Native Americans

Since the last edition of this book in 1993, there has been a steady growth in the knowledge of astronomy practiced by the Ancestral Pueblo. Predictions that had been made in the last edition have been verified in the many annual returns of the solstice sun and, after 18.6 years, the return off the major standstill moon. New work in archaeology has been published on Chimney Rock, Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde, Yellow Jacket, and Hovenweep, which reveals even more clearly how culture and astronomy were integrated. Astronomy can now be understood as an essential aspect of the whole culture of the Ancestral Pueblo.

The approach of this book is a synthesis of astronomy, people, and culture. After an introduction to basic astronomy and archaeology, the book identifies specific places where one can view evidence for astronomical practices, as well as observing essentially the same sunrises that were observed by the Ancestral Pueblo a thousand years ago. Astronomy did not arrive in the area fully born, and the book shows how astronomy evolved with the practical and ceremonial needs of the people. Living quarters and ceremonial spaces started out in parallel to the heavens, probably due to ancient memories of migrations from the north. Astronomical calendars were needed to organize periodic festivals and integrate the vast spaces of the Chaco regional system. Cycles of the sun and moon were used for ceremonies involving sacred time. We have located calendrical stations in Chaco Canyon that would have provided the dates for winter and summer solstice festivals in the canyon. We now understand how Chimney Rock could have functioned as a Pueblo version of the Greenwich Observatory, by providing calendrical dates through a long distance signaling network. New interpretations are presented for the famous Sun Dagger and supernova pictographs in Chaco Canyon. During the last few decades of the 13th century, especially when the Great Drought set in, life in the Southwest became difficult and precarious, and we can see how astronomy changed just before abandonment of the area.

Archaeological and public interest in rock art have greatly increaed since the original edition of Legacy on Stone was written in the late 1980s. A number of major documentation projects have been conducted on the Colorado Plateau since that time, and large amounts of data have been and continue to be produced. This tracks with the pace of research into the larger archaeological and interpretive context. Accordingly, and in line with the research focus of this book, the present edition concentrates on prehistoric rock art dating before A.D. 1600, and the introductory sections are more summary in nature. The work retains the original format and much of the background data, but the research is updated and the volume includes new and additional illustrations, all in full color.

It is evident that prehistoric rock art of the plateau is abundant, variable, and complex. It is also clear that rock art has much to contribute to archaeology and our understanding of the past. It was intentionally placed and remains in place. It is visual communication that incorporates iconography and symbolism from the past. As such, it has the potential to provide important information about sites and the cultures and societies that occupied them.

“Handsomely produced and stands as a worthy addition to the literature of the American West, particularly that dealing with the Indian wars.” —Colorado Libraries

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On the Plains With Custer and Hancock: The Journal of Isaac Coates, Army Surgeon

This standard and classic work on the subject covers the history and techniques of both crafts. Easily followed instruction are complemented by clear illustrations.

"…a refreshing corrective to the commonly accepted story of the last days of War Chief Crazy Horse."—American Indian Quartely

"…published oral history of great value and importance."—Choice