-Mexico, Utah and Arizona, also known as the
Four Corners region. This is when they began constructing impressive
dwellings, making pottery and other artifacts, and weaving baskets; this
is also when the Anasazi first began developing their
agricultural skills, raising turkeys, and growing maize and other crops, like the South
American Maya and Aztec before
them.
Since the Four Corners area was an arid
biome, the Anasazi had to develop complex irrigation system to farm
the land. The Anasazi did so with the minimal tools they had fashioned
out of stone wood and bone, since they hadn't yet discovered metallurgy.
Nonetheless, the Anasazi were master craftsmen, and had managed to
fashion rather sophisticated tools of all sorts, ranging from stone
knives to bone awls for sewing. While the Anasazi
raised turkey, and hunted small game, the larger part of their food intake consisted of
corn, squash, and beans. The Anasazi ate twice a day, and an
offering was made to the Gods by the man of the house, who would throw a
small amount of food into the fire. Although they lived in hot and
dry land, the Anasazi cooked most of their meals, which included bread,
made from corn flour, and stew.
The Anasazi Indians made their homes by out of natural
caves, or on top of mesas which were all part of the rocky terrain and
canyons of the Four Corners region.
These villages, or "pueblos" were remarkably similar to
today's apartment complexes in that they interconnected several rooms
and homes, shaped out of stone and adobe by the expert hands of
Anasazi masons. These dwellings were adorned with a protective
layer of clay mud, either white, gray, yellow, or reddish brown.
The homes were further decorated with hand prints and/or geometric
patterns. The rooftops of the houses were also used in the fall,
when harvested crops were lain to dry in the heat of the sun. Two very good examples of the sophistication of
Anasazi architecture can be seen in the Concha Canyon and Mesa Verde
Pueblos.
While the Anasazi men were skilled at making baskets,
the women made clay pottery, adorned with a wide variety of symbols called
wares, or groups of pottery types which represent each tribe's
historical timeline, and are now used by archaeologists to try and piece
together the still enigmatic puzzle of Anasazi history, religious
beliefs, and culture. The Anasazi also used turquoise stone in
many of the different pieces of jewelry they wore during religious
ceremonies. Turquoise was also used when trading with other
tribes, either for food, or livestock to use for food and
clothing. Other items used in trade included seashells, cotton,
and pottery, which makes it difficult for archaeologist to figure out
where the pieces originated.
See our Pecos
Classification chart for details.
