MRES Thesis: The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744

This copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it isunderstood to recognise that its copyright rests with its author and that no

quotation from the thesis and no information derived from it may be publishedwithout the author’s prior consent.

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The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon

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Charlotte Vendome-Gardner


This thesis is intended to be the beginnings of a foundation onwhich to build further research. This thesis proposes that themeaning and function of the Fluteplayer Rock Art motif can befurther elucidated by situating it in a geographical and social

context using an interdisciplinary approach applying art historical,archaeological and architectural history methods. Once the physical

landscape in which the Fluteplayer appears is established, bylooking at its placement in the landscape, its visibility,

accessibility and proximity to cultural features, we can begin toidentify the Fluteplayer’s intended audience and sociocultural

functions. While this is an ambitious project, certain key culturalfeatures have become apparent: a close proximity to metates, nearby

stairways, by or far from Great Houses, in a group or as a solefigure and most are stylistically different. Each of these facts

will need to be carefully researched and considered in order to gaina clearer idea of the Fluteplayer’s meaning and significance in

wider Chacoan culture.

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Contents

List of Illustrations……………………………………………………………………………………………..p.5

List of Tables……………………………………………………………………………………………………….p.9

Acknowledgments…………………………………………………………………………………………….p.10

Introduction: ……………………………………………………………………………………………………..p.11

Chapter One: Key Methodologies and Cross-Disciplinary Researchin Rock Art…..p.14

Chapter Two: The Fluteplayer: Mystery and Misunderstanding…………………………….p.41

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Chapter Three: A New Approach to the Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon………………….p.58

Chapter Four: Establishing a Context: Chaco Canyon…………………………………………..p.61

Chapter Five: The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon: Research Results……………………..p.93

Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………………………………p.130

Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………………………………p.136

Authors Signed Declaration……………………………………………………………………………… p.152

List of Illustrations

Chapter One

Figure One: An Overview of Chaco Rock Art from the Penasco Blanco Trail. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 17

Figure Two: A Six Toed Petroglyph. Schaafsma, P. Rock Art in New Mexico, SantaFe: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1992, first edition 1972, pp.15. Page 18

Figure Three: Lizardman Petroglyph in Chaco Canyon. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 18

Figure Four: Pre-Fremont Anthropomorphic ‘Ghost-like’ Images from the Great Gallery at Horseshoe (Barrier) Canyon. Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980, Plate 6. Page 21

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Figure Five: A Comparison Between Basketmaker and Later Ancestral Puebloan Anthropomorphs. Basketmaker Image from Canyon del Muerto. Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980, Plate 10. Ancestral Puebloan Image from Chaco Canyon. Authors own Photograph, 2011. Page 21

Figure Six: A Pueblo III Pitcher with Geometric Designs from the Morris Collection, University of Colorado Museum. Lister, R H and Lister, F C. Anasazi Pottery, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 6th Edition, 1990, pp. 53. Page 22

Figure Seven: Site Overview of the Sun Dagger Petroglyph on Fajada Butte, Chaco Canyon. Sofaer, A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books, 2008, pp. 27. Page 28

Figure Eight: A Shaft of Light near to the Summer Solstice on the Sun Dagger Petroglyphs. Sofaer, A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books, 2008, pp.30. Page 28

Figure Nine: A Navajo Horse Petroglyph from the Penasco Blanco Trail. Authors ownPhotograph, 2011. Page 37

Chapter Two

Figure Ten: Stick figure Fluteplayers from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 65. Page 43

Figure Eleven: Fluteplayer Depicting a Hump and Phallus from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 63. Page 44

Figure Twelve: A Fluteplayer from the Transition Period between Basketmaker and Pueblo Periods in Canyon de Chelly. Slifer. D. ‘Kokopelli; The Magic, Mirth and Mischief of an Ancient Symbol, Utah: Gibbs Smith, 2007, Plate One. Page 45

Figure Thirteen: A Fluteplayer Effigy Pitcher and Bowl Dating from the Pueblo II Period in The Morris Collection. Anasazi Pottery, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 6th Edition, 1990, pp.47. Page 46

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Figure Fourteen: A Group of Three Fluteplayers with Snakes and an Anthropomorph Figure from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in RockArt: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 65. Page 46

Figure Fifteen: A Reclining Fluteplayer Pictograph from Canyon de Chelly. Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980, pp.139. Page 46

Figure Sixteen: A Possible Birth Scene Showing a Fluteplayer with a Female Figure near Quemado, New Mexico. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 68. Page 47

Figure Seventeen: Sections of a Fluteplayer Panel with Bird Motifs from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp.64. Page 48

Figure Eighteen: A Fluteplayer with Enlarged Feet and Genitals which are Symptoms ofPotts Disease from Petrified Forest national Park. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, PlateEight. Page 50

Figure Nineteen: A Depiction of ‘Kokopelli’ from the 1890’s. Malotki, E. The Making of an Icon: Kokopelli. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000, Plate Three. Page 52

Figure Twenty: Tourist Items Depicting ‘Kokopelli’ including Shot Glasses, Soap Packaging and a Pueblo Fetish. Authors own Photograph. 2013. Page 55

Figure Twenty-one: A Modern Kachina Doll by Hopi Cordell Naseyoma, for sale at theHeard Museum. www.heardmuseumshop.com, 2013. Page 57

Chapter Four

Figure Twenty-Two: Four Corner Map showing the Cultures Contemporaneous with theAncestral Puebloans. Authors own Depiction, 2013. Page 62

Figure Twenty-Three: Map of Chaco Canyon Showing Major Cultural Features. Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe:School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 23. Page 64

Figure Twenty-Four: Casa Rinconada Great Kiva. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 47. Page 66

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http://www.heardmuseumshop.com/

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Figure Twenty-Five: An Ariel View of Pueblo Bonito Great House. Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp.9. Page 67

Figure Twenty- Six: A Reconstruction of Pueblo Bonito Showing the Entrance Mounds. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 96. Page 67

Figure Twenty-Seven: Metates in Pueblo Bonito, 1896-1898. Noble. D.G (ed). InSearch of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 96. Page 68

Figure Twenty-Eight a: Wijiji Late Bonito Great House. www.chacoarchive.org, 2013. Page 70

Figure Twenty-Eight b: Plan of Wijiji Great House. Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 216. Page 70

Figure Twenty-Nine: A view of Chaco looking Northwest from Fajada Butte. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe:School of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 2. Page 74

Figure Thirty: A Map of Chaco Canyon Showing the North South Alignment of New Alto, Pueblo Alto and Tsin Kletzin. Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape andIdeology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 215. Page 75

Figure Thirty-One: Map of the area Surrounding Chaco Canyon Showing the Chuska Mountains. Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 13. Page77

Figure Thirty-Two: Chuska Pottery which was Imported from Great House Communities in the Chuska Area. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American ResearchPress, 2004, pp. 35. Page 78

Figure Thirty-Three: Map Showing Great House Communities and Possible Road Segments. . Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004,pp. 72. Page 79

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http://www.chacoarchive.org/

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Figure Thirty-Four: Jackson Staircase. www.chacoarchive.org , 2013. Page 82

Figure Thirty-Five: Fajada Butte. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 85

Figure Thirty-Six: The Corner Door at Pueblo Bonito which is Aligned with the Winter Solstice Sunrise. Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp.47. Page 86

Figure Thirty-Seven: The Supernova Pictograph. Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp.32. Page87

Chapter Five

Figure Thirty-Eight: Unauthorised Photograph of this Fluteplayer site which can be Found on the Internet. www.shamanicvisions.com, 2013. Page 102

Figure Thirty-Nine: Unauthorised Photograph of Fluteplayer with Four Legged Quadruped. www.shamanicvisions.com , 2013. Page 103

Figure Forty: Fluteplayer (J). Authors Photograph and Sketch, 2011. Page 106 & 107

Figure Forty-One: Site Overview of Fluteplayer (J) Showing all of the Images Depicted with it. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 107

Figure Forty-Two: Modern Graffiti Under Fluteplayer (J). Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 108

Figure Forty-Three: Navajo Hunter at Fluteplayer (J) Site. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 108

Figure Forty-Four: Sun or Star-Like Motif at Fluteplayer (J) Site. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 109

Figure Forty-Five: The Metate and Grinding Area found at the Boulder Site of Fluteplayer (J). Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 110

Figure Forty-Six: Fluteplayer (K). Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 111

Figure Forty-Seven: Drawing of Fluteplayer (K). Authors Sketch, 2013. Page 112

Figure Forty-Eight: Fluteplayer (L). Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 114

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http://www.shamanicvisions.com/



MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Figure Forty-Nine: Drawing of Fluteplayer (L). Authors Sketch, 2013. Page 114

Figure Fifty: Quadrupeds at Fluteplayer Sites (J) and (K). Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 115

Figure Fifty-One: Billboard Rock Art Site from Penasco Blanco Trail. Authors Photograph, 2011. Page 119

List of Tables

Chapter One

Table One: Pueblo Time Periods and Chaco Phase Classifications. Based on, Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe:School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp.18. Page 16

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank everybody who has helped me throughout thisMRes study, primarily my Grandfather John Trevor Egginton for makingit financially possible for me to have undertaken it. He has alsosupported me and my dream throughout my course of study. I wouldalso like to thank my Supervisor Dr Stephanie Pratt for helping methrough the course, and for accompanying me with her sister Jean onmy Research Trip to Chaco Canyon. It is safe to say that it will be

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a trip that we will all remember, not least of all for thefriendships we made, boots stuck in muddy canyon holes and pieces of

Chicken Popcorn. The Chaco Culture National Historical Parkarchivists and Jane Kolber also need to be thanked for helping mewhilst on my trip to New Mexico, and Jane continues to support me

still. Her help and advice, along with other scholars Ruth Van Dykeand Angus Quinlan, has been unprecedented and I would not be at thisstage without it. Finally I would like to thank my Fiancé Will fortolerating my rock art related ramblings and scanning and formatting

all of my images, a job which is not my favourite.

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Introduction

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Introduction

This thesis studies the Fluteplayer rock art motif and its placement

in the landscape of Chaco Canyon, Northwest New Mexico, United

States. Its aim is to lay the foundations on which future research

can be composed by looking at the landscape in which the Fluteplayer

sits and thus establish a context in which the image was produced.

This in turn will allow us to offer speculative ideas about the

images function in the Ancient Chacoan world and to gain a greater

knowledge of this well-known rock art motif. As all theories,

especially those of such a speculative nature, should be supported

by research which has contributed to it, I felt it best to include

the approaches regarding Chaco Canyon, the Fluteplayer and rock art

studies which have greatly shaped the outcome of my research and

approach to show my theoretical thinking and underpinning. What will

follow in the forthcoming chapters are the results of this research

to date, both the theories which have shaped my approach and the

results of my research. Chapter One will introduce the theories and

methods in rock art research which have greatly shaped my approach,

as well as situating Art History within this subject and cross-

disciplinary research with other disciplines. Chapter Two offers an

insight into Fluteplayer research and some of the key texts which

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744have helped to further my knowledge of the motif. I offer a critical

analysis on some theories, especially those concerning the miss-

association with ‘Kokopelli’, an aspect which changed the course of

this research. Chapter Three is aimed to briefly reiterate my approach

based on the research of previous chapters. This will subsequently

lead into the following chapters which become more specialised on my

subject and Chaco Canyon. Chapter Four will set the context in which

the Fluteplayer image was created, Chaco Canyon. As understanding

the context is key, I have looked at Chaco Canyon and its cultural

features in a certain amount of depth with a given focus on one

scholars approach in particular, Ruth Van Dyke. Chapter Five will

combine all of the approaches outlined in the prior chapters and

show the results obtained so far into the Fluteplayer of Chaco

Canyon. The backbone of this research is based on the CRARP (Chaco

Rock Art Reassessment Project) documents which are held in the Chaco

Culture National Historical Park’s archives, Albuquerque, and

fieldwork which I undertook in October 2011. I will offer

discussions and interpretations on the Fluteplayer sites, with

particular attention to three sites which I studied in the field,

and future research questions and avenues which have opened up as a

result. Finally I will conclude the contents of the thesis in the

Conclusion, and reiterate future research proposals.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 I must state two important aspects to this research from the

start. Firstly all of the theories and approaches which have formed

the background to my approach and my own interpretations are

speculative. As no oral histories survive from this time period to

validate theories all interpretations and methods of study must

remain speculative. Secondly, I will not be providing any

photographs of the context and placement in the landscape of the

Fluteplayer sites, I will only provide images focused directly on

the Fluteplayers themselves for the protection of the sites. I will

also be refraining from using any direct names of any cultural

features which are found near to the sites to further this

protection.

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Chapter One:

Key Methodologies and Cross-Disciplinary Research inRock Art

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Key Methodologies and Cross-Disciplinary Research in Rock Art

As a means of introducing the topic of Puebloan rock art, and with a

given focus on the image of the Fluteplayer as it appears in Chaco

Canyon, New Mexico, I begin by offering a brief overview of the main

research methods and scholarly approaches that have helped to form

my own approach to the Fluteplayer rock art motif in Chaco Canyon,

as well as a brief introduction to the forms of rock art itself. The

study of rock art has been primarily undertaken in the fields of

Archaeology and Anthropology, both of which were founded in the late

nineteenth century. My study will focus on the rock art which is

found in Chaco Canyon, Northern New Mexico, and the subject matter

of the Fluteplayer. My approach will take into account some of the

key methods used within the study of rock art, primarily those

developed by Polly Schaafsma and Angus Quinlan. Their research has

offered me a set of analytical tools with which I have founded my

own research approach. I have also included the work of the scholar

David Whitley whose reference to Shamanistic practices in

interpreting rock art forms has offered one way in which to

interpret the images. Some of his ideas have, however, been proven

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744to be invalid in some circumstances, but have proved useful in my

rock art understanding. Ethnographic and cultural interpretations by

M J Young have helped to develop an understanding of modern Pueblo

interpretations.

All of these scholars are from the fields of Archaeology and

Anthropology and not Art History. Less frequently has rock art been

studied from the discipline of Art History, J.J Brody and Jane

Kolber are two notable art historians who have, whilst some

attention has been paid to Indigenous perspectives on their own

history. To my way of thinking, this absence of art historical

discourse represents a lack of analysis in terms of the images

themselves and their relationship to each other, whether in terms of

their meanings or even their formal terms. First and foremost,

however, is the requirement both ethnically and methodologically to

pay attention to indigenous voice and perspectives. By situating the

Fluteplayer rock art motif in Chaco Canyon contextually into the

spaces and places where it is found and by analysing the images as a

corpus of certain distinctive and recognisable qualities that place

them together in the category of ‘Fluteplayer’, will allow the

suggestion of possible functions and with whom the motif was

intended to interact, along with determining its sociocultural

function for the Ancient Chacoans. I will however position this in

relation to what can be learned from indigenous voices, although

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744this is at present unattainable. I need to earn more trust from both

the National Park and indigenous peoples before I can involve and

work with the Pueblo people.

Background

The rock art that I will be focusing my research on is situated

within the time period which saw the monumental buildings that

reflected an encompassing ideology created in Chaco Canyon. This

period is circa 875AD- 1130AD. A general classification of each

period is applied to the study of Ancient Puebloan culture (see

table 1).

Dates (AD) Pecos Classifications Van Dykes Chaco Phase Classifications450-700 Basketm aker III700-875 Pueblo I875-1020 Early Pueblo II Early Bonito1020-1100 Late Pueblo II Classic Bonito1100-1140 Early Pueblo III Late Bonito1140-1300 Late Pueblo III

Based on Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place,Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp.18

These are the classifications for the time periods with which this

research is primarily concerned with, but succeeding the Pueblo III

period is Pueblo IV: 1300AD- 1600AD and Pueblo V: 1600AD to the

present. Each period varies as many scholars believe that different

events warrant slight changes to the defined times, however the

overall dates remain the same. Within the San Juan, Paleoindian and

Archaic periods (which are earlier than 450AD) sites have been

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744found, however they are sparse in Chaco1. Van Dyke believes that the

clearest signs of Chaco culture can be seen in Basketmaker II

sites2, and so I have chosen to remain with her primary

classifications for Chaco Canyon which best displays the events

which took place. Further to this she has created periods within

this time frame based on Chaco architectural phases (see Table 1). I

will be referring to the events in Chaco Canyon by these

classifications, and not the overall structure applied for general

Ancestral Puebloan Studies as I believe that these time

classifications define events in Chaco with more clarity. The

periods which I will focus on encompass all of these

classifications, but primarily I will be focusing on the Late Bonito

phase due to the research which I have collected. Like the

architectural achievements the rock art of this era is also highly

recognisable and stylistically different to the Basketmaker products

which predate it.

Rock Art Forms: There are many styles and forms within rock art as

well as having two main types, pictographs and petroglyphs. Within

the period that this research is based the Fluteplayer can be found

as both a pictograph and petroglyphs, and are found along with

numerous other motifs that characterise the period (Fig.1).

1 Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp.18

2 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp.18.

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Figure 1: An Overview of Chaco Rock Art from the Penasco Blanco Trail. Authors

Photograph, 2011.

Schaafsma has identified a number of specific forms which can be

found in Chaco;

‘Anthromorphs, including stick figures, are often basically rectilinear in configuration. Arms and legs typically bend at right

angles; arm may be held up or down and hands are not given special

emphasis, although fingers may be scratched in. Occasionally, a head

will be delineated in outline and have facial features, but this is

not common. Fertility scenes show female figures near humpbacked

and/or phallic fluteplayers. Throughout the area, long-tailed

quadrupeds occur that probably represent mountain lions. …. Much of

the imagery scattered on the cliffs at Chaco consists of stick-figure

humans, mountain lions, two-legged sheep, simple birds, lizards and

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spirals. In addition, wavy lines, some of which may represent snakes,

bird tracks, and sandal prints and footprints, occur’.3

In addition to this, some footprints have six toes (Fig. 2) and

lizard-men, anthromorphs that have lizard like tails (Fig. 3), were

also created.

Figure 2: A Six Toed Petroglyph. Schaafsma, P. Rock Art in New Mexico, Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1992, first edition 1972, pp.15. Figure 3: Lizardman Petroglyph in Chaco Canyon. Authors Photograph, 2011.

Polly Schaafsma has been extensively researching and studying the

rock art of the southwest for many years, and in her publications

has concluded that there are two main stylistic tendencies,

representational and abstract4. ‘Representational’ for Schaafsma

3 Schaafsma, P. Rock Art in New Mexico, Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1992, first edition 1972, pp. 13.4 Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980, pp.3.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744almost always refers to depictions of life forms such as humans and

supernatural beings, as well as Zoomorphic figures (animals) such as

quadrupeds, birds and snakes. This style rarely depicts these

subjects as naturalistic, instead they are often idealised and

schematised5. I believe, however, that even if Schaafsma’s

‘abstract’ designs are labelled as more schematic and appear to bear

no resemblance to the natural world, each one will be based,

however, on an aspect of it and will therefore appeal to the

experience of existence in the natural world.

In terms of the development of rock art forms at Chaco Canyon,

each cultural group and time period seems to have a set of

characteristics which roughly define its rock art style.6 However

differences can be seen at local levels as ‘……minor variations [in]

style, such as different element inventories between comparison

sites, may indicate that these sites served several needs.’7 The

styles can also be placed into a chronological order so that we are

able to see what style predates or precedes a certain time and

culture. For example, from examination of the ghostly images found

in some Utah sites that were created many years before the rise of

the Chacoan culture (Fig. 4), we know that these were made by pre-

5 Schaafsma.P, 1980, pp.3.6 For further reading on the different styles of the southwest see, Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980.7 Schaafsma, 1980, pp.8.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Fremont peoples in the Northern Southwest. Although they were not

Chacoan, this cultural group illustrates the different in styles

within the southwest region.

The rock art motifs of the time period which my research focuses

on (850-1150AD) are highly recognisable, and fall within the Pueblo

II to Pueblo III time classification, Early - Late Bonito in Van

Dykes classification. Schaafsma has noted that in the San Juan

Basin, in which Chaco Canyon is geographically situated, there are

fewer interregional distinctions between the styles and they can

thus be described as a group. This makes it easier for more general

interpretations and conclusions to be drawn. Fewer interregional

differences suggest the presence of one cultural group that held a

shared ideology. This theory is indeed correct as archaeological

research has shown that Chaco incorporated many communities into its

ideology outside of the canyon boundaries. Later migrations indicate

that the people moved north to areas like Mesa Verde, which I will

discuss in further detail in my next chapter. The rock art which the

Ancestral Puebloans produced is characterised by a distinct style.

In comparison to their predecessors, the Basketmakers, human figures

become reduced in size and scale in the early to late Bonito period,

new motifs are introduced and the rectilinear anthropomorph which

can also be found as a ‘lizardman’ becomes a defining form for this

period’s rock art (Fig. 5). Schaafsma has suggested that this turn

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744to more rectilinear stick figures indicates ‘…a general interest in

forms and patterns, and, to this end, a tightening of form. In rock

art this is accomplished by an increase in the number of geometric

designs resembling those from pottery and textiles.’8 Motifs can be

found on other media such as pottery or on objects such as clay

pipes: abstract designs are perhaps the most famous of these inter-

media designs to be found on both ceramic wares and rock art (Fig.

6). The Fluteplayer is one such image that can be found on a variety

of media as well as the anthromorphs with traditional Hopi

hairstyles or headdresses. These instances show a shared belief

about what these images symbolised. There are often clear

differences in rock art styles between cultures with temporal and

spatial differences; however since the publication of Schaafsma’s

work more extensive research has been undertaken. In a conversation

with Kolber she has asserted that at the time of publication ‘…there

was hardly anything written on rock art and [that] she [Schaafsma]

did a great job of synthesising. But much has been learned from

then.’ 9As a result of this styles will remain speculative, although

distinctions can be seen between styles.

8 Schaafsma, 1980, pp. 136. 9 Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer and Thesis Conversations. Email to Jane Kolber ([email protected]) November 2011- Present

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Figure 4: Pre-Fremont Anthropomorphic ‘Ghost-like’ Images from the Great Gallery at Horseshoe (Barrier) Canyon. Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980, Plate 6.

Figure 5: A Comparison Between Basketmaker and Later Ancestral Puebloan Anthropomorphs. Basketmaker Image from Canyon del Muerto. Schaafsma, P. Indian Rock Art of the

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980, Plate 10. Ancestral Puebloan Image from Chaco Canyon. Authors own Photograph, 2011.

Figure 6: A Pueblo III Pitcher with Geometric Designs from the MorrisCollection, University of Colorado Museum. Lister, R H and Lister, F C.Anasazi Pottery, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 6th Edition,

1990, pp. 53.

Historical background research to rock art studies: Research into

rock art has recently experienced a boom which has enabled an in

depth analysis of the sites and particular styles to be attributed

to a certain period, much like the rock art that I have described

above. Rock art can be found worldwide, and the study of it as a

subject is said to have begun in 1879 when a young girl and her

father uncovered a cave in Spain.10 It is now believed that the

10 Chippindale, C and Tacon, P.S.C. (eds). The Archaeology of Rock Art, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998, pp.2.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744western study of rock art occurred much earlier than this in 186011.

In the Southwest region of the United States of America, rock art

was known to the indigenous tribes many hundreds of years before

white settlers discovered the sites. Chaco Canyon was no exception

to this, but the sites were first noted by an Anglo-American in 1849

when Lt James. H Simpson referred to them as hieroglyphs.12 In the

1930’s and 1940’s students from the University of New Mexico and

School of American Research noted the petroglyphs, but the results

were unpublished and went unrecognised for many years. During the

1960’s salvage operations were conducted at many other Ancestral

Puebloan sites which were due to be destroyed by construction work.

This was conducted hurriedly in order to document the rock art found

in these places and other cultural features, yet during the 1972-

1975 archaeological survey of Chaco Canyon only a small paragraph

was dedicated to rock art. Interest in the rock art of the southwest

may not have been paramount, but a certain amount of attention was

given to the subject at others areas in the southwest. This would

soon change as in 1972 the ASNM (Archaeological Society of New

Mexico) Rock Art Field School was asked to conduct a recording

project of the rock art in Chaco Canyon, which lasted until 1981. In

1996 Jane Kolber and Donna Yoder, who were part of the original

11 Chippindale. C and Tacon. P.S.C, 1998, pp.2.12 Wiseman R.N, O’Laughlin, T.C, Snow. C.T (eds). ‘Climbing the Rocks, Papers in Honour of Helen and Jay Crotty,’ The Archaeological Society of New Mexico,No. 29, 2003, pp. 99-100.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744recording team, began to reassess the sites realising that the

methods used in the 1970’s and 1980’s were not adequate enough to

record the sites. Kolber and Yoder also wanted to assess the effect

of vandalism on the sites as well as an overall assessment of their

current condition. Since this time rock art recording has been

carried out every year at Chaco Canyon, assessing new sites and re-

recording older sites which were originally surveyed with the first

project.

During these periods of recording, a general rise in rock art

research has come about; however it is primarily dominant among

amateur archaeologists as opposed to professional ones. Further to

this, it has been excluded from academic institutions.13 This has

impacted on theory building and has resulted in new methods and

knowledge being hindered. During the 1980’s the research of rock art

was placed behind the study of other archaeological aspects;

‘Archaeologists, preferring to deal with excavations and the data thus

obtained, have chosen to ignore rock art rather than add this

seemingly enigmatic body of material to their burden of analysis. In

some instances, the lack of associated cultural remains has made it

difficult to date or assign rock art to a specific cultural period.

Underlying these problems is the rather diffuse bias on the part of

many archaeologists that rock art, unlike many other cultural remains,

lacks order, a definite structure of patterning that can be used for a

guideline of analysis. A certain amount of prejudice may have arisen 13 This statement was correct at the time of publishing: Quinlan.A R (Ed). Great Basin Rock Art, Archaeological Perspectives, Reno: University of Nevada Press, 2007, pp.1.

30


form the earliest rock art studies, in which investigators were

primarily concerned with trait or element tracking. This approach was

not fruitful and served to fracture and obscure the stylistic

complexes that later scholars have found to be the primary tool for

ordering immense and varied body of raw data of rock drawings….

Fortunately, recent rock art research has served to dispel this

prejudice.’14

The seemingly structure- less subject of rock art hindered studies

in the 1980’s, but this was changing. Polly Schaafsma has studied

the techniques and styles of rock art within the southwest, creating

a chronological timeline of rock art styles. Identifying a style can

be crucial in understanding a site and the relationship between

images. Further to this she has also created a certain amount of

‘order’ in comparison to the lack of structure that it was felt rock

art held.

Today rock art is still at a disadvantage to other images that

are portrayed on structures, such as Kiva Murals for example. This

is due to their placement in the landscape which detaches them from

direct contact with fixed constructions.15 Part of this disadvantage

has stemmed from rock art’s connection to the spiritual sphere, an

idea that has emerged from one of the approaches that has long been

used to analyse the images.16Throughout the last two decades David

Whitley has been applying this theory which incorporates the idea of

14 Schaafsma, P, 1980, pp. 5-6. 15 Quinlan.A R (Ed). Great Basin Rock Art, Archaeological Perspectives, Reno: Universityof Nevada Press, 2007, pp. 2.16 Quinlan.A. R (eds), 2007, pp.2.

31

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Shamanism to rock art sites. He has based much of his research on

anthropological reports and has thus applied them to prehistoric

sites, creating a static depiction of indigenous people over a

number of centuries. Shamanism and hunting magic are both connected

to ideas of magic/ ‘medicine’ and the spiritual sphere and are

concentrating on the imagery at sites alone. They do not take into

account the wider context of the area and landscape in which it

sits. The idea of ‘magic’ has been embraced by the general public

which has ultimately led scholars to believe that rock art can offer

little to their field.17 Archaeologist Angus R. Quinaln in the early

2000’s has dismissed many of Whitley’s ideas and has focused his

research on the landscape in which the rock art site is situated. By

looking at the proximity of sites to cultural features, primarily

habitation sites in the Great Basin region, he has suggested that we

can establish a possible context for the sites that helps to dismiss

the shamanistic idea. A domestic context opens up a new use for rock

art sites and allows us to see the wider sociocultural aspects of

rock art. Quinlan further believes that a renewed interest in the

context of rock art has helped to produce more theories and methods

that are related to the landscape18 and this has resulted in more

diverse explanations and possibilities about their function being

explored, such as wider sociocultural functions.

17Quinlan. A. R (eds), 2007, pp. 3- 4. 18 Quinaln. A. R (eds), 2007, pp. 3.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Methodologies

Most, if not all, of the methods and approaches used to study rock

art are from the disciplines of Archaeology and Anthropology, as I

stated above, whereas Art History in discourse has thus far

participated very little in the field. As I have mentioned

previously, J.J Brody and Kolber, as well as Helen Crotty are among

the few who have. I am hoping that my analysis of these rock art

forms at Chaco Canyon can open up this possibility for the field

further.

Art History’s relative absence in the field of rock art studies

has not gone unnoticed and it has often been criticised for not

participating in the study of the field.19Suggestions have been made

as to why Art History has not been as involved in the subject in

comparison to disciplines such as Archaeology. The first debate

centres on the use of the term ‘art’, and if it should be used in

connection with the subject. Many scholars argue that the term rock

‘art’ is a modern European construct, and by viewing it with the

term ‘art’ we risk distancing rock art from its context and imposing

western interpretations.20 Rock art may also be seen as a craft or

even graffiti, and not a ‘…European tradition,…and an institution

that, during the Italian Renaissance, acquired its own specific

19 See Heyd, T and Clegg, J (eds). Aesthetics and Rock Art, Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2005.20 Heyd, T and Clegg, J (eds), 2005, pp.2-3.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744self-definition, in contrast to craft and akin to the sciences in

pursuit of truth…Hence it may seem open to question whether one may

ascribe art status to products of other societies.’ 21 Whilst these

opinions have some value I also believe that they are biased and

follow personal conceptions as to what the term ‘Art’ means. There

are many different theories as to what ‘Art’ is: for example, does

true ‘Art’ follow the idea of the canon and the progression of art

to more and more innovative forms? This is a westernised conception.

I personally believe that objects to which we apply the term ‘Art’

are constantly changing, ‘Arts’ definition is fluid, and as a

result, until there is one universal definition for the term ‘Art’

then this question can never be answered. Although debates will

undoubtedly continue on this subject, it will contribute very little

to my own research which does not seek to answer this question.

If we accept that these images should be termed as ‘Art’ (apart

from all the Western connotations that that word applies to), then

why does the discipline of Art History seldom study it? Thomas Heyd

and John Clegg have suggested that it is because professional

archaeologists and anthropologists have dominated the research of

rock art for such a long time that art historians may feel

unfamiliar with the subject and under qualified to study it as a

result.22 Problems further arise with the difficulties that the

21 Heyd, T and Clegg, J (eds), 2005, pp.3.22 Heyd, T and Clegg, J (eds), 2005, pp.2.

34

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744subject presents. For every answer or fact obtained, several more

questions arise that will require addressing.23Although my own

research will not add to these on-going debates I felt that I must

include them within my thesis to establish Art History’s place

within the study of the subject and why I am working cross-

disciplinarily as a result of this. Art History does, however, have

a place within the study of rock art and using its methods and

approaches we can contribute a wealth of knowledge to the

discipline. Some of Art History’s fundamental approaches such as the

contextualising of an art work or image within the social nexus

which produced it, the symbolism and formalism which for me is the

interpretation of shapes and forms in relation to one another, and

how they may present a kind of visual ‘language’ semiotically. These

are some of the key methods that I have used to work cross-

disciplinarily with archaeology and architectural history in order

to begin to gain an understanding into the Fluteplayer rock art

motif.

One approach that is used across a range of disciplines,

including art history, is semiotics. This approach can provide an

idea of the rock art motif functioning as a sign to communicate with

the people who inhabited and visited Chaco Canyon, and perhaps as a

23 From my own personal experience I agree that the subject is daunting, andat numerous points I have indeed felt under qualified in comparison to someof my fellow scholars who are based in the before mentioned disciplines.

35

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744larger sign system within the society. Charles Sanders Pierce used

semiotics to evaluate meanings in language with reference to visual

signs, as opposed to Ferdinand Saussure whose work exclusively

focused on linguistic signs. Pierce identified three levels of

meaning within the ‘sign’; ‘icon’ which looks at the resemblance to

a person or object; it does not have to resemble them but allows

people to see that it stands for something or someone. ‘Index’ is

that part of a sign which doesn’t resemble something but has

evidence of something’s existence, such as a fragment or a mark left

behind and ‘Symbol’ is something that means something to the group

as everybody uses it in that way, like the contemporary sign for

headphones for instance. A sign can consist of more than one type/

level, and all produce a meaning through the process of

signification. The signification process consist of three elements;

Object which is the thing or idea represented, Sign, the thing that

stands for the object (icon, index and symbol) and finally,

Interpretation, which evaluates what the sign produces in the

individual’s mind and is not static but fluctuates with the

individual.24Semiotics is concerned less ‘…with any individual

utterance or interpretation and more with the larger context which

makes meaning possible…. The context for meaning is a system made up

24 Hatt. M and Klonk. C. Art History, A Critical Introduction to its Methods, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2006, pp.208-210.

36

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744of signs.’25 This process can potentially prove to be very useful

when studying rock art.

Although the application of semiotics to the study of rock art

presents limitations due to that fact that we would not be able to

fully evaluate the rock art images by not knowing what the actual

Object or Interpretations are for the motifs within the larger

signification process; it still allows us to interpret the images

using a semiotical approach. Let us take for example Anna Sofaer’s

research into the Sun Dagger petroglyph (Fig. 7).Sofaer has been

looking at motifs which charter or mark specific cosmic events, such

as the summer and winter solstice. She has attributed the now world

famous Sun Dagger atop of Fajada Butte, two spiral motifs, with

marking the position of the summer and winter solstices and

equinoxes (Fig. 8).26

25 Hatt.M and Klonk. C, 2006, pp.200.26 For further reading see Sofaer, A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books,2008.

37


Figure 7: Site Overview of the Sun Dagger Petroglyph on Fajada Butte, Chaco Canyon. Sofaer, A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books, 2008, pp. 27.

Figure 8: A Shaft of Light near to the Summer Solstice on the Sun Dagger Petroglyphs. Sofaer,A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books, 2008, pp. 30.

If her findings are correct then the Object would be the idea of

marking the seasons and watching the movement of the sun, and in

this instance the Sign for this would be the spiral petroglyph which

would be both an icon and symbol. Finally, its interpretation would

refer to the knowledge of the cosmos and movements of the sun,

perhaps to watch the seasons and know when to plant crops and

therefore initiate specific rituals and ceremonies, although these

will always remain speculative and subject to debate. I must note

that this example is site specific, and other celestial markers will

38

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744vary from site to site .The Sun Dagger petroglyph is a sign that

could be recognised by a wide range of people, and perhaps even from

across various cultures. Research has indicated that people from

numerous cultures may have visited and even inhabited the Canyon (I

will be discussing this in more depth in a later chapter on Chaco

Canyon), so were these signs intended to communicate a cohort

ideology that united or linked different cultures? This idea is ever

present in our own modern cultures today, and is not an alien idea.

Take for example the image of headphones. This is a sign for the

listening to of music, and its interpretation remains unchanged

throughout numerous cultures. If we were to put a cross through the

image, the interpretation would again be the same and signify the

prohibition of listening to music. It is a form of universal

communication. Rock art may be as simple as a sign representing

direction or an indication of rain and such atmospheric seasonal

occurrences, but I believe that by looking at the semiotics of rock

art we can gain valuable knowledge about the wider sociological

functions of these images and perhaps even get closer to fuller

interpretations. Although I must again assert that these suggestions

will never be certain and will always be speculative and open to

criticism as we have lost so much indigenous history, and what

little is still retold is often based on western documentation .

Semiotics is just one art historical theory-based approach that can

39

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744be used, I believe, to interpret rock art motifs successfully. They

were created to communicate with people; they were signs within a

sign system. Today these signs still communicate with the

descendants of the Ancient Chacoans, the modern Pueblo people.

M. J Young’s research which focuses on the significance of rock

art for the contemporary Zuni, provides detailed and highly

significant information to help with the interpretation and function

of rock art motifs. Many of the Zuni people see rock art as an

important part of their heritage; it was for them a creation by the

Ancestors so that they could be present in contemporary Zuni life.27

Each Zuni person will have their own personal interpretations of the

image in question28 though, and this is often marked by differences

in age. Younger people often have different personal interpretations

than those held by older members of the village or community. One

important factor to consider is the influence of outside sources,

and as a result, an interpretation may not always be rooted entirely

in Zuni traditions. Young further found that many Zuni people also

referenced the context in which the rock art was situated, not just

the motif itself; they include it and the landscape. This, I

believe, is a crucial step as the landscape is clearly an important

27 Young, M.J. Signs from the Ancestors. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1992, pp.7.28 Young, M J. ‘Images of Power and the Power of Images: The Significance ofRock art for Contemporary Zunis,’ The Journal of American Folklore, Vol.98, No.387,January-March 1985, pp.16.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744factor in interpreting a rock art site and any meaning we might

derive from it. The placement of the image is paramount to its

understanding. Young’s research has truly been ground-breaking

within the study of rock art itself, but we must remember not to

apply these contemporary interpretations too wholeheartedly onto

rock art from the prehistoric period which Young also states

herself; it was created for different reasons and if the physical

appearance of the image hasn’t changed then its function will

have.29Although they cannot be applied to prehistoric rock art, I

believe that documenting the interpretations of the descendants of

the Ancient Puebloans is of vital importance as this is their

heritage which I, and many other western scholars, am researching.

The Pueblo people’s connection to their Ancestors is deep, and we

must involve them within our research to gain valuable knowledge of

the kind first mentioned, as well as recording these histories so

that they too do not become lost. Indigenous interpretations of rock

art images provides a symbolic interpretation, but one that should

not be used to interpret the function of the image for the Ancient

Chacoan people, this would create the image and representation of a

static culture. What is evident, however, is that these prehistoric

signs still communicate with the Pueblo people, although their

original symbolic meaning will have undoubtedly been altered and

have changed since their original execution. Art History can help to29 M.J. Young, 1992, pp7.

41

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744document the symbolism of these images for the modern Pueblo people,

and in doing so can actively involve them within its research. It

cannot, however, help to interpret the prehistoric images with a

great deal of success. When trying to gain a knowledge of these

prehistoric images there is one art historical approach which should

be used with a great amount of caution if at all, and that is the

practice of iconography.

Iconography is a western approach that focuses on ideas, the

‘subject matter’ and meanings of works.30 Erwin Panofsky practised

this approach in the twentieth century, and was keen to ‘…give

interpretations of works of art that would show them to be symbolic

expressions of the cultures within which they were created.’31

Despite a concern with symbolism, Western notions of ‘art as

iconography’32 often mean that these ideas are placed onto indigenous

rock art motifs and images which are thus seen connotatively as

‘religious’ symbolism. Not only does this reinforce ideas about

‘primitivism’ and stereotypical ideas about hunter-gathers, but it

also reflects our own nostalgic view of our Ancestors and the

unknown marks that they left behind in similar ways in the landscape

of say, prehistoric Britain to take one example. It is a fabricated

utopia of the unknown. Rock art is complex, it is ‘…a visual symbol

30 Hatt. M and Klonk. C. Art History, A Critical Introduction to its Methods, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2006, pp. 96.31 Hatt. M and Klonk. C, 2006, pp. 96.32 Quinlan, A R (Ed), 2007, pp.142.

42

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744system or a system of knowledge that communicates a coherent

cultural ideology…’33, as Schaafsma states in her revised opinion in

a later publication. As a result of this, Iconography, in the

Panofskian sense, is not an approach that should be used in the

study of rock art and in which western religious notions may be

inadvertently applied. If there were to be developed a World art

version of ‘iconographical’ methodology, then this might be a more

appropriate model in which to undertake such analysis of rock art

motifs cross-culturally.

The Shamanistic explanation of rock art has long been another

widely used approach, and indeed today some scholars still believe

that this approach answers the questions surrounding the production

of rock art. It often asserts a neuropsychological model on to rock

art and implies that it is the result of a person who has entered an

altered state of mind. Shamanism is associated with magic, religion

and extended consciousness but there are differences between these

separate practices, although both are concerned with supernatural

agencies. Magic uses supernatural agents to have an effect on known

reality, whereas religion uses natural actions to have an effect on

supernatural reality.34 Magic is then subdivided into two different

effects;

33 Schaafsma, P. Rock Art in New Mexico,¬ Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1992, first edition 1972.pp.5.34 Whitley, D S and Keyser, J D. ‘Sympathetic Magic in Western North American Rock Art,’ American Antiquity,Vol.71, No.1, January 2006, pp.4.

43


‘The first is sympathetic magic where an effect resembles its cause (“Like produces like”). The second is contagious magic where things

that once were in contact are believed to continue to act on each

other, even at a distance’.35

David Whitley (1994 and 2006) is one such scholar who argues for the

use of Shamanism and uses both archaeological and ethnographic

approaches to support his research based in the Great Basin region

of the Southwest. In his paper ‘By the Hunter, for the Gatherer:

Art, Social Relations and Subsistence change in the Pre-Historic

Great Basin’,36 he presents his argument for the Shamanistic

production of rock art by the Numic speaking people who inhabited

the area. Whitley states that Shamans were men of power, and imagery

that was experienced by them correlates with that depicted in rock

art. The sites themselves also become, ‘Pohakanhi’, houses of power,

and show their cultural significance for Native people of the

region;

‘Numic rock art was produced by shamans and shaman-initiates followingthe altered state of consciousness (ASC) experiences of their vision

quests… they were conducted at locales believed to be places of Poha,

or supernatural power. The distribution of engraving sites, then,

corresponds to the perceived distribution of Poha across the

landscape…’37

35 Whitley. D.S and Keyser. J.D, 2006, pp.4.36 Whitley, D S. ‘By the Hunter for the Gatherer: Art, Social Relations and Subsidence Change in the Prehistoric Great Basin,’ World Archaeology, Vol.25, No.3, February 1994, pp.356-373.37 Whitley, D S, 1994, pp.361.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744This research was undertaken to explain why people who primarily ate

nuts and seeds as part of their diet produced a large amount of

images which detailed supposed ‘hunting scenes’. Within the region

there are a large number of Mountain Sheep motifs in comparison to

other images, despite the fact that the Numic people’s dietary

supplements did not involve a large quantity of hunted meat. Using

Ethnographic research, Whitley states that there is a documented

relationship between shamans and mountain sheep, and that when a

mountain sheep was killed rain fell.

‘Rain shamans called the wind to bring rain clouds. In turn, followingNumic cultural logic, this served an important purpose: to enable

plants to grow during periods of draught… In a region of extreme

aridity, it was the rain shaman who brought the rain and, by

controlling nature, caused the seed plants to grow.’38

Within the Great Basin, and other regions including the San Juan,

there was an importance placed on precipitation, which enabled the

production of food. This act between shamans and mountain sheep then

becomes a metaphor for a certain type of Shamanistic power, weather

control, and thus explains the dominant motif in the region. It is

not, however, an act depicting sympathetic hunting magic but instead

shows the connection between the shaman and the supernatural world.

This is one example of how the Shamanism model has been used to

38 Whitley. D.S, 1994, pp. 368.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744interpret rock art, and Whitley is not the only scholar to have

interpreted images in such a way.

Polly Schaafsma’s interpretations are also sometimes grounded

in ritual functions;

‘In many instances, figure complexes and symbolism found in the Rock

Art of the Southwest seem to be explainable within the context of

Shamanistic beliefs and practices’.39

Schaafsma has applied this method to one site at Chaco Canyon

suggesting that the presence of handprints and baby footprints in

secluded locations in Chaco Canyon have been left at shrines as

prayer requests, placed there to gain the power from the people or

animals depicted there.40 Like Whitley she also uses ethnographic

sources to interpret prehistoric peoples, an approach that Angus

Quinlan has proven to be untrustworthy. As previously noted though,

much more research has been undertaken since the publication of this

research and her opinions may have been revised. Indigenous

knowledge can, and should, be used to document what rock art images

symbolise for them today, but these interpretations should not be

applied to prehistoric images. It creates the idea of an unchanged

culture. Quinlan examined much of Whitley’s research and found

fundamental flaws in his ethnographic approach due to the fact that

the data had been collected during increased Anglo-American contact

39 Schaafsma, P, 1992, pp.16.40 Schaafsma. P, 1992, pp.17.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744and ‘…cannot be assumed to be representative of the aboriginal

cultural practices prior to Euro-American colonization.’41 Further to

this Whitley was applying historic interpretations to pre-historic

practices;

‘The uncritical use of ethnography to interpret prehistoric materials runs the risk of presenting deeply ahistorical accounts…By directly

imposing these ethnographies on several thousand years of rock art

over a vast area, Whitley seems to have portrayed Native American

societies in western North America as remarkably static’.42

Although this argument is centred on rock art produced in the Great

Basin region of North America, I believe that it is still vital to

the research of rock art in Chaco Canyon, which is in a

geographically related area of the country. I knew beforehand during

my training as an art historian and critical theorist that

ethnographic accounts could prove to be untrustworthy and Quinlan’s

point further confirmed this for me. Historic ethnographic accounts

should not be applied to prehistoric cultures which predate them, as

cultures continuously change and we cannot assume, as Quinlan has

said, that they have remained static and unchanged. Although some

Shamanism-like practices have been recorded in relation to rock art

this is not enough to define all motifs as the result of a

neurophysiological state of mind, and I therefore chose not to 41 Quinlan, A R. ‘The Ventriloquists Dummy: A Critical Review of Shamanism and Rock Art in Far Western North America,’ Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology, Vol.22, No.1, 2000, pp.101.42 Quinlan.A.R, 2000, pp.101.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744approach the Fluteplayer with this sole function. This raised the

question of what might be other reasons for images that do not fit

within Western modes of discourse and description and how might we

go about beginning to analyse them with more informed and nuanced

understandings?

Shamanism and the spiritual sphere analyse the motifs by

looking at their form and imagery. Quinlan has suggested that by

looking away from this to larger contextual factors, we can see the

social and cultural aspects of the people who created the rock art.

One way in which we can do this, and a method which Quinlan works

with, is to look at the landscape in which the image is situated in

order to establish its context, a key art historical and

architectural history approach.

The landscape in which rock art sits has changed very little

over time, unlike the indigenous cultures who created them and their

local objects which have subsequently been removed from their

original context. We can gain some insight into the context in which

the rock art was produced by looking at its placement in the

landscape, something which Quinlan has highlighted the importance of

with his studies in the Great Basin region. By looking at an images

placement within the landscape and certain cultural features, such

as settlements, we can establish with whom it was intended to

communicate with. In a survey of 106 rock art sites in Nevada, a

48

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744large amount were found near to domestic tools at seasonal trails

and camps;

‘This domestic association opens the possibility that rock art’s

intended audience and use was not restricted to hunters or vision

questers; potentially a large section of the cultural group viewed and

interacted with it regularly. It is this relationship between

habitation and rock art that suggests the rituals associated with it

were embedded by the actions recurrently performed there… the use of

rock art referenced the domestic activities done nearby or in direct

association.’43

This not only further supports Quinlan’s argument against focusing

solely on explanations via shamanistic understandings, but it also

allows us to situate rock art motifs into a context, a key art

historical approach. By looking at a motif’s placement in relation

to, in this case, habitation sites, we can establish the motif’s

function in association with domestic activities and that a large

section of society saw and interacted with the image. Access was not

restricted to a privileged few in that society, such as shamans as

Quinlan has argued. Each site will be site specific, and it will

depend on the dating of the rock art and if it corresponds to the

correct cultural group.44 The dating of rock art is something that I

will discuss later in this chapter. Associations of rock art and a

settlement suggest that the rituals connected with it were embedded

43 Quinlan, R A and Woody A. ‘Marks of Distinction: Rock Art and Ethnic Identification in the Great Basin,’ American Antiquity, Vol.68, No.2, April 2003, pp.375.44 Quinlan.A.R and Woody.A, 2003, pp.375.

49

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744in the social reproductions of its makers. This then shows that the

‘…rock art referenced the domestic activities done nearby or in

direct association…’45Research has also shown that rock art found in

the domestic context is related to women’s tasks, such as the

processing of food. It has been a long held and biased view, that

rock art was produced by men, but recent analogies between scratched

rock art and basket designs shows that scratched rock art may have

been produced by women.46 This approach, coupled with the domestic

context of rock art means that we can begin to establish who saw the

motifs and their sociological role. Art History can work cross-

disciplinarily with Archaeology in order to establish a context for

the rock art site that is to be studied.

As I have mentioned previously, this approach relies on the

dating of the rock art to correspond with the cultural group which

inhabited the area at that point in time. The dating of rock art is

somewhat speculative, and so we often cannot gain an exact date for

its production. One of the more secured ways is to date the paint

fragments from pictographs, but this is somewhat challenging as you

must first wait for a fragment to fall off naturally and have

permission to take it. Kolber has detailed that in the case of Chaco

Canyon you must have permission from over twenty tribes and have a

45. Quinlan.A.R and Woody.A, 2003, pp.375

46Quinlan. A. R (ed), 2007, pp.39

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744substantial amount of funds, along with other evidence47 in order to

send it off for analysis. The dating of petroglyphs provides

numerous approaches and ways to (potentially) date them. One is to

look at the build-up of patina, a black/ brown colour caused by

hydrous iron and manganese oxides, on the surface of the exposed

rock art motif, the darker the surface the longer it has been

exposed. This proves useful when other motifs are present and a

comparison can be made between them. However patina varies with the

composition of the rocks and its exposure to the sun and rain.

Superimposition of images is a way to determine the ‘… relative age

of rock art’48 by looking at images that have been painted or pecked

over one another. Looking at the difference in patina will give us a

relative idea of how much time has passed between their productions,

but when designs seem to be stylistically similar, perhaps a smaller

length of time has elapsed between their productions. The same

cultural group would have created them, such as the before mentioned

images which have been created at Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde.

Schaafsma suggested that they were created by people from the same

cultural group, and this has been further supported by other

archaeological evidence.49 Often time frames are known for the

47 Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer and Thesis Conversations. Email to Jane Kolber ([email protected]) November 2011- Present48 Schaafsma. P, 1980, pp.14.49 Frazier. K. People of Chaco, London: W.W. Norton and Company, first edition 1987, revised edition 1999, expanded edition 2005.

51

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744cultural groups that inhabited the southwest and thus we can

attribute images that are stylistically similar to within a certain

space of time, which can often be very short. Vertical placement on

a cliff face or rock shelter looks at how petroglyphs have been made

from the top of sand dunes, especially in the early prehistoric era

in river canyons such as the Colorado Plateau. Over time the dunes

have been swept away by floods and subsequent indigenous people have

created rock art from on top of the new dune lines, this allows us

to see a chronological production with the oldest motifs placed

higher than the more recent ones. Schaafsma believes that one of the

most useful ways to date rock art is to compare the figures to that

on datable artefacts, such as pottery, clay pipes or wall plaster.50

Absolute dates can further be provided by some of the content of

rock art, such as bows and horses. The bow appeared circa 200AD,

replacing the spear and atlatl, and spread across the continent in

the following centuries. This has enabled researchers to establish

an earliest possible date for images that depict the bow. The same

approach can be applied to images of the horse (Fig. 9), which were

brought over to America in the sixteen hundreds by the Spanish.

50 Schaafsma. P, 1980, pp.15.

52


Figure 9: A Navajo Horse Petroglyph from the Penasco Blanco Trail. Authors ownPhotograph, 2011.

Images that depict the horse could not have been executed any

earlier than this date. The last approach to dating is by looking at

the association of habitation debris, in particular pottery

fragments, and the rock art. Some of the rock art was made from the

roof tops of dwellings, and because of this, the timeframe in which

they were executed can be narrowed to a short period by dating the

dwelling. This approach would seem to be more favourable when

looking at the placement of rock art and settlements as you can

establish not only potentially the dates, but deduce that the images

were seen by a large section of society if they were created from

roof tops. It can further allude to sociological functions on which

I will elaborate in subsequent chapters.

If the rock art and settlements were created in the same time

period then we can assume that they were used simultaneously, but

even if they were not created within the same period the rock art

53

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744may have still been incorporated into the everyday life of the

occupants;

‘… if rock art predates settlement activity it could still have been

incorporated in the ritual practices of subsequent groups whatever

their relationship to the arts original makers. Monuments of the past

are often reused and given novel cultural meaning and social roles

despite discontinuities in use.’51

Despite temporal differences in habitation occupations, indigenous

people can still feel a connection to the marks that their ancestors

have left behind. When rock art is found further away from

settlements sites and in more remote locations which could not be

visited during daily routines, this may relate more closely to

vision-questers who require seclusion.52 The placement of rock art

within the landscape can reveal to us the context in which it was

produced, and with further research, the sociological functions

which it may have played can be suggested. Of course these

assumptions will never be certain as we have lost so much indigenous

knowledge, but we can establish facts through this approach which

will show the placement and context of the rock art motifs.

A continuous theme throughout many of these approaches is the

style of the rock art motifs, and its ‘formalism’. As I have

previously mentioned, Polly Schaafsma has been extensively

documenting and studying the styles of the rock art in the

51 Quinlan.A and Woody.A, 2003, pp.376.52 Quinlan.A and Woody.A, 2003, pp. 376.

54

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744southwest, creating a speculative chronological order for them which

also allows them to be attributed to certain cultural groups through

specific styles, although these may be liable to change and not

conform to what is expected;

‘Basic to a meaningful approach to the study of rock art is an

understanding of how rock art is structured. Variation in patterns

within the art can then be described and used to inform the

archaeologist of meaningful variation within the broader cultural

context… the recognition of rock art styles is basic to the ordering

of data concerning rock art…’53

This basic order for rock art styles and dates has created a way to

understand the motifs and a basic structure for study. This research

will be continuously reassessed as new theories and practices are

applied over periods of time, as we have already seen with much of

Schaafsma’s work. One of the most significant points about this

research is the identification of styles to a certain period.

Multiple images can often be found at one rock art site, and these

need to be studied in relation to one another to establish whether

they were created with in the same period of time. If they were,

then what does the scene portray? Similarly if they were not, then

were new images later carved at this site to be incorporated into

the scene? Questions also arise as to where the potential ‘canvas’

begins and ends. Should we interpret the unmarked rock surface as

part of the scene, and similarly, should we include the frequently

53 Schaafsma. P, 1980, pp. 6.

55

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744observed ‘scratches’ which are perhaps accidental as part of it?

Establishing the boundaries of the canvas can be highly problematic,

and is further hindered by the absence of any oral histories telling

the process of rock art production. These are questions that will

never be answered perhaps. Stylistic analysis however, will help us

to understand the relationship between the images at a site and the

landscape, especially in reference to their dates of execution. I

will be building on this method and incorporating it with the art

historical approach of formalism, by which I mean the study of

shapes and forms, to apply to the Fluteplayer in the wider context

of the landscape as I try and gain a further knowledge of the sites

at which he was produced and the connections between him and the

other images with which he is presented.

Trying to fully gain the symbolic and cultural function of an

image, such as the Fluteplayer, may prove elusive to all scholarship

in the end. However we can speculate and offer suggestions as to its

original function. What we can begin to establish is the context in

which it was produced By working cross-disciplinary with archaeology

we can begin to establish this and the context in which the image

was produced, and the landscape in which it is situated.

Fundamentally, though, it will provide knowledge into the

Fluteplayer and we can begin to understand how the Fluteplayer was

56

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744intended to communicate and interact as a sign with the Chacoan

people.

Chapter Two:

57


The Fluteplayer: Mystery and Misunderstanding

58


The Fluteplayer: Mystery and Misunderstanding

For centuries the Fluteplayer has entertained people with his silent

songs, but just who and what does he represent? There have been many

interpretations which I will outline below, although his original

function has long been lost with the cultural and historic changes

in Southwestern indigenous societies in North America over the

centuries, and with a loss of Native American orally transmitted

histories, the latter having perhaps the greatest effect on

scholarship in his area. In this chapter I will provide an overview

of the history of the Fluteplayer rock art motif, including some of

the most recent theories as to what these images may or may not

represent. A key to these methods will be the linguistic work by

Ekkehart Malotki which has helped to shape my knowledge of the

Fluteplayer and the problems that have arisen from a lack of

research into the mis-identification of the Fluteplayer as being

synonymous with ‘Kokopelli’, a Kachina whom supposedly evolved from

the Fluteplayer image. I will also be quoting work from publications

by authors such as Dennis Slifer and James Duffield who endeavour to

provide a history of the Fluteplayer and who he may be, as well as,

again, mistakenly continuing the common connection to ‘Kokopelli’.

Although their work is at times inaccurate it provides an insight

into the theories surrounding the function of the Fluteplayer,

including some which should not be so easily dismissed. Dave Walker

59

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744has provided a brief, but entertaining, insight into the ‘Kokopelli’

phenomena which has exploded in recent years and an analysis of how

this occurred. Much of the literature that has been published on the

Fluteplayer and ‘Kokopelli’ is based on the same theories and

interpretations handed down by several authors in the field, and so

I have chosen to reference only a few scholars and authors in

response to this. I will, however, include some early

anthropological reports that eventually led to the creation of

‘Kokopelli’, and thoughts by Polly Schaafsma who has offered her

opinion on the Fluteplayer in her publications. Like many other

motifs, the original function and symbolic interpretation of the

Fluteplayer has been lost as I stated above, but unlike many other

images it has been subjected to chaotic interpretation and mis-

appropriation in twentieth century scholarship which has

fundamentally resulted in the character ‘Kokopelli’.

The Fluteplayer is an image in rock art that is not exclusive to

the Four Corners region (which encompasses the modern states of

Utah, New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona) of the United States, but

has the most significant concentration of imagery here. Examples of

what can be defined as Fluteplayer images have been found in Texas,

and further from the United States in Africa.54 The exact date of the

54 Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer and Thesis Conversations. Email to Jane Kolber ([email protected]) November 2011- Present

60

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Fluteplayer’s first appearance is unknown, but he has been found in

Basketmaker III rock art sites (Fig.10), which date to around 500AD,

whilst other scholars believe it can be found as early as 200AD.

Figure 10: Stick figure Fluteplayers from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. D and Duffield, J.Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 65

These earlier depictions show him without his hump or phallus and as

a stick figure (Fig. 11), yet these can be subject to debate. Later

depictions emerged with these two additional features (Fig.12),

although the exact date is unknown.55 Some scholars believe that

these earlier depictions may not represent the Fluteplayer, and

instead are representing another being or person. Schaafsma,

however, believes that these are depicting the Fluteplayer, and that

‘…the earlier depictions are the same figure in an earlier

conceptual form.’56 The phallus and hump are incorporated later,

perhaps in response to cultural changes. These three

characteristics, Hump, phallus and flute, are the details that often

55 Malotki, E. The Making of an Icon: Kokopelli. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000, pp.6.56 Schaafsma. P, 1980, pp.139-140.

61

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744lead to an image’s classification as a Fluteplayer, regardless of

date. The image was not restricted to the medium of rock art,

however, as around 1000AD his image also appears on Ancestral

Puebloan ceramics and effigy pitchers (Fig. 13). He can be found on

pottery produced by two other cultures that were contemporaneous to

the Ancient Puebloans, Hohokam pottery circa 750-850AD and Mimbres

pottery circa 1000AD-1150AD. The Fluteplayer can appear in rock art

as a single depiction, in pairs, groups and with other images such

as quadrupeds and anthromorphs (Fig. 14). He can be shown sitting

down, lying on his back (Fig. 15) or in motion, perhaps dancing, and

sometimes has insect like antenna depicted upon his head. Some

scenes have been classified as birthing scenes because the

Fluteplayer is depicted with a crouching anthromorphic figure that

is believed to be in labour (Fig. 16).57 This would imply that the

Fluteplayer can be found in a fertility or life context.

57 Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 62

62


Figure 11: Fluteplayer Depicting a Hump and Phallus from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. D andDuffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press,

1994, pp. 63.

63


Figure 12: A Fluteplayer from the Transition Period between Basketmaker and Pueblo Periods inCanyon de Chelly. Slifer. D. ‘Kokopelli; The Magic, Mirth and Mischief of an Ancient Symbol,

Utah: Gibbs Smith, 2007, Plate One.

64


Figure 13: A Fluteplayer Effigy Pitcher and Bowl Dating from the Pueblo IIPeriod in The Morris Collection. Anasazi Pottery, Albuquerque: University of

New Mexico Press, 6th Edition, 1990, pp.47.

Figure 14: A Group of Three Fluteplayers with Snakes and an Anthropomorph Figure from ChacoCanyon. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe:

Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 65

65


Figure 15: A Reclining Fluteplayer Pictograph from Canyon de Chelly. Schaafsma, P. IndianRock Art of the Southwest, Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1980,

pp.139

Figure 16: A Possible Birth Scene Showing a Fluteplayer with a Female Figure near Quemado,New Mexico. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa

Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, pp. 68.

Despite his widespread presence in the southwest his origin, like

his date of appearance, is unknown. Dennis Slifer and James Duffield

66

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744have suggested that his origin may refer to Mesoamerican traders

that came to the southwest and Chaco Canyon;

‘…the humpbacked Fluteplayer has also been described as an itinerant,

flute playing trader with a pack of goods on his back. Ek Chuah, a

prehistoric Mayan deity, may have been Ancestral to Kokopelli. He

wears a backpack, carries a staff, and is patron to hunters,

travelling merchants and bee keepers. Further a trade network between

the Aztecs and Mesoamerica and the ancient Pueblo people of the

southwest has been documented….These traders exchanged parrots and

macaws, among other things, for turquoise. Perhaps some of the

backpacks depicted in rock art are meant to portray cages for the

traders’ birds. Kokopelli is shown along with a number of bird images

at a number of sites….’58

This idea seems to be well grounded in factual evidence, and at

first seems entirely plausible until you re-read the authors’

Introduction. The introduction briefly mentions this idea, but

dismisses it saying that Fluteplayer images were apparent before the

arrival of traders. The observation that the birds found near to or

with Fluteplayer images does warrant further investigation (Fig. 17)

,and Quinlan himself has personally suggested to me that I should

look at the images found with the Fluteplayer, as a means of

beginning a fuller interpretation of his incidence in rock art.59

58 Slifer. D and Duffield, 1994, pp. 25-26.59 Vendome-Gardner.C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer Rock Art. Email to Angus R. Quinlan ([email protected]) 3rd September 2011.

67


Figure 17: Sections of a Fluteplayer Panel with Bird Motifs from Chaco Canyon. Slifer. Dand Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City

Press, 1994, pp.64.

However, research has shown that these Mesoamerican traders were not

as prominent in the ancient southwest as once thought, and so I

believe that the birds are not depictions of Macaws. In what

follows I will explain what drew me to this conclusion.

In spite of such doubts Dave Walker has made further

associations between Fluteplayer characteristics and Mesoamerican

traders. He suggests that the traders would sound their flute to

signal their arrival to the village, which would account for why the

Fluteplayer-as-trader image is shown with a flute.60 Kendrick Frazier

60 Walker. D. Cuckoo For Kokopelli, Flagstaff: Northland Publishing, 1998, pp. 10.

68

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744has documented the research which has been undertaken at Chaco

Canyon over the last couple of decades,61 including Frances Joan

Mathien’s long-distance trade research. Mathien has suggested that

you cannot connect trade to the southwest with one particular group

like the Pochteca. It would have instead have been a trade with

North West Mexico and not a single society. Further to this the

evidence of Mesoamerican traded goods in Chaco Canyon is very

sparse, and does not suggest a continuous back and forth trade with

Mesoamerica.62Mathien proposes to support an earlier model called

‘down-the- line trade’ which consists of a whole series of exchanges

between regions and cultures.63This would account for the few

Mesoamerican objects found in Chaco and would certainly dismiss the

Fluteplayer trader notion. My own research, which I will discuss in

a later chapter, further supports this idea and I am in agreement

that the Fluteplayer is probably not a depiction of a Mesoamerican

trader due to the contexts in which it is situated. My research was

not primarily undertaken to address this issue at this stage,

although it will address the issue with more certainty with future

research and solid conclusions.

61 Frazier. K. People of Chaco, London: W.W. Norton and Company, first edition 1987, revised edition 1999, expanded edition 2005.62 In total only thirty-three copper bells and thirty-six Macaws have been found at Chaco over a time period of 300 years.63 Frazier.K, 1999, pp.169.

69

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 Scholars have also interpreted the Fluteplayer as a deity, clan

symbol, insect/animal being or a person with a spinal deformity.

This latter point may indeed have substantial evidence to support

it, and should not be dismissed, although each Fluteplayer is

subject to a site specific interpretation as a first line of

analysis. Many scholars have suggested that the hump is the result

of Pott’s disease (Fig. 18), a form of tuberculosis which causes

spinal deformity and penis enlargement. Slifer and Duffield support

this theory with the prominence of the humpbacked figure’ in

Mesoamerican culture and the supernatural powers that are attributed

to the character,64however as research has raised doubts about this

influence I am inclined to believe that these points are invalid

until more substantial evidence arises to support the theory. The

information that they provide on research in the Southwest is more

substantial;

‘The existence of tuberculosis in prehistoric America has been demonstrated by various scientists at a number of sites. Rock art

scholars with medical backgrounds have also examined paleopathological

evidence along with the fluteplayers traits to suggest this theory of

[his] origin. In some rock art portrayals, he seems to possess a

clubfoot and misshapen or paralyzed legs and is shown lying on his

back playing the flute. His erect phallus is further explained as

priapism, another symptom of Pott’s disease whereby spinal cord

disturbance results in permanent engorgement of the penis’.65

64 Slifer. D and Duffield. J, 1994, pp.28.65 Slifer. D and Duffield. J, 1994, pp.28-29.

70

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744These characteristics are apparent in many Fluteplayer depictions,

and appear to have scientific and medical research to support the

idea. It is possible that some depictions may show a person with

Pott’s disease and further research needs to be undertaken. This

idea, as with all others, will always remain speculative and new

research may be published at any time that may dismiss this idea.

Figure 18: A Fluteplayer with Enlarged Feet and Genitals which are Symptoms of Potts Diseasefrom Petrified Forest national Park. Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock

Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994, Plate Eight

Whoever the Fluteplayer may depict and what he represents will

always remain speculative and we must accept that we may not, and

probably never will, know his true function. There is one name that

the public, and some scholars, commonly refer to as the Fluteplayer,

this is ‘Kokopelli’.

The Fluteplayer has been wrongly associated with a Kachina

deity for a number of years now and despite scholarly research

71

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744openly dismissing the idea its popularity in the mass media and

popular culture has resulted in the Fluteplayer being referred to as

‘Kokopelli’. Around 1150AD many great climatic and environmental

changes affected the San Juan region and significant cultural and

social changes occurred also. As a result there was a need to

integrate groups of people from different cultural backgrounds. One

such way to do this was to adopt a new religion from the Jornada

Mogollon culture in the south, the Kachina cult. Kachinas are

ancestral supernaturals who are associated with the rain and clouds

and personify objects such as corn the sun and earth.66 The Kachina

cult’s presence is more apparent in the western Pueblos such as Hopi

and Zuni as opposed to villages like the San Juan and Santa Clara;

however its exact origin and development is open to debate amongst

Anthropologists and Archaeologists.67 As this new religion was

adopted many of the old motifs and images were erased from rock art

and ceramics and new ones were adopted, thus the style of rock art

significantly changed. Some remained, however, including the

Fluteplayer which can be seen on ceramics and in rock art depictions

for a short period of time.68 This cross- over further fuels the

‘Kokopelli’ association which suggests that the Kachina ‘Kokopelli’

66 Schaafsma, P and Schaafsma, C. ‘Evidence of the Origins of the Pueblo Kachina Cult as Suggested by Southwestern Rock Art,’ American Antiquity, Vol.39, No.4, October 1974, pp. 535.67 For further reading see; Schaafsma, P and Schaafsma, C. ‘Evidence of the Origins of the Pueblo Kachina Cult as Suggested by Southwestern Rock Art,’ American Antiquity, Vol.39, No.4, October 1974, pp 535-545.68 Walker. D, 1998, pp.2.

72

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744was derived from Fluteplayer images. This, however, is incorrect for

the Kachina name ‘Kokopelli’ has derived from an Anglo

misunderstanding and has no legitimacy or association with

Fluteplayer depictions.

‘Kokopelli’ is an idea that has stemmed from misinterpretations

of ethnographic accounts relating to the Kachina cult in the early

twentieth century. The history surrounding this mis-association is

extremely complex, and in reciting it all I will be not only

involving myself in an already answered problem, but also detour

from my main objective in researching the Fluteplayer rock art

motif. If the reader wishes to acquaint themselves with the

linguistic history of ‘Kokopelli’ then I suggest that they read

Ekkehart Malotki’s in-depth discussion on the matter.69 Suffice to

say the mis-identification stemmed from two linguistic terms

becoming comingled as the term ‘Kokopelli’ which was the result of

several anthropological assumptions. The Anthropologist Florence

Hawley was the first scholar to introduce the connection between the

Fluteplayer and ‘Kokopelli’, and is also the first to associate this

name to him, which can be seen in her 1937 paper;

‘A well-known modern figure whose existence can be traced back over a

thousand years is Kokopelli, the hunch-backed figure anciently

depicted as playing a flute but now without his instrument…He has a

69 Malotki, E. The Making of an Icon: Kokopelli. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000.

73


long pointed snout, a black head with a single feather on top, and

black and white segmented circles on the side of the head…. To my

inquires among the Hopi concerning the function of Kokopelli in

religious observances, it was explained that “he comes in [to dance]

from the spring with the dancers”…. The appearance of the uncovered

figure may have some connection with fertility....’70

Her research seems to build on documentation produced earlier by

Jesse Walter Fewkes, whom she frequently referenced. Her detailed

description of ‘Kokopelli’ is based on a Kachina doll that she

purchased, and today these physical characteristics are still

created on ‘Kokopelli’ Kachina dolls in a number of places in the

Southwest of the USA. What is of great significance is that this is

the first instance in which the term ‘Kokopelli’ is used, and is now

accepted and used without question at a staggering rate (Fig. 19).

Figure 19: A Depiction of ‘Kokopelli’ from the 1890’s. Malotki, E. The Making of an Icon:Kokopelli. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000, Plate Three

The name ‘Kokopelli’ is actually a combination of Hopi and Zuni

words combined together, an example of a western misunderstanding

70 Hawley. F. ‘Kokopelli, of the Prehistoric South-Western Pueblo Pantheon’, American Anthropologist, Vol. 39, No.4, Part 1, October- December 1937, pp.644.

74

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744and construct. ‘Kokopelli’ is, however, portrayed without his flute

which is one of the three defining attributes of the Fluteplayer.

Hawley seems to have found a solution to the missing flute;

‘The disappearance of the flute depicted in ancient times may be more apparent than actual. The ancient Kokopelli had a flute but no snout;

the modern figure has a snout but no flute. It is possible that the

end-blown flute has come to be depicted as a snout?’71

Hawley’s suggestion as to why ‘Kokopelli’ does not have a flute

seemed to have resolved a fundamental flaw in the association of the

Fluteplayer and ‘Kokopelli’, and it does seem entirely logical that

perhaps the flute merged with the Kachina and became his snout.

Other accounts of ‘Kokopelli’ state that he borrows a flute from

other Kachinas. This research undertaken by Hawley seems to have

been the foundations for other scholars to build upon. One such

scholar, Elise Clews Parsons, suggests that Hawley has overlooked

the idea that both the Fluteplayer and ‘Kokopelli’ are insects, and

further references the locust in Hopi flute societies.72 Mischa

Titiev also builds on Hawley’s research and recites indigenous

histories that apparently relate to ‘Kokopelli.’73 These early

accounts seem to have misunderstood indigenous culture, and have

created a name connected to a Kachina which is more rooted in Anglo,

71 Hawley. F, 1937, pp.645.72 Parsons. E.C. ‘The Humpbacked Flute Player of the Southwest’, American Anthropologist, Vol. 40, No.2, April-June 1938, pp.337.73 For further reading see; Titiev. M. ‘The Story of Kokopele’, American Anthropologist, Vol. 41, No.1, January-March 1939, pp.91-98

75

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744as opposed to Native American, culture. Some of the ideas about

‘Kokopelli’ that have been mentioned in these accounts, such as his

role as a fertility deity and an insect, have helped to create a

colourful character which early Anthropologists would never have

known would be propelled by the tourist trade. Today ‘Kokopelli’ is

widely known as a Casanova character that represents fertility and

who charms young women away, as well as a trader, or an insect, and

he can also be seen as a trickster.74 Malotki believes that these

many meanings which can be attributed to ‘Kokopelli’ are the result

of static ethnographic research undertaken over the past one hundred

years, a conclusion to which I also hold. When no new research is

undertaken, the results of previous studies will still be used in

relation to the subject, even though these may be found to be

incorrect. Little in-depth and critically-aware research into the

Fluteplayer has resulted in his image continuously still being

attributed to ‘Kokopelli’, and his many colourful characteristics

being adapted and propelled by the tourist trade industry within the

last couple of decades.

The term ‘Kokopelli’ has no legitimacy within the field of rock

art research, and it is a widely known fact that ‘Kokopelli’ is a

western construct, yet the Fluteplayer is still frequently referred

74 Walker. D, 1998, pp. 1.

76

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744to as this fictional character. Schaafsma is one scholar who

believes that ‘Kokopelli’ and the Fluteplayer are connected;

‘Known by the name of his modern Pueblo Kachina counterpart,

Kokopelli, this figure is one of the few that has survived in

recognisable form the ancient days of the Anasazi [Ancestral

Puebloans]… Kokopelli was and is a character with multiple but

interrelated attributes… One interpretation of this figure is that he

was a rain priest who calls the rain and moisture with his flute.’75

As new research has emerged since the publication of this volume,

Schaafsma’s opinion may have been revised by this stage, however

this is one example of the mis-association between ‘Kokopelli’ and

the Fluteplayer which seems to be grounded in anthropological

reports. It is also an example of static research. Quinlan’s

previous warning about applying historic accounts to prehistoric

images and thus creating the persona of a static culture is apparent

here. Prehistoric images of the Fluteplayer are used in association

with ‘Kokopelli’, yet these latter are not Ancestral Puebloan

images, they are Hohokam ceramic images. Malotki suggests this image

has been used because it is ‘safe’, and does not show the

Fluteplayer’s genitals unlike the Ancestral Puebloan depictions.

Western society has always been prudish in accepting nudity, it is

shunned upon and is often seen as ‘uncivilized’ and in some respects

‘primitive’, in comparison to the west’s idea of its own idealised

society. Despite the use of Hohokam imagery, Malotki believes that

75 Scaafsma. P. 1980, pp.136-140.

77

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744the rise to fame of ‘Kokopelli’ coincided with the boom in rock art

interest and research, which also coincides with the rise in

American Indian flute music. Further to this he may also be seen as

‘…a nostalgic icon of the noble savage,’76 an idea that has become

ever apparent as the plight of American Indian people has slowly

been truthfully revealed. The tourist trade is one of the

fundamental reasons as to why the Fluteplayer is referred to as

‘Kokopelli’. He has replaced the Coyote as a symbol that represents

the southwest region of the USA, undoubtedly aided by his colourful

characteristics and now accentuated features. Author Barton Wright

believes that that his fame is due to the fact that he now embodies

the idea of the southwest, and his popularity has less to do with

the visual appeal of the image itself.77 Personally, I believe that

it is a combination of them both. However ‘Kokopelli’ has captured

the hearts of the public and it is evident that he is here to stay.

The Fluteplayer image has been appropriated and then commercialised

on an enormous scale resulting in his adoption as the symbol of the

American Southwest, and his appropriated image appears on everything

from mugs, jewellery, t-shirts and clocks (Fig. 20).78Taking home one

of these objects is a way in which to become closer to the ancient

spirit of the southwest. 79

76 Malotki. E, 2000, pp.3.77 Walker. D, 1998, pp. 19.78 Walker. D, 1998, pp. All- illustrations of tourist objects on every page.79 Walker. D, 1998, pp.19.

78


Figure 20: Tourist Items Depicting ‘Kokopelli’ including Shot Glasses, Soap Packaging and aPueblo Fetish. Authors own Photograph. 2013.

This new found fame has, I believe, hindered rock art research

into the Fluteplayer. It is incredibly hard to look at a Fluteplayer

image and not attribute certain ‘Kokopelli’ characteristics to its

interpretation and symbolic functions. Slifer and Duffield use this

term to discuss the Fluteplayer in their publication, even though

they state that every Fluteplayer image should not be classed as

‘Kokopelli’.80 This publication was intended to educate the public

and scholars, yet only adds to the misunderstanding, further

hindering studies. It has also had somewhat disastrous effects on

indigenous people who are trying to rebuild their own histories

based on western accounts. Many now refer to Fluteplayer images as

‘Kokopelli’, and scholars who document these accounts believe that

80 Lifer. D and Duffield. J, 1994, pp.8.

79

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744these images should be termed and interpreted as ‘Kokopelli’. Some

indigenous and western people are aware of the mis-association

between the two figures and object to the Fluteplayer being referred

to as ‘Kokopelli’. Malotki has recorded a Hopi man stating the

Fluteplayer image before him was not ‘Kokopelli’.81 Despite this

clear statement there are still frequent references both in

literature and in the tourist trade, to the Fluteplayer as

‘Kokopelli’.

The appropriation of the Fluteplayer image as ‘Kokopelli’ has

also now resulted in the flute being added to ‘Kokopelli’ Kachina

dolls by native artists (Fig. 21) to meet the demand of tourist

expectations. This is a clear indication of the strength and power

of the tourist market which now seems to have control over the image

of the Fluteplayer and the idea of ‘Kokopelli’. The Fluteplayer is

not this tourist-inspired trickster ‘Kokopelli’, yet we will never

really know his true symbolic function. It is entirely possible that

over time his function has changed along with the societies and

cultures who refer to him, perhaps he did once represent a person

with Potts disease, a clan symbol or was simply a musician. Today we

know that he is a symbol made by the Ancestors of the contemporary

Pueblo people. I ironically chose the Fluteplayer motif at the start

of my master’s degree due to the wealth of knowledge on the image

81 Malotki. E, 2000, pp. 12.

80

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744that seemed to have already been researched. I thought that I would

simply be adding an Art Historical voice to the abundance of

research, but this assumption was soon to be proven wrong. I had

stumbled across an issue that is and was surrounded in uncertainty

and misunderstanding, but I have formulated an approach that will

work cross-disciplinarily in order to establish a better knowledge

and understanding of the Fluteplayer image, stripping away all

‘Kokopelli’ characteristics and focusing on the context of the image

and the unchanged landscape in which it is situated.

Figure 21: A Modern Kachina Doll by Hopi Cordell Naseyoma, for sale at the Heard Museum.www.heardmuseumshop.com, 2013.

81

http://www.heardmuseumshop.com/


Chapter Three

A New Approach to the Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon

82


A New Approach to the Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon

Research into the Fluteplayer has undoubtedly been hindered by his

classification as ‘Kokopelli’, as this character’s more recent

interpretations will have been applied to the rock art images of the

deep past. In order to gain a better knowledge and understanding of

the Fluteplayer we must look at the geographic landscape that it is

situated in order to establish an appropriate socio-historical

context. There are multiple rock art Fluteplayer sites within Chaco

Canyon and each one must be contextualised and the motifs themselves

studied so that a comparison and conclusion can be drawn. This will

then allow us to see the context in which it is situated. From this

we can speculate possible socio-cultural functions, as well as

involving the Pueblo peoples and their contemporary symbolic

interpretations in order to provide an ethical and reciprocal

sharing of knowledge with the current indigenous care-takers of this

culturally significant landscape-based art.

83

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 The main objective of my research is very clear, and my

approach is valid. I have personally contacted Angus Quinlan to ask

his professional opinion as to whether it is feasible to apply his

Great Basin approach to Chaco Canyon, to which he agreed it was82.

The problem with my research is the scale of the project. I have

developed a new approach to an area that is not only extremely

sensitive, but is logistically very challenging to work in. I will

also be starting this research from the very beginning in terms of

established literature and not building on research that has already

been undertaken by scholars. In order to begin to analyses the

Fluteplayer images I first have to locate them within Chaco Canyon.

Jane Kolber and Donna Yoder, along with many voluntary helpers, have

been recording and documenting the rock art sites in The Chaco Rock-Art

Reassessment Project for many years. All of their research has been

stored at the Chaco Culture National Historical Park archives in

Albuquerque, which is where I travelled to in October 2011 with the

intention of locating some of the Fluteplayer sites. I found a

number of sites in the records held within the archives, and have

enough to begin analysing some of the sites, however whilst I was in

the canyon I was privileged enough to meet Kolber, who then took me

to three Fluteplayer sites. Kolber’s trust and help has enabled me

to further my research at this point, and the outcome of this

82 Vendome-Gardner.C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer Rock Art. Email to Angus R. Quinlan ([email protected]) 3rd September 2011.

84

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744research trip is what has defined my thesis and the accounts of my

research to date. In the following chapter I will be discussing the

geographic placement of the rock art sites in Chaco Canyon to

establish a context. In the succeeding chapter I will be presenting

the results of my research to date, focusing on the cultural

features that the known Fluteplayer images are found near to or by.

I will also provide a case study of the sites that I have seen. I

will not, however, be able to draw any definitive conclusions from

my research at this point, but will be presenting future aims and

focus points that will need to be undertaken after my Masters by

Research thesis is complete.

I must state again, as I did at the beginning, that this

research is far from complete. It has only scratched the surface of

the wealth of knowledge that we can potentially gain from

investigating rock art imagery at Chaco Canyon and many more years

will be needed in order to establish a thorough conclusion. Rock art

research is highly sensitive and the location of the sites that I

have studied, observed and visited will need to remain anonymous and

unidentified at the request of the National Park Service in order to

continue to protect them, a request that I am only too pleased to

acknowledge.83

83 Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Chaco Canyon. Email to Wendy Bustard ([email protected]) July 2011- Present

85


Chapter Four:

Establishing a Context: Chaco Canyon

86


Establishing a Context: Chaco Canyon

Rock art motifs are site specific although their styles may be

similar on a regional scale, and the ones created at Chaco will be

subject to the cultural factors which created them. In order to gain

a knowledge of the Fluteplayer we must situate it in the landscape

of Chaco Canyon and establish an appropriate context for its

appearance. Chaco Canyon is situated in the geographic centre of the

San Juan Basin in what is today New Mexico. One thousand years ago

it was the centre of a thriving culture that reached far beyond the

canyon walls, but by the 1100’s this all ceased in Chaco. It was

inhabited by a cultural group known as the Ancestral Puebloans, the

ancestors of the modern Pueblo tribes. The Ancestral Puebloans are

also frequently referred to as Anasazi, a Navajo term that is

believed to translate as ‘Ancestors’, however some believe it

87

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744actually translates as ‘Enemy Ancestors’, and as a result this

demeaning term is now very scarcely used. The Ancestral Puebloans

were not the only cultural group to inhabit the Southwest; three

other cultures were contemporaneous with them, the Fremont in Utah,

Mogollon in south New Mexico and Mexico and the Hohokam in Arizona

(Fig. 22).

Figure 22: Four Corner Map showing the Cultures Contemporaneous with the AncestralPuebloans. Authors own Depiction, 2013

All of these cultures had their own unique culture, however some

aspects and images are found throughout many of them, including the

Fluteplayer. The Ancestral Puebloans who inhabited Chaco Canyon also

had their own unique cultural aspects, and Kolber refers to them as

the Ancient Chacoans when discussing the people who inhabited the

canyon. The complexity of Chacoan society, its magnificent

architecture and the significant artefacts that the Ancient Chacoans

88

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744created has held Chaco in the minds of scholars and the general

public alike for over a hundred years. Despite the imposing natural

features of Chaco such as Fajada Butt it is not perhaps the natural

beauty and landmarks that make Chaco so famous, but the size of the

architectural structures which lie within it (Fig. 23).

Chaco Canyon Architecture

The buildings have attracted a vast amount of attention, and

continue to do so, since the discovery of the canyon by Lt James H.

Simpson and his United States army expedition in 1849. The canyon

was known to the indigenous people of the region long before

Simpson’s discovery, however, and many have ancestry linking them

back to the Ancient Chacoans who once dwelt there. The architecture

that characterises Chaco has been dated to the exact year of its

construction by dating the timber that was used to create the beams;

these dates provide a timeline for the construction of the

structures and an insight into the events that occurred there.

Chaco’s ‘golden century’ is estimated between 1030-1130AD84 when a

building boom occurred, and many of the Great Houses were either

modified or first created.85 Great Houses were architectural forms

that were unique to Chaco, and were continuously remodelled over the

centuries of the canyon’s occupation. They consisted of room blocks,

84 Recent research may have pushed this date back further.85 Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, SantaFe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp.1.

89

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744sometimes five stories high, which often faced a plaza. Kivas were

then placed into these structures, circular pits, which were

constructed in the ground. In some of the Great Houses, Great Kivas

can also be found alongside kivas.

90


Figure 23: Map of Chaco Canyon Showing Major Cultural Features. Van Dyke, R. The ChacoExperience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance

Research Press, 2008, pp. 23.

91

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744These were identical to their smaller counterparts but on a larger

scale. It is unclear as to when the Chaco culture exactly began, but

two of the largest Basketmaker III villages have been found in the

east and west of the canyon, Shabik’eshchee on Charca Mesa to the

east and 29SJ423 on West Mesa in the west. By the mid- 800’s most of

the population had migrated north and above Chaco, however by the

late 800’s people began to migrate south again and to Basketmaker

sites.86 The population further grew circa 900AD with an influx of

migrants from the San Juan River. The structures that they created

were no longer pit houses which were built into the ground; instead

they were above ground structures. In the mid 800’s Great Houses

were constructed at Una Vida, Pueblo Bonito and Penasco Blanco.

During the Classic Bonito phase (1020-1100AD) significant additions

were made to these Great Houses and four new ones were built: Hungo

Pavi, Chetro Ketl, Pueblo Alto and Pueblo del Arroyo.87 These Great

Houses are all situated on the North side of the canyon and Penasco

Blanco, Pueblo Bonito and Una Vida are all near to major drainage

sites.88 The south side of the canyon was not forgotten; however, as

four Great Kivas (Fig.24) were constructed here in the mid 1000’s 86 Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp.18-1987 Many of the Chaco names derive from Pueblo, Navajo and Spanish languages,but the indigenous people have their own names for each site or feature in the canyon, regardless of the ones termed by western people. For a full listing of the origin and multiple names of sites at Chaco see Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp. 62.88 Frazier. K. People of Chaco, London: W.W. Norton and Company, first edition 1987, revised edition 1999, expanded edition 2005, pp.174.

92

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744and were surrounded by hundreds of single story smaller dwellings.89

This period also saw the construction of some of the other famous

characteristics of Chaco such as staircases, roads and shrines.

During the late Bonito Phase (1100-1140AD) six new constructions

were built, Casa Chiquita, Headquarters Site A, Kin Klesto, New

Alto, Tsin Klestin and Wijiji, although some were never

completed.90Modifications were also carried out at Penasco Blanco,

Pueblo Bonito, Chetro Ketl, Pueblo Alt and Pueblo del Arroyo.

Figure 24: Casa Rinconada Great Kiva. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: NewApproaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research

Press, 2004, pp. 47.

89 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp.21.90 Van Dyke, R. ‘ Memory, Meaning and Masonry: The Late Bonito landscape,’ American Antiquity, Vol. 69, No.3, 2004, pp. 415.

93


By the end of the construction periods in Chaco Canyon many of

the Great Houses had reached an impressive size in scale and

grandeur. Pueblo Bonito (Fig.25) is the largest and most famous of

the Great Houses. It is a D-shaped structure consisting of three

hundred and fifty ground-floor rooms, thirty three kivas and three

Great Kivas. A step like affect was created with the room blocks,

and they rose in height as you neared the rear of the building. The

rooms closest to the plaza were single story; the intermittent block

between two and three stories high, whilst the back room blocks were

four stories in height. The plaza was enclosed by a row of rooms and

evidence has suggested that Great House walls were covered in

plaster and painted in bands of red, white and turquoise91 which

would make them highly visible against the sun coloured canyon rock.

In front of Bonito are two large refuse mounds (Fig.26) that may

have been designed to create an avenue of grandeur as you entered

the Great House, and like all of the major Chacoan buildings it

incorporated lunar and solar cosmology with orientations, internal

geometry and geometric relationships.92

91 Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp.22.92 Sofaer, A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books,2008, pp.81.

94


Figure 25: An Ariel View of Pueblo Bonito Great House. Strutin. M. Chaco, A CulturalLegacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp.9.

Figure 26: A Reconstruction of Pueblo Bonito Showing the Entrance Mounds. Noble. D.G(ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School

of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 96.

Bonito, along with Pueblo Alto and Tsin Kletzin are associated with

the cardinal directions whilst two windows in Bonito could mark and

95

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744anticipate the winter solstice.93 Within the boundaries of Bonito’s

walls some interesting and visually stunning finds have been made.

Six metates (grinding slicks) have been found in a row facing the

plaza, this perhaps for ceremonial use.94 The products created at

metates were ritual processes in themselves, there is no distinction

between domestic and ceremonial, but the placement of these metates

suggests a further involvement with ceremonies (Fig. 27).

Figure 27: Metates in Pueblo Bonito, 1896-1898. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: NewApproaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research

Press, 2004, pp. 96.

In a small room near to a Great Kiva one of the largest deposits of

pottery in the southwest has been found. It contained some one

hundred and fourteen cylinder jars, twenty two bowls and twenty one

sandstone jar covers along with a dozen turquoise pendants. Adjacent

93 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.192 and 261.94 Strutin. M, 1994, pp. 23.

96

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744to this room, however, were further connecting rooms that contained

burial caches. The first room had been damaged by water, but among

the bones they found eighty one arrows, a bird effigy inlaid with

turquoise and shell and approximately three hundred staffs of wood.95

The next room was undamaged and held twelve skeletons. Two other

skeletons were found beneath the floor of Room 33 and were adorned

in what we can assume were material goods; one had ten turquoise

pendants and five thousand eight hundred and ninety beads and the

second, six hundred and ninety eight pendants and nine thousand

turquoise beads.96 Other rooms contained more burials; however one of

the men buried in a double burial seems to have met a violent end. 97

The scholar Michal Strutin has stated that some believe that as

Chaco grew a hierarchy formed and these burials are for these

people.98 The stature of these burials implies that these Ancient

Chacoans were of importance, but perhaps they were revered members

of society or heroes in some respect to the people of the canyon. If

people were being buried in Bonito though, what was the function of

this Great House? Like many of the others in the canyon, Bonito

shows very little presence of domestic use by its lack of fire

pits.99 This apparent lack of fire pits shows a low occupation, and

95 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.39.96 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.160.97 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp.29.98 Strutin. M, 1994, pp.47.99 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.155.

97

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744during Chaco’s peak it may have only housed one hundred people. 100

Pueblo Bonito, like the other Great Houses, may have symbolised the

Chacoan ideology and was a way in which ‘… to communicate and extol

basic ideas about the way the world works- ideas that legitimated

leader’s authority and encouraged visitors to transform themselves

into subjects.’101

In compassion to Pueblo Bonito, Wijiji (Fig. 28a) was

constructed during the Late Bonito phase circa 1110AD. Wijiji is a

C-shaped Great House and consist of one hundred ground floor rooms

with rear room blocks reaching three stories high and two stories in

the rest of the Great House. The room blocks frame an open plaza

whilst there are two kivas, but no Great Kivas, at the east and west

ends of the north room block (Fig. 28b).

100 Frazier.K, 1999, pp157-158.101 Van Dyke. R, 2008, 34.

98


Figure 28 a: Wijiji Late Bonito Great House. www.chacoarchive.org, 2013.

Figure 28 b: Plan of Wijiji Great House. Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape andIdeology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008,

pp. 216.

During this period there was a slight increase in rainfall and

increased agriculture as a result. Due to events that I will expound

upon later in this chapter, confidence may have once again have been

99


MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744restored in rituals and ceremonies in Chaco. This prompted the

leaders to ‘…invoke a new order, grounded in the old, but separate….

Late Bonito builders continued [past] traditions, but wished to

establish themselves as separate, more formal, and, perhaps, more

powerful than those who had come before.’102 Like its predecessors,

there is a lack of domestic refuse within the later Great Houses,

yet an apparent increase in the earlier ones. It appears that

Wijiji, and other Late Bonito Great Houses, were used to symbolise

the Chaco ideology, its ideas and concepts. If earlier Great Houses

were now used for domestic use then this could be because the new

Great Houses were designed to be the symbolic structures103 of an

improved ideology based on the old Chaco ideology.

If these Great Houses, and their earlier kin, were designed as

domestic dwellings then there would be increasing domestic refuse in

the buildings to support this. Their cosmological aspects on the

other hand further allude to a symbolic over a domestic function and

that they were ceremonial and communal centres. This debate over

usage of the spaces of Great House architecture reveals somewhat of

a divide over how to properly interpret their function. Great House

interpretation is highly debatable and the theories that I have

suggested here may change with further research. As these

interpretative approaches change, so will the ideas about the

102 Van Dyke. R, 2004, pp.425103 Van Dyke. R, 2004, pp.423

100

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744contexts in which the Fluteplayer is situated. It is crucial to

interpret and suggest the function of the Great Houses and Kivas

that dominate, and form part of, the Chaco landscape so that rock

art sites near to them can be evaluated in relation to their

perceived function and a specific site context can be established,

at least up to the point that accepted knowledge can support these

claims. The interpretation of the functions of these structures also

centres around debates based on the leadership of the canyon.

Leadership, Ideology and Symbolism

Due to the influx of people from different cultures into the San

Juan Basin, some scholars believe that a new belief system was

created to unite all of the various groups. Chaco would have been a

centre for this and the buildings were built to create an

ideological centre:104

‘Some have suggested that a ritual “sodality” emerged to integrate the

diverse groups living within the canyon and its surrounding areas.

Sodalities are sociopolitical entities that draw their membership from

kin-based organizations such as lineages and clans but are not

themselves based on kinship. As such, they cut across existing social

units and bind together diverse elements of society. Perhaps a common

belief system, manifested in shared rituals, helped the Chacoan’s cope

with their challenging environment and inspired them to build

ceremonial centres, just as other people around the world have built

temples, cathedrals and mosques.’105

104 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp3.105 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp3.3

101


In creating a new belief system that encompassed such a wide section

of society Chaco may have been built as a symbol for this new idea.

Ruth Van Dyke has suggested that the people who inhabited the San

Juan Basin may have all have shared a similar worldview which formed

the basis for an ideology. The worldview would have encompassed

cosmology and a notion of how the world was perceived to work,

something that could have been shared between the San Juan people.

The worldview was then taken by a ‘social fraction’ or leader of

some sort and used to create an ideology that promoted social,

ritual and political inequalities and combined people with diverse

beliefs, yet similar worldviews.106 Van Dyke’s suggestion is entirely

plausible as building on a shared worldview as opposed to a new

worldview and ideology would be a way of more ease in which to unite

so many diverse people as they would directly engage and share

aspects of the new ideology. To establish this new religion and

ideology some form of leadership would have been required to lead

and guide the diverse cultural groups. One way to lead diverse

peoples would be to invest some power in a holder of religious

knowledge, such as a priest. This form of leadership would differ

from one associated directly with political power such as a

chiefdom. The idea of a chiefdom ruling over Chaco is one of the

106 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp.31-32.

102

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744many theories which some scholars have considered. Instead of ruling

with knowledge these leaders would rule by wealth and social status.

Very little wealth in the form of material goods has been found in

Chaco, with the exception of Pueblo Bonito, and further, this type

of leadership would not have been able to fully integrate and lead a

diverse selection of cultural groups as we know from looking at this

problem sociologically. A leadership based on religious values would

have ‘…encompass[ed] an entire belief system and … is more inclusive

and integrative.’107 This would also be relevant in relation to Van

Dyke’s theory suggesting a shared worldview, which was then

instigated into a shared ideology .Different groups would have been

subsequently combined under one ideology based on familiar ideas.

It is because of these factors that many scholars support the idea

of Chaco as a ritual centre.108 If this theory is indeed correct,

then why was Chaco Canyon chosen to be a ritual centre over other

locations within the San Juan Basin?

Ruth Van Dyke has been researching the ideology imbedded within

the landscape of Chaco Canyon and the placement of key cultural

features. She has suggested, and I am in agreement with her, that

the Ancient Chacoans designed a landscape that evoked an emotional

response;

107 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp.4108 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp.4.

103


‘The Chacoan landscape can be understood as the large-scale spatial

representation of a worldview shared by many Ancestral Puebloan

inhabitants, builders and visitors. Chacoan architects actively

designed a landscape that elicited a powerful emotional response in

visitors. This worldview revolved around interrelated themes that are

omnipresent at Chaco, as well as in many other Ancestral Puebloan

spaces: sacred geography, balanced dualisms, directionality,

visibility, cyclical renewal, social memory and center place.’109

Many of the Great Houses have clear visual sights of each other,

whilst some had visuals of significant landscape features (Fig.29).

Many of these prominent features in the landscape became

symbolically charged with sacred geographic meaning. Buildings were

also placed to resemble directionality, such as Tsin Klestin which

is situated due south of Pueblo Alto and form the north south axis

(Fig. 30), whilst Pueblo Bonito and Chetro Ketl form the east and

west.110

109 Van Dyke.R, 2008, pp.9.110 Van Dyke, 204, pp. 424.

104


Figure 29: A view of Chaco looking Northwest from Fajada Butte. Fajada Butte was a significant symbolic landmark. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 2

Social memory was evoked through referencing the past and building

on previous habitation sites, whilst new memories were created

through the buildings, shrines, rock art and tombs.111 Evoking social

memory can clearly be seen in some of the later Great Houses which

were built in the late Bonito phase as it tried to re-formalise

Chaco as a center place.112 The leaders of this period ‘…bolstered

confidence in a new world order using tangible references to the

earlier, Classic Bonito landscape’113 by continuing aspects such as

building alignments. The alignment of the before mentioned Tsin

Klestin and Pueblo Alto is also a reference to the past and present.

111 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp.46.112 Van Dyke. R, 2004, 413.113 Van Dyke. R, 2004, pp. 423.

105

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744The symbolism that is embedded within the landscape of Chaco Canyon

is complex, but crucial in understanding the placement of key

cultural features. If we can begin to understand these connections

then we can see how rock art was connected to these Chacoan

worldviews. There were other factors which made Chaco attractive,

yet these were not as symbolically charged.

106

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Figure 30: A Map of Chaco Canyon Showing the North South Alignment of New Alto, Pueblo Altoand Tsin Kletzin. Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center

Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 215.

Subsidence, Trade and Great House Communities

Chaco had multiple factors which made it attractive for people

to inhabit, such as good soil and reliable water; although some

scholars believe that the soil in Chaco Canyon is insufficient for

agriculture because of the high level of alkaline in its soil.114

Despite this, research has in fact suggested that a dune once

blocked Chaco with its connection to the Escavada Wash (see Fig.23)

which created a small lake, later a wooden dam may have been erected

to maintain the same effects and benefits that the dune created.

Water control systems are also apparent by many Great Houses, with

each having its own canal system that was not interconnected. It has

been estimated that ten thousand gardens could have been

supported,115 twelve acres of which have been discovered by Chetro

Ketl to date. Farming tools have also been found116 in the canyon;

however it would perhaps seem that this food supply was not

sufficient nourishment for the people as excavated cobs at Pueblo

114 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.150.115 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.102.116 Strutin. M, 1994, pp.33.

107

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Bonito were found to have been grown outside of the valley117 and

transported in. The importation of surplus foods was crucial in the

construction of the Great Houses.118

Food was not the only item to be imported to the canyon to help

aid the construction of Great Houses, wood and ceramics were also.

Timber was imported from outlier villages such as those in the

Chuska area (Fig.31), although evidence at Bonito suggests that

timbers change from local sources to those more distant. The

importation of the timbers from outlier villages that were connected

to Chaco may have been the result of socio-political relations119

which were held between Chaco and the villages as a centre place.

117 Benson. L et al. ‘Ancient Maize from Chacoan great houses: Where was it grown?’, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 100, No. 22, October 28th 2003, pp. 13111-13115118 Benson. L et al, 2003, pp.13114.119 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.244.

108


Figure 31: Map of the area Surrounding Chaco Canyon Showing the Chuska Mountains. VanDyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School

for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 13.

This indeed seems to be true of the ceramics that were imported into

the canyon. Van Dyke has noted that the exchange of ceramics between

109

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Chaco and Chuska area (Fig. 32) may be the result of feasting,

exchange or social relationships.120 Pottery was produced in Chaco

before 1000AD. Very few firing sites can be found in the canyon, and

those that have been date to pre- 1000AD.

Figure 32: Chuska Pottery which was Imported from Great House Communities in the ChuskaArea. Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma,

Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 35

Most of the pottery that was imported seems to correspond with the

building boom which occurred circa 1030-1100AD.121 Perhaps the

importation of these goods was a way to formalise the outlier

communities with the ritual and religious practices that were

embedded in Chaco.

If Chaco Canyon was a ceremonial center then people may have

travelled on pilgrimages from the outliers or Great House

Communities as they are now termed, to participate in ceremonial

events. Great House Communities can be found in a variety of 120 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp.24.121 Noble. D.G (ed), 2004, pp.34-35.

110

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744differentiating environments, and so far two hundred sites have been

identified that cover an area the size of Portugal (Fig. 33).122 Each

community consisted of a large Chacoan structure and smaller

habitation sites surrounding it, a pattern which can be seen in

Chaco also. Chaco may have united these communities that potentially

had different beliefs and may have spoken different languages.123

122 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp.5.123 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp.5.

111


Figure 33: Map Showing Great House Communities and Possible Road Segments. . Noble.D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an Archaeological Enigma, Santa Fe: School

of American Research Press, 2004, pp. 72.

Some of the more famous Great House Communities include Salmon and

Aztec to the North. Aztec was built between 1110-1120AD, but by

1150AD it was abandoned. It is geographically situated half way

between Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde, or fifteen miles northeast of

112

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744the modern town of Farmington, New Mexico. Aztec is a D-shaped

Pueblo that was constructed in Chaco style masonry, with a plaza

enclosed by a low circular wall. At some points the pueblo was three

stories high, and is estimated to have held twenty eight kivas as

well as the one large Great Kiva.124 Surrounding the structure are

approximately ninety smaller pueblos that encompass a mile and a

half radius, however this is the largest of twelve sites that are

collectively called the Aztec Ruins. One of the lesser known Great

House Communities, and the most easternmost, is Guadalupe Ruin. It

sits atop of a mesa and is a one story, E-Shaped structure. It is

estimated to have had twenty five rooms and three kivas and was

constructed circa 950 and remodelled three times later into the

Chacoan style between 1050-1125AD.125 There is evidence of a

community of some size in proximity to the site, yet in comparison

to many other Great House Community’s it is exceptionally

isolated.126 These are but two of the some two hundred Great House

Communities that I have described. Each community was situated in a

different environment to Chaco Canyon;

‘… the Chacoan outliers enjoyed greater average rainfall, better

access to water, more productive soil, close proximity to conifer

forests, and in general a closer association with diverse environments

than the settlements of Chaco Canyon’.127

124 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.129-131.125 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.145.126 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.145127 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 150.

113

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Research has already shown that maize was grown within Chaco Canyon,

yet this was not substantial enough to feed the inhabitants and

perhaps the pilgrims who journeyed there to help with the Great

House construction. Sustenance was imported in from Great House

Communities, and it seems that these communities helped to support

the people in the canyon. Goods such as meats, timber, hides yucca

fibre, nuts, pinion nuts, and herbs, as well as turquoise, salt and

cotton, were imported in, but why? Archaeologist Robert P. Powers

has suggested that these goods were traded for architectural

knowledge to help construct Great House Communities in the Chacoan

style;

‘The collected goods would have subsidized the part-time specialists,

provided for canyon needs, and perhaps allowed some reinvestment to

other areas affected by climate perturbations’.128

This idea would assert a more economic use for Chaco as a trade

centre, and not so much a ceremonial centre. I believe that Van

Dyke’s sociological approach which I have previously mentioned in

relation to ceramic trade is more plausible to apply to all these

traded goods. In participating in trade with these communities they

would be formalising and maintaining the religious and cultural

bonds of Chaco Canyon. Outlier Communities and trade are

continuously connected. With a vast amount of people entering the

canyon, each with potentially differing cultural backgrounds, it is

128 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 151.

114

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744possible that these variations could account for the different

styles of rock art motifs, including the Fluteplayer. Minor regional

variations in beliefs could account for the different Fluteplayer

styles. The people who entered the canyon would not have done so

through the route which modern visitors take, instead they would

have entered along roadways and at various points in the canyon.

Instead of entering through Gallo Wash as visitors do today,

the Ancient Chacoans entered the canyon from Chaco River in the

west, Charca Mesa through the southeast or east, or along the Great

North Road and past Pueblo Alto.129 Entering from the north was

challenging as natural barriers in the form of the mesa cliff that

Pueblo Alto sits atop would have been a topographic problem. In

order to provide improved access for travellers into the canyon the

Ancient Chacoans built staircases into the cliffs (Fig. 34) behind

many of the Great Houses.130 These people would have travelled far in

order to reach Chaco, many laden with goods, but as they finally

reached their destination some were met by the Great North Road.

Chaco Canyon had a series of well organised and constructed roadways

(see Fig.23 and Fig. 33) that seem to connect them to the Great

House Communities. These roadways were straight, but if a turn was

needed it would be angular and sharp, and then continue straight

again. The roads have been measured at eight to twelve meters in

129 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp. 7.130 Van Dyke. R, 2008, p. 43.

115

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744diameter and often kept this measurement unless met with difficult

terrain.

Figure 34: Jackson Staircase. www.chacoarchive.org , 2013.

In instances where terrain becomes difficult, such as hills, the

Ancient Chacoans would build over them, or in one instance with the

South Road, cut straight through it.131 At present more than four

hundred miles of roadways have been found in the San Juan Basin, one

hundred of which are in Chaco Canyon and the surrounding area.

Within the canyon itself a roadway runs from the Casa Rinconada

Great House to Pueblo Bonito. 132 The South Road runs from Chaco to

131 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 107.132 Strutin. M, 1994, pp.28.

116


MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Kin Ya’a for forty miles and at some points parallel roads can be

seen, as well as double parallel roads. The Great North Road runs

for fifty miles from Chaco to the San Juan River and again segments

of it have been constructed in double parallel roads. The roadways

are often bordered by low ridges of earth or small stones, but as

you near Pueblo Alto the road becomes bordered with walls that are

up to three feet high and five feet thick.133 This unique wall may

have been built to impose grandeur as you neared Chaco Canyon in the

same manner as an avenue is designed. Pueblo Alto consists of one

Great House and three smaller buildings: New Alto, East Ruin and

Rabbit Run, the criss-cross of roads here suggests that this was

some form of significant junction134 at Chaco Canyon, and perhaps why

the grandeur was applied to the roadway leading to Pueblo Alto. If

people from outlier communities, who were carrying goods, did indeed

travel the same routes as the roadways then was their purpose

intended to be more economic than symbolic? A significant amount of

broken pottery has been found alongside the roadways, pottery which

may have formed vessels to carry food goods like corn. Gwinn

Vivian, however, has suggested that the roadways may not be

interpreted entirely economically;

‘… Vivian points to certain features about the roads that economics or

other considerations of practical transport just don’t explain: The

133 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 107.134 Strutin. M, 1994, pp. 35.

117


great width of Chacoan roads, for instance, or the fact that some

roads are exactly half the width if others, or the existence of

parallel or even double parallel roads in some areas.’135

If these roads were intended as a means of transportation then a

single road would have surely sufficed, there would be no apparent

need for the roads that we see. Chaco Canyon and all of the cultural

features and surrounding communities are part of a sacred and

symbolic landscape and these roadways, I believe like many others,

are part of this system. Perhaps they connect the outlier

communities to Chaco Canyon, thus reinforcing socio-political ties.

The roadways and Great House Communities were all connected to

Chaco Canyon, the center of a belief system. Many people would have

journeyed to the canyon on pilgrimages which have led to questions

about the population of the canyon. As I have mentioned before, the

Great House Pueblo Bonito held no more than one hundred people

during its peak. Due to the size and scale of these Great Houses

many people have assumed that they operated like city town houses

and that every room in the building was used as a dwelling. This has

often misled researchers to overestimate the population of Chaco,

with one suggestion placing the population between 4,400 and 6,000

persons. A more conservative estimate has been suggested based on

the lack of domestic materials found in Great Houses of 2,000

135 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 127.

118

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744individuals.136 Aside from the burials found at Bonito very few other

graves have been discovered, in fact only an estimated seven

hundred, but for a large population more should be present. It has

been suggested that an early explorer of the canyon, Richard

Wetherill, may have discovered more burials, but aside from a

photograph with a note on the back, no other records have been found

to verify this suggestion.137If, however, the canyon was mostly

occupied by pilgrims who came there to participate in ceremonies or

the building of the Great Houses then this number would not seem to

be so low,138 especially if the maximum population was no more than

2,000. I believe that this estimate is approximately true, given the

evidence which suggests that many people only visited the canyon,

and further, that Chaco’s Great Houses were symbolic statements and

not domestic dwellings. As I have briefly mentioned before, these

buildings had cosmological references constructed into them which

helped to connect the Ancient Chacoans to the cosmos. It was not

just the buildings that contained these references, but many of the

rock art sites too. It appears that the ancient Chacoans were

intrepid sky watchers.

Astronomy

136 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 158.137 In 1948 his wife, Marietta Wetherill verified this statement. She also claimed that Navajo men had looted the graves for the objects to sell. I distrust this statement as I feel that she may have had an unjust and biased view of the Navajo people. 138 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 164.

119

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 The Sun Dagger (see Fig. 7 and 8), which I have already

mentioned, is perhaps the best known and most famous of the

cosmological markers in Chaco Canyon, and perhaps even in the

southwest. Fajada Butte (Fig. 35), upon which it is situated,

provides an excellent geographic point for observations in the Chaco

landscape. It was not a favoured place for the Ancient Chacoans to

participate in such activities but still numerous rock art sites,

pottery shards and buildings are found on the climb to the summit.139

Figure 35: Fajada Butte. Authors Photograph, 2011.

139 Sofaer, A. Chaco Astronomy, Santa Fe: Three Oceans Books,2008, pp.24.

120

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744The Sun Dagger marked the summer and winter solstice, as well as

midday;

‘Precisely planned relationships of curved rock surfaces make possible

the transformation of the horizontal movement of the sun into vertical

movement of light forms that provide accurate measurements of solar

positions.’140

This device which the Ancient Chacoans created between 950AD and

1150AD required no horizon markers and little human input. It was a

‘….self-contained instrument that records the suns changing

declination.’141 The Sun Dagger is not superior to other markers with

its accuracy in marking sun-charting events, but because of its

unique design and its aesthetically pleasing appearance it has

become the most famous.142 Two more sites can be found just below the

Sun Dagger on Fajada Butte which also have solar markings.143 These

consist of five petroglyphs and in in order from the east they

appear as a rattlesnake, rectilinear shape, a spiral, and from the

west a double spiral and another rectilinear shape. Rock edges on

the butte cause the solar markings of eleven seasonal and daily

points144 to form. Solar markers are not just found on Fajada Butte,

although its significance as a point of sky watching appears to be 140 Sofaer. A, 2008, pp. 35.141 Sofaer. A, 2008, pp. 35.142 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 198.143 In personal communication with Kolber she has suggested that this statement may be to suggestive as other sites have more support of such activities. Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer and Thesis Conversations. Email to Jane Kolber ([email protected]) November 2011- Present144 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 198.

121

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744highly apparent to the Ancient Chacoans. Pueblo Bonito, as I have

previously mentioned, incorporates such markers which have been

constructed into it (Fig. 36), as have many other buildings. The

Ancient Chacoans appear to have not only charted and marked regular

solar and lunar cycles, but also appear to have documented unusual

astronomical events too.

Figure 36: The Corner Door at Pueblo Bonito which is Aligned with the Winter Solstice Sunrise.Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon: Western National Parks

Association, 1994, pp.47.

At the western end of Chaco Canyon, under a protective rock

over hang is a pictograph that consists of three motifs; a hand

print, crescent shaped moon and star like shape. It has been

suggested that this pictograph depicts the 1054AD Supernova

(Fig.37). This was the result of an event which created the Crab

122

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Nebula Supernova and caused a bright new star to form in the sky

which was visible for up to forty five days.145

Figure 37: The Supernova Pictograph. Strutin. M. Chaco, A Cultural Legacy. Tuscon:Western National Parks Association, 1994, pp.32.

On July 4th 1054AD the star was shining at its brightest

approximately two days after it first appeared, and research has

shown that it was positioned near to a crescent moon.146 It is this

research that has led scholars to interpret this site as a depiction

of the Supernova. Not all scholars and researchers agree with this

145 Noble. D. G (ed), 2004, pp. 44.146 Frazier. K, 1999, pp. 202.

123

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744classification, and some anthropologists have said that even if this

depiction is true, it will not provide any ‘useful’ evidence into

Chacoan culture.147 I do believe that this statement is true. It is a

clear indication of how significant an unusual event this was and

significant enough to record as it broke continuous solar and lunar

cycles which were repeated meticulously year after year. Cosmology

was unmistakably an important part of Chacoan life, as was their

dependency on food for their survival;

‘Because their survival was dependent upon gathering, hunting and -

especially-farming, Chacoans also were fully attuned to the sun’s

yearly course, and to equinoxes and solstices. Some archaeologists

believe that Chacoans commemorated this astronomical knowledge with

the design and orientation of their buildings, as well as

incorporating it into their lives, ceremonies and agriculture.’148

By watching the movements of the sun and other events, the Ancient

Chacoans would know when to plant their crops and to possibly hold

ceremonies to commemorate astrological events such as the summer

solstice. This may have been important to assure a good crop for the

year, or to give thanks for the rains to ensure their growth. The

importance of cosmology can be seen by its incorporation into the

everyday lives of the ancient Chacoans, yet if this true it would

not have been able to have predicted the short but devastating

draught which would soon affect the area.

147 Frazier. K, 1999, pp.202.148 Strutin. M, 1994, pp. 47-49.

124


The Late Bonito Phase

The Ancient Chacoans likely centred many of their ceremonies, if not

all, on the rain to ensure a rich and plentiful crop. Chaco Canyon

was the centre of this belief and we can assume that people

travelled here to participate and reinforce this belief at Chaco

Canyon. Evidence for this may be suggested through the knowledge

that the major buildings in the canyon were constructed during

relatively wet periods. At around 1080AD, however, a two decade long

draught struck the area and Chaco was no longer a center place for

the belief system. During this period the Great House Communities at

Aztec and Salmon were constructed, and many of the people moved

north to these habitation sites which, it is suggested, had now

become the ritual centres. Chaco, in a sense, had failed, yet circa

1100AD thirty years of greater precipitation occurred in the region.

It is during this period that the six Great Houses of the Late

Bonito phase were constructed; Casa Chiquita, Headquarters Site A,

Kin Klesto, New Alto, Tsin Klestin and Wijiji. If Van Dyke’s theory

is correct, then these were constructed to try and re-establish

Chaco as the center place and to restore faith in the rituals. The

new Great Houses were constructed in McElmo style, the same style

that the structures at Aztec were constructed in. This building

125

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744style was more time efficient in comparison to the Classic Bonito

phase style, yet some of the buildings were never completed;

‘Late Bonito great houses were constructed of one of more fairly standardized McElmo units. Use of this template would have facilitated

speedy and straightforward construction of multiple buildings….. The

fact that McElmo structures such as Hillside Ruin and Roberts Small

Pueblo were either robbed of building stone or left unfinished also

may indicate shortages of resource labour.’149

The McElmo style buildings were much smaller than their

predecessors, yet were created to appear larger in size. The

builders who constructed this style in Chaco used stone that could

be sourced more closely to the constructions and evidence has shown

that some timber from earlier Great Houses was recycled.150 Yet

despite these time efficient constructions it appears that the

leaders of Chaco Canyon could not attract enough people there to

participate in the building of the Great Houses. Restoring the faith

that the people had once held in the rituals in the symbolic

landscape of Chaco Canyon had failed. Around 1130AD another drought

struck the region for fifty years, with only a minor break.151 Many

of the Ancient Chacoans left and migrated north once again to Aztec

and Salmon, however a small number of people stayed behind and

continued to live in Chaco for a short period. Aztec and Salmon

remained occupied until the population began to decline circa

149 Van Dyke. R, 2004, pp. 424.150 Van Dyke. R,2004, pp.423-424.151 Noble. D. G, 2004, pp. 13.

126

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 100897441270AD-1280AD, and by 1300AD factors such as climate change and

diminishing natural resources are thought to have led to the

abandonment of these center places. The Ancestral Puebloans migrated

south once again to the modern and historic Pueblos such as Zuni.

Chaco Canyon was not forgotten, however, as many indigenous people

in the modern Pueblos claim ancestry to the Ancient Chacoans, whilst

the canyon itself was later inhabited by the Navajo people who have

incorporated it into their own tribal history.

Indigenous Oral Histories

To the modern Hopi people Chaco is called Yupkoyvi, and was a

place to share knowledge.152 Many objects and practices that were

once apparent in Chaco are still present here, and for many years

now there has been a Native consultation council which meets when a

problem or change needs to be discussed regarding the canyon;

‘Thus Yupkoyvi became a gathering place for clans from local’s areas as well as clans who had stopped at what might be described as

“staging areas” some distances away. Among the initial clans to settle

in the Chaco landscape were the parrot and Katsina clans. Later the

Eagle, Sparrowhawk, Tobacco, Cottontail, Rabbitbrush and Bamboo clans

arrived. Carefully they were given places in which to establish their

villages. According to tradition, this took time. Initial settlers

became the ruling clans, which established order for the religious

cycle as well as social responsibilities. Together they contemplated

152 Noble. D. G, 2004, pp.41.

127


their future. They shared their migration knowledge, spoke of the

hardships they had encountered, and cried out of sadness and joy. They

learned to understand each other even though they spoke different

languages. Certain clans agreed that they must now prepare for the

final journey to the place called Tuuwanasavi, the “earth center”,

which to the Hopis is their present home on the First, Second and

Third Mesas. Tuuwanasavi would be their destination and their final

home with Masaw’.153

This is brief section of the Hopi story which describes the function

of Chaco and then is subsequent abandonment. For many years

indigenous oral histories were thought to not be grounded in facts,

and were more works of fiction. The Hopi history of Chaco clearly

has factual research to support it. Often cultural continuity can be

found, for example, the history tells of the people learning each

other’s languages and it has been suggested that travellers to the

canyon did speak different languages. The Navajo who settled the

region sometime after or during the time it was occupied by the

Ancestral Puebloans also have their own history of Chaco Canyon, and

one that is significantly different to that of the Hopi.

To the Navajo who migrated south from the north tell of a Great

Gambler who inhabited the canyon. This man manipulated and enslaved

the people of Chaco Canyon and ordered them to construct the Great

Houses, creating a center for economic and social activity. Chaco

was a place of vice and sin, prostitution and incest was ripe, as

153 Noble. D. G, 2004, pp.44-45.

128

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744was gambling. Gambling was how the Naahwilbiihi enslaved the people

when they had nothing left to offer but themselves. The people

feared that he would become so powerful that he would begin to

control the elements, and so the Navajo, with the Holy people,

constructed a man known as the Challenger to defeat the gambler. He

defeated him at one of his own games of chance. As a result of these

events, a place such as Chaco must never rise again.154 Although this

story is significantly different to the history that the Hopi tell

of Chaco it later holds facts about the collapse and migration of

the Pueblo tribes.155 The Navajo settled the land, although the exact

date is debatable, and inhabited Chaco Canyon. In an interview,

Navajo man Harry Walters spoke of his connection to Chaco;

‘Chaco Canyon is probably one of the earliest settlement of Navajo in

the southwest, and there are some rock arts [examples] that are still

visible today that are attributed to the Navajos. And the Navajo

tradition says that there were people living at Chaco Canyon when the

Navajos came there, and there is a story about a great gambler that

was said to have taken place at Chaco Canyon…’156

Chaco Canyon is a significant part of Navajo history also, and many

of the places and people associated with it are frequently

referenced in ceremonies.

154 Noble. D. G, 2004, pp.55-56. 155 Noble. D. G, 2004, pp. 56. 156 Harry Walters Interview [Online] http://www.kued.org/productions/thelongwalk/film/interviews/harryWalters.php [24.06.2011].

129

http://www.kued.org/productions/thelongwalk/film/interviews/harryWalters.php


MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 The importance of Chaco Canyon to the Pueblo and the Navajo

peoples is evident through their oral histories. Their accounts and

knowledge should be included equally with the disciplines of

Archaeology and Architectural history when studying the canyon, if

mainly with the knowledge- holders of today’s indigenous local

communities in order to create a scholarly and historical dialogue.

These disciplines have proposed various ideas and hypothesis about

the function and purpose of Chaco Canyon which need to be shared

with and disseminated amongst Native American Navajo and Pueblo

societies of today. Great Houses are perhaps the best known features

of the canyon today, and were symbols of the Chacoan ideology. They

were also designed to incorporated markers to chart cosmological

events, such as summer and winter solstices. Natural features such

as Fajada Butte, and other places were also used to chart these

events, which were central to Chaco life. They were connected to

agriculture, the lifeline of the Chacoan culture in such a harsh

environment. This ideology was incorporated into other communities

who built Chacoan monuments and provided trade goods to maintain

social and religious ties to the canyon, as the center place of this

shared culture. The people who travelled from these communities to

Chaco would have walked by, or along, the roadways into the canyon

in order to participate in ceremonial events. All of these events,

the architecture, cosmological functions and the pilgrimages to the

130

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744canyon were based at Chaco as it was the center, the heart, of the

Chacoan ideology. Understanding the landscape of Chaco Canyon is

crucial in creating a context and culture in which to situate the

Fluteplayer rock art motif.

Chapter Five:

The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon: Research Results

131


The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon: Research Results

The Fluteplayer rock art motif is situated in a canyon landscape

enshrined with symbolic meaning, designed to show the shared

ideology of the Ancient Chacoan people. Research has shown the

importance that certain cultural features, such as Great houses, had

in Chacoan society and perhaps even their true function, but how do

the rock art motifs that were also created by the same people fit

into this landscape? During my research at the Chaco Culture

132

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744National Historical Park archives, Albuquerque, I was able to study

the data that had been collected by Jane Kolber, Donna Yoder and

their army of volunteers in the Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project

(1975-1981 and 1996-present), which has enabled me to see, thus far,

the cultural features that the Fluteplayer motifs are associated

with. I have primarily assessed the images with the research of Van

Dyke, although ultimately I would like to assess the sites with

Native American oral histories of Chaco Canyon and their views on

cultural features. This issue of ethics and rock art, archaeological

and Native oral histories, has been raised in a publication by

Schaafsma which was released in the final stages of this thesis

writing.157 I have wanted to include the Native American voice as

this intimately related to my ethical approach to the project as a

whole, being mindful not to create the image of a static culture.

When I visited Jemez Pueblo two of the indigenous people on the

reservation told me to interpret the Fluteplayer in a more personal

way, to listen to the intuitive feelings which would be generated

when I visited the sites at Chaco Canyon and to use these insights

in my fuller interpretations. This answer was somewhat of a shock. I

had asked them what they felt the Fluteplayer represented hoping for

a locally-based and perhaps ‘traditional’ view that would give the

images their ‘purpose’ if you like. I have taken their guidance and

have included my own feelings and thoughts on the Fluteplayer, 157 Schaafsma. P, Images and Power, Rock Art and Ethics, New York, Springer, 2013.

133

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744encouraged by their response that these things belong to all of us

on the planet. They are a part of human culture and can thus tell us

things about ourselves, our histories and the created universe

around us, but this does not mean that I do not wish to exclude the

Native voice; in fact I still seek to fully include the Pueblo

people in this study. This chapter will show the findings of this

research in the field and on-site and the interpretations and

questions that have arisen as a result. Firstly, there is an account

of some of the sites that I have not personally viewed, but have

documents from the archives, and I offer an analysis of my thoughts

on these sites thus far given the information obtained while working

in the archives. I will then give an in-depth discussion and

evaluation on the sites that I have visited and any avenues for

future research that I believe will be needed to provide a fuller

analysis. These sections will be followed by an overview of all of

the sites and my suggestions at present about ways to improve any

interpretations of them, which will then be followed by a conclusion

and overall future research questions which remain to be addressed.

Documented Fluteplayer Sites

Many rock arts sites have been documented in Chaco Canyon by

Jane Kolber, Donna Yoder, and a dedicated team of volunteers. These

sites have recently been digitised and are held at the Chaco Culture

National Historical Park archives, Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744upon this research that I have based my research project and this

archive has been crucial in my results thus far. This section gives

a brief overview and analysis of these sites, based on the

documented research on them. I have yet to visit these Fluteplayer

sites in person to fully evaluate them, but I can begin to initially

interpret them and the cultural features with which they are

associated. As I must endeavour to keep all site locations hidden, I

will be naming each Fluteplayer site with a letter from the alphabet

so that I do not cause confusion when comparing images. Although I

cannot reveal the locations of the Fluteplayer sites, the ones that

I have ascertained thus far have all been created on boulders and

cliff faces. The sites that can be found on cliff faces are

primarily situated in ‘Downtown Chaco’, the area that encompasses

Pueblo Bonito, whereas the boulder sites can be found throughout the

rest of the canyon. The North side seems to be more heavily

populated with Fluteplayer sites than the South, although there are

at least two sites so far that I have identified on the South side

of the canyon. No two sites are the same in Chaco, and each

Fluteplayer has stylistic differences, some more diverse than

others. They also appear as singular figures, pairs or in groups, as

well as being depicted as seated, standing or with insect-like-

antenna and all seem to be in profile. At many of the sites the

Fluteplayer is depicted with anthromorphs, zoomorphs, footprints,

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744spirals, splay-leg figures, quadrupeds and textile and diamond

shaped patterns. At present I do not know if these other motifs were

created at the same time as the Fluteplayer or if they pre- or-

postdate them. Some sites also have Navajo rock art images which

often depict Horses and anthromorphs as well as historic graffiti in

which people have carved names and dates into the rock surface. All

of the Fluteplayers, and many of the images depicted with them, are

petroglyphs which have been pecked, incised, abraded and scratched.

I know of only one site thus far that has a pictograph Fluteplayer

and other images created as pictographs.

Each Fluteplayer site is found in direct association with key

cultural features which can help to suggest his function in Chacoan

society. Some of the sites, but not all, appear in close proximity

to Great Houses, especially in the area described as ‘Downtown

Chaco’ where all of the images are depicted on cliff faces near to

where the Great Houses have been built. Other images appear to be

situated further away from the Great Houses but still within a close

proximity. Aside from the collection of Fluteplayer images in the

‘Downtown Chaco’ area there seems to be no preference for placing

them near to Classic or Late Bonito structures. The only Great

Houses that show a clear pattern for no Fluteplayers so far are the

structures situated on Mesa tops. Perhaps this is because there are

no cliff faces or significant boulders located around the buildings

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744on which to put the motifs. In comparison to Great Houses, only one

of the lone Great Kiva sites has a Fluteplayer situated near to it

and this can again be found in the area of ‘Downtown Chaco’.

Interestingly this site is also in close proximity to a small house

site constructed against a cliff face directly behind it onto which

the Fluteplayer is depicted. Despite being in close proximity to a

Great Kiva, this site seems to be more closely associated with a

habitation site. No other Great Kiva has a Fluteplayer depicted near

to it, but this may change when future research is undertaken.

The Fluteplayer sites in the ‘Downtown Chaco’ area are, like

the others, associated with other cultural features as well as Great

Houses. Two sites have metates with them, one of which also has a

stairway whilst another Fluteplayer (A) may be depicted on the cliff

face of the stairway, a fact that I still need to verify. At one of

these sites, Fluteplayer (B) is depicted standing with two insect

antennas with his flute but no hump back. He is shown with four

anthropomorphs who are waving, holding a cane or wearing a

headdress. The Fluteplayer is stylistically very different from the

human figures that have very rectilinear bodies; his appearance is

very thin, almost resembling a stick insect form. This difference

would primarily suggest to me that the Fluteplayer at this site is

not human and may represent another entity. The site to the west of

this presents a Fluteplayer (C) in a different situation again,

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744despite there being a minor distance between the two sites. The

Fluteplayer has been created on a cliff face, and the vast site has

been covered in a variety of imagery including spirals,

anthropomorphs, geometric lines and historic marks made by early

researchers. On the same panel as the Fluteplayer are images of

splay-legged figures, biomorphs, incised lines and UNM (University

of New Mexico) site numbers. In comparison to Fluteplayer (B), he

has one insect antenna and has a more human like form instead of a

slender insect one. He is shown playing his Flute, but instead of

his humpback he is shown with a large rear end region. There are

distinct stylistic differences between this Fluteplayer and the

last, not just in form but with key characteristics. Fluteplayer (C)

has one ‘antenna’, hump and a flute, whilst the before mentioned has

two antenna, no hump and a flute. Could this slender physic and no

hump mean that it is earlier in date? The stylistic differences

between the two sites suggest that perhaps they were created by

people with minor regional cultural differences who were separated

spatially or temporally.

Fluteplayer (C) has a grinding area situated near to it, which

would have been used for domestic food preparation tasks as well as

ceremonial preparations. This suggests that this Fluteplayer was

intended to communicate with both men and women. As it can be found

near to a metate, unlike the previous site, this may perhaps also

138

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744account for the distinct stylistic differences that occur and may be

the result of two different contexts. Further research is needed at

both of these sites to determine a possible date for them which will

then allow me to fully analyse the context in which they were

produced. If one was produced in a different period of Chaco’s

occupation it may incorporate different functions and symbolic

meanings, much in the way that Late Bonito Great Houses reference

the past, but incorporate new ideas. Situated to the east of this

site are two more Fluteplayer sites which are positioned in a

similar context.

These two sites each have distinct cultural features, one has a

staircase and possible metate and both are situated by a Chacoan

field. The presence of the field and metates indicates a strong

domestic and ceremonial purpose for these sites, and again we know

that they were not biased towards one sex as women would have been

present in this area. One site has a Fluteplayer (D) that appears

to be crouching or sitting as his knees are bent, he is also

depicted with his flute and a lump half way down his back, but he

has no antenna- like features and is shown next to a stick figure.

Stylistically he is different to Fluteplayer (B), and slightly

similar to Fluteplayer (C) as he resembles a human figure more

closely than an insect. The stick figure depicted with him is

representative of a Lizardman motif, and is again different in style

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744to the human figures depicted near to Fluteplayer (B). A date will

need to be established again for this site in order to draw further

conclusions. This site is situated directly above three metates

which further suggest that the Fluteplayer may have been placed

there to specifically communicate and interact with the women who

went about their food processing and ceremonial tasks. A staircase

can be found nearby though, and Van Dyke has suggested why she

believes these were created;

‘Chacoan builders...invested much energy in constructing formalized

access into the canyon by means of road segments, ramps and

staircases…. The construction of staircases and ramps created access

points across prohibitive barriers of sandstone escarpments. Jackson’s

staircase, which connects the upper two terraces in the tributary

drainage behind Chetro Ketl, is but one well known example. Chacoans

built at least five other, similar staircases near great houses in the

canyon core.’158

Staircases were a means of access to the canyon, and were used by

travellers to and from the canyon. Fluteplayer (D) may have been

potentially seen by travellers entering the canyon, and further, if

Fluteplayer (A) is situated on the staircase itself a new context

may be apparent for these sites. The Fluteplayer may represent the

same symbolic function, but it would be presented in a very public

sphere in this instance. I am unsure as to whether Fluteplayer (A)

is directly situated on the stairway, or it is placed on the canyon

158 Van Dyke, R. The Chaco Experience: Landscape and Ideology at the Center Place, Santa Fe: School for Advance Research Press, 2008, pp. 43.

140

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744floor like Fluteplayer (D) as I am yet to see the sites, and future

research will be needed to establish the visibly of both sites to

the stairways. The site that is situated in close proximity to

Fluteplayer (D), however, seems to be strongly fixated to a domestic

and ceremonial context as I have outlined above.

Fluteplayer (E) is a scratched human formed figure, and is

depicted with his hump, flute and in this instance, male genitals.

He is shown with a collective mixture of images including a

Lizardman figure, numerous incised lines and a circle as well a bird

figure. One bird figure and a biomorph are pictographs and have been

painted in yellow ochre whilst a spiral motif is situated a short

distance away from this group. In size the Fluteplayer appears to be

smaller than the bird, but what the significance of this may be I am

yet to determine. What is striking about this site, and the

Fluteplayer (D) site, is their proximity to Chacoan fields;

‘Some twelve acres of bordered gardens are visible [on] photos, but

that may be no more than half of what was originally cultivated. These

twelve acres are divided into two adjacent rectangular plots with

canals round their perimeter and down their center. Each plot contains

eighty-four bordered gardens, each about seventy-five feet by forty-

five feet…’159

These fields were cultivated and fed water through irrigation

systems that also contained possible dam gates to control water

159 Frazier. K. People of Chaco, London: W.W. Norton and Company, first edition 1987, revised edition 1999, expanded edition 2005.

141

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744control. It was a significant agricultural plot for a culture which

was reliant on the rains and a plentiful harvest. Fluteplayer (D)

and (E) are found a short distance from this site, and if it is but

a fraction of what was there at the high point of this culture, then

they could be potentially situated in even closer vicinity to it.

Further, Fluteplayer (D) is found above a metate which would have

been used to grind the products of the field, the act of which would

have been ceremonial and perhaps undertaken by women. They do have

some characteristic differences, notably Fluteplayer (D)’s bent

knees and Fluteplayer (E)’s male genitalia, however their situation

at this point in the landscape suggests a domestic and ceremonial

context and the characteristic difference may be the result of

cultural variations.

To the east of this site lies another Fluteplayer (F) that is a

short distance east from a painted scene under a cliff overhang. I

do not have the detailed data that I do with the previous sites, but

I have a written account. The Fluteplayer is depicted with two

pictographs in yellow ochre which are believed to be anthropomorphs,

yet the Fluteplayer is a pecked petroglyph. They are also sheltered

under a cliff overhang but are inaccessible. I will need to visit

the site to see how inaccessible it is, but this secluded context

initially indicates a shamanistic function. However corn cobs have

been found at the site with numerous painted images in proximity to

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Fluteplayer (F), which asserts a domestic and ceremonial context on

the area. No other ruins have been found nearby, and the area is

dominated by a view of Fajada Butte. Perhaps the secluded location

is somehow connected to the view of this natural feature, which was

important in recording cosmological events, and as the entire

surrounding Chaco landscape is enshrined in symbolism. The presence

of corn cobs may be the result of a ceremonial practice at the site.

This site is certainly intriguing as it has no directly associated

cultural features in comparison to the sites that I know of thus

far, and is also inaccessible at this point in time.

Moving further to the east of this site lies a collection of

Fluteplayer sites which I personally viewed, and which I will return

to later to provide an in-depth discussion concerning them. Further

along the canyon three more sites can be found. I am unsure of their

exact locations, but again know that they are associated with

certain cultural features. I am unsure of their proximity to a Great

House aside from the documented site notes. Fluteplayer (G) has been

executed on a boulder and is depicted with his flute, humpback and

is standing. From what I can determine from the documentation that

I have, this Fluteplayer is stylistically similar to Fluteplayer

(D), although the images that are depicted with them are different

in style but not subject. Fluteplayer (G) is shown with

anthropomorphs, one of which has detailed hands, also rectilinear,

143

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744stepped and curvilinear designs are seen there as well as a spiral.

A later Navajo design of a horse can also be found. Both of these

Fluteplayer sites have anthropomorphs shown with them, but from the

documented photos I cannot ascertain whether these are later Navajo

anthropomorphs or Ancient Chacoan examples. Fluteplayer (G) can be

found with a metate associated with it, which again indicates a

domestic and ceremonial context for the site. Approximately 2km east

from this site is a habitation site that has been built against the

cliff face, much like the buildings which are most famously found at

Mesa Verde. This site does not have a recorded Fluteplayer, but it

does have a large collection of Ancient Chacoan images, ceramic

shards and metates. It is possible that Fluteplayer (G) is

associated with this habitation site due to its close proximity and

the evidence of metates at both sites. Dating will be of the utmost

importance to establish whether the Fluteplayer (G) site and

habitation ruins were created within the same time period, however

even if they were not, one may have been deliberately placed next to

the other to establish a connection which would link past and

present.

Further east and closer to a Great House is Fluteplayer (H). In

stark contrast to Fluteplayer (G), this site is directly under a

stairway and does not seem to be in the familiar ceremonial and

domestic context. There is little evidence of food processing or

144

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744other tasks, only pot shards that are found a small distance from

the Fluteplayer. Establishing the context and purpose of these

shards may help us to understand the site. This Fluteplayer has a

pecked body, but incised arms and flute which may provide emphasis

on this feature, although I will need to view the site to establish

this. Like numerous other sites the Fluteplayer is shown with

anthropomorphs and two foot motifs, whilst he is depicted with the

flute, but no hump. Unlike Fluteplayer (C) which is also found near

to a staircase, it appears to not be in a domestic or ceremonial

context as well. It may be more closely associated with the same

context as Fluteplayer (A) on the stairway. These proposals are

mainly of a speculative nature at this stage and are preliminary

thoughts on sites which I have yet to view.

As you head west through the canyon once again there are two

Fluteplayer sites that I know of which are situated on the south

side of the canyon. The south side is not dominated by Great Houses

but smaller dwellings which are no longer visible to the naked eye.

Fluteplayer site (I) seems to be a well-known site as numerous

photographs can be seen on the internet of it (Fig. 38), although

these are not authorised photos by the National Park service as far

as I am aware.

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Figure 38: Unauthorised Photograph of this Fluteplayer site which can be Found on the Internet.www.shamanicvisions.com, 2013.

The images are situated on two sandstone boulders each consisting of

between four and seven Fluteplayers each. Both boulders have the

same stylistic Fluteplayers which are stick figure like with a hump

on their back, flute and up to four insect antenna; however, on the

lower section of boulder one there are two Fluteplayer’s which are

stylistically different and are depicted almost as hunchbacks (not

humpbacks) with a flute and single insect antenna. All are depicted

as standing figures. The stylistically different Fluteplayer’s have

no immediate other images surrounding them, whilst their

counterparts have lizardmen figures, hand prints, zoomorphs,

anthropomorphs and line and swirl pattern designs. One Fluteplayer

is shown with a four legged quadruped seemingly following him (Fig.

39) whilst two others are shown directly above a handprint.

146



Figure 39: Unauthorised Photograph of Fluteplayer with Four Legged Quadruped.www.shamanicvisions.com , 2013.

The Fluteplayers which are different in style may have been created

by people with minor cultural differences from Great House

Communities. Dating will be needed on the images to determine this

although a comparison has been made to another Fluteplayer site

already based on style, and it has been suggested that they were

created within the same time period, a date which I do not know and

need to enquire about.160 The only cultural features that can be

found by the boulders are pot shards, although it is highly likely

that smaller dwellings were situated in close proximity to the site.

If my geographic placement of the site is correct it may have had

160 Kolber. J and Yoder. D, The Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project, March 2001, The Painted Hunting Scene and Fluteplayer Rock Behind ****, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque, pp. 5. Please note that the stars obscure a site name which may lead to the location of the Fluteplayer site.

147


MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744commanding views of a Great House which would have reinforced

Chacoan ideologies.

The last of the Fluteplayer sites that I have found thus far is

situated further along the canyon from Fluteplayer (I). I do not

have a detailed study of this site, but am able to provide a context

based on the site report. This Fluteplayer (Ia) is located directly

behind a ruin and around the corner of a Rincon from a Great Kiva.

There is no description of the Fluteplayer, but he is depicted with

splay-legged anthropomorphs, zoomorphic figures, possible sandal

foot prints and geometric designs such as spirals, linear and step

patterns. There are also boulders at this site which also depict

Fluteplayer’s with zoomorphs, anthropomorphs and foot and paw

prints. The designs on the cliff face are inaccessible today, and

evidence suggests that scaffolding was used to access and create the

images.161 This potentially means that the site was highly visible

and was seen by many people however it cannot be seen under most

lighting conditions throughout the day.162 Perhaps it was designed to

communicate a message at a certain point in the day in relation to a

task undertaken at that point. No metates can be found, but one pot

shard has been documented. I do not know what type of pot the shard

is from, and cannot state what its function may have been and how

this is related to the Fluteplayer site at this point. A date has

161 Kolber. J and Yoder.D, March 2001, pp. 6.162 Kolber. J and Yoder.D, March 2001, pp. 5.

148

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744been suggested for late Pueblo III, the time at which the ruins were

built163 and this could be further evidence that the site was meant

to be seen by a large section of the public at a certain time. It is

almost like a modern billboard advertising symbolic meanings to the

residents of the habitation site, as it seems to be grand and

imposing as opposed to personal and accessible like other

Fluteplayer sites. Without seeing the site, this idea will remain

speculative, but this site appears to be in stark contrast to many

of the other sites that can be found at ground level or on boulders,

which seem to interact more intimately and personally with the

people of Chaco Canyon.

All of these sites have been evaluated from the notes that I

collected from the Chaco Cultural National Historical Park Archives,

and will, as I have stated many times, remain speculative until I

have visited the sites to fully analyse them which might be

undertaken as a doctoral or post-doctoral project. The ideas that I

have voiced and put forward at this stage are initial thoughts on

the sites and require more research to establish a full analysis. I

was, however, able to visit three sites that were in close proximity

to each other with Jane Kolber, and as a result I am able to provide

a more detailed evaluation of these sites.

Viewed Fluteplayer Sites.

163 Kolber. J and Yoder.D, March 2001, pp.5.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744The Fluteplayer sites that I was able to view with Jane Kolber are

situated on the North side of the canyon, and are located at three

geographic locations. All are within close proximity to each other

and I believe that they were connected and incorporated into the

overall context of the site by their geographic placement. This is

speculative and based on my own initial thoughts on the three sites.

Fluteplayer site (J) (Fig.40) is situated to the west of the

other two sites on a boulder. It contains one Fluteplayer along with

other images of a seated and standing anthropomorphs, zoomorphic

figures and what appears to be a circular figure with wavy lines

protruding from it (Fig.41). It almost resembles the sun with

numerous sun flares erupting from it. The site is also covered in

modern graffiti (Fig.42) and a Navajo hunter (Fig.43). On another

side of the boulder is a spiral with possible biomorphs and circles.

The spiral is much worn and was difficult to see in the early

afternoon light; however it may have been more clearly visible at

different points of the day (I was only able to see this at mid-day

on my visit to the site). On the opposite side of the boulder to the

spiral under an overhang is a metate and other man made marks with a

frog- like petroglyph. The Fluteplayer has two insect like antenna,

a hump, flute and is depicted as seated as opposed to standing.

Diagonally below the Fluteplayer is another anthropomorphic seated

figure that almost resembles the Fluteplayer in style, but is not

150

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744depicted with the hump, flute or antenna, so I have not classed this

as a Fluteplayer and is not included as one of my main examples.

The seated figure seems to mimic the Fluteplayers pose, but for what

reason I am unsure of at present. I do believe that there is a

further connection between the two other than style, which also

enables me to suggest that the two were perhaps created by the same

person or group during the same time period. Dating may obviously

dismiss this idea however. The sun like feature (Fig.44) is not

depicted immediately with the Fluteplayer, but it is a prominent

motif that rivals the boldness of the Fluteplayer design. My own

personal interpretation of this motif is that it represents a sun or

star.

151


152


Figure 40: Fluteplayer (J). Authors Photograph and Sketch, 2011.

Figure 41: Site Overview of Fluteplayer (J) Showing all of the Images Depicted with it. AuthorsPhotograph, 2011.

153


Figure 42: Modern Graffiti Under Fluteplayer (J). Authors Photograph, 2011

Figure 43: Navajo Hunter at Fluteplayer (J) Site. Authors Photograph, 2011

154


.

Figure 44: Sun or Star-Like Motif at Fluteplayer (J) Site. Authors Photograph, 2011.

The wavy lines that erupt from the image remind me of how we see the

sun or stars when we look at them for a length of time, the light

that they emit seems to move and our image is distorted. This is my

own interpretation of the image, but given the fact that the Ancient

Chacoans documented cosmological events there may be factual

evidence to support it. Further to this the site also commands a

dominant view of Fajada Butte which was used as a place to watch the

events of the sun, moon and stars. What connection this has to the

Fluteplayer will depend on dating to enable us to see the cultural

context in which it was produced, but if this feature is some form

of sun or star it may be a reference to the domestic and ceremonial

155

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744context of the site which was partly based on astronomical

agricultural events.

The evidence of the metate suggests a domestic and ceremonial

context for the site certainly, and we can establish from this that

the Fluteplayer interacted with both women and men. It was not

gender specific. The spiral motif on the opposite face of the

boulder is also, I believe, connected to this context as some kind

of solar or lunar marker like the ones situated on Fajada Butte.

Thus even if it was not functional it may have been created to

symbolise or enable the charting of events. The metate (Fig.45)

itself is situated under a small overhang which shelters the site

from the harsh heat of the sun.

Figure 45: The Metate and Grinding Area found at the Boulder Site of Fluteplayer (J). AuthorsPhotograph, 2011.

156

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744The processing of foods or pigments would have been a laborious and

enduing job in such heat, which has led me to question the

visibility of the Fluteplayer at this site. Was the image created to

be seen at certain times of the day? Perhaps when women were

processing food and pigments in the area? I viewed the site at

approximately 1.00pm in October heat, which soon became arduous

enough. The overhang certainly presented a cooler environment as did

the shade provided by the entire boulder. All of the motifs were

clearly visible when I viewed them, although not from a great

distance. By establishing visibility it will show how the Ancient

Chacoans controlled the sun. This is an idea which Kolber has

presented and one that I am keen to research further in relation to

Fluteplayer sites. At present I am of a mind to suggest that this

site was a visual representation of the Chaco ideology which was

based on precipitation and the production of food. The metate, an

important aspect of Ancient Puebloan life, would have been used to

grind all sorts of products, the act of which would have been

ceremonial. The spiral may symbolise the charting of solar and lunar

events, and the sun like motif found on the same side of the boulder

as the Fluteplayer may prove to be another solar representation. The

Fluteplayer is situated in this context, and must, in some way, be

incorporated into the symbolic meanings represented there.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 A short distance away from this site is Fluteplayer (K)

(Fig.46), which is again situated on a boulder.

Figure 46: Fluteplayer (K). Authors Photograph, 2011.

This site consists of at least two Fluteplayers, although one is

badly eroded and is now barely visible as a result. These

Fluteplayers have a flute, one insect- like- antenna and a hump

158

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744(Fig.47); however they are stylistically different to Fluteplayer

(J).

Figure 47: Drawing of Fluteplayer (K). Authors Sketch, 2013.

These have one antenna that arcs up from the middle of the head, as

opposed to two that protrude from either side; the head is also

different in shape and seems to emphasis the nose into a point.

Although Fluteplayer (K) is seated too, the lines seem to be more

fluid, they seem to flow in comparison to Fluteplayer (J) which is

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744more angled. They both share key characteristics, but are

stylistically different. This site will require dating, but at

present I believe that these two sites may have been created by

different cultural groups which were separated spatially or

temporally, hence the minor variations in style between the two

types. Fluteplayer (K)’s placement is also interesting as it is

sheltered by an attached boulder so that you cannot see out onto the

landscape when you are viewing the image. This may have been

employed to perhaps protect the site from weather conditions which

cause the images to erode and was thus placed there for practical

reasons. I have no data from the archives on this site so I do not

know if there are any cultural features such as metates or pottery

shards, however I saw no evidence of a metate whilst there. I do not

believe that this site was used for shamanistic purposes due to its

slight seclusion as it is still accessible. When the viewer turns to

leave the site they view the edge of a mesa and Chaco Wash, in order

to see Fajada Butte you must physically turn. Why Fluteplayer (K)

was created in this location I am yet to determine, but its slight

seclusion from visual views of the canyon suggests that it was not

perhaps created to directly interact with features such as Fajada

Butte, which is in contrast to Fluteplayer (J).

In comparison to the low viewing visibility of this site,

Fluteplayer (L) has a clear view of Fajada Butte and onto Fajada

160

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Wash. This site is situated only a few meters away from Fluteplayer

(K) on a low boulder. Both sides of the boulder depicted Fluteplayer

images, although the north side has now sadly fallen away, whilst

only half of the south side is still visible. Despite this we can

still establish a connection to the landscape and evaluate the

pieces of the remaining images. Fluteplayer (L) is similar in style

to Fluteplayer (J), and consists of two insect- like -antennas

placed either side of the head and a hump (Fig.48). The image breaks

at the waist so I am unable to see whether he is standing or

sitting. Stylistically he looks similar to Fluteplayer (J), and

seems to have a more rounded face and identical antenna (Fig.49).

This Fluteplayer is also depicted with a zoomorph figure of a four-

legged quadruped. This is again similar to Fluteplayer (J) which has

two of these images depicted on the boulder with him (Fig. 50). I

have yet to determine the significance of the placement of these

images, but the stylistic similarity between them has led me to

believe that they were created by the same person or group of

people. Dating will reveal any temporal differences and so this can

only be speculative at this point. I again do not have records for

this site so do not known what cultural features can be found

associated with them, or what the Fluteplayer on the North side of

the boulder looked like, but further research on this particular

site may bring out these unknown elements eventually.

161


Figure 48: Fluteplayer (L). Authors Photograph, 2011.

Figure 49: Drawing of Fluteplayer (L). Authors Sketch, 2013.

162


Figure 50: Quadrupeds at Fluteplayer Sites (J) and (K). Authors Photograph, 2011

The North side of the boulder commands a dominating view of the

Chaco landscape as opposed to the South side which commands a view

of the immediate area and mesa. This site allows for a clear visible

view across Fajada Wash, Fajada Gap and of Fajada Butte rising up

from the floor of the canyon. The importance of Fajada Butte is

something that I have previously mentioned, and so the view of this

site may have been incorporated deliberately to establish a

connection, although this will require more research to establish. A

Great Kiva may have also been visible from this site as it is

situated in Fajada Gap. Numerous roads also entered the canyon in

this area, and it is entirely possible that these cultural features

were visible from the Fluteplayer site. Along with these cultural

features, Fluteplayer site (K) can also be clearly seen. I believe

that it is not coincidental that this site has such a commanding

163

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744view of the surrounding area, and that the site was placed there

deliberately to incorporate a symbolic meaning or connection, as was

Fluteplayer (J) which also incorporates these views directly. As

Fluteplayer (K) is not only stylistically different, but does also

not include the direct view of Fajada Gap, I am of a mind to suggest

that it may have been created to serve a different symbolic

function. What will again be required is dating. The dating of all

three sites will be paramount to future research. A potential date

may be applied of 1100AD-1140AD, the Late Bonito era, due to the

close proximity of a Great House. 164

Whilst studying the work of Van Dyke, and after confirming the

site with her,165 I have discovered that a now non-visible Great

House was once situated in extreme proximity to these last discussed

Fluteplayer sites. Due to this fact I have decided not to reveal the

name of this Great House in order to maintain the protection of the

sites. The Great House was created in the Late Bonito period,

however, and all, or some, of the Fluteplayers may have been created

during this period, although this date is not conclusive as the

images may have been created before the Great House was constructed.

It is known that the Ancient Chacoans inhabited areas that showed

164 I am using my own dating technique for these sites based on some of the techniques which I have learnt throughout my MRes research.165 Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Rock Art and Late BonitoStructures. Email to Ruth Van Dyke ([email protected]) July 2012- Present

164

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744previous occupation, and I must remain speculative about the date of

the sites. This is further apparent with the two contrasting styles

which suggest spatial and temporal differences. The proximity to the

Great House does, however, provide a context for the Fluteplayer

sites.

The Late Bonito Great House at this site was constructed circa

1100AD- 1130AD in the McElmo style that is now associated with

structures built during this period. It is planned in a similar way

to Wijiji (see Fig. 28b), and consists of thirty nine ground floor

rooms and two enclosed kivas but was no more than one story in

height.166 It may not have been a dominating structure in comparison

to other Great Houses, such as Pueblo Bonito. What is of interest is

its placement in the landscape and the symbolic functions that it

embodied so that a context for the Fluteplayer images can be

established;

‘Interestingly Casa Chiquita, [Our Great House], and Wijiji are the

only canyon great houses that lack a line of sight connection to any

other great house. All were deliberately positioned in cul-de-sacs or

around canyon corners, just out of sight of others. Just as the

sitting of Tsin Klestin and New Alto suggest a deliberate concern for

visibility, the sitting of these three sites suggest a deliberate

concern with invisibility. Paradoxically, these structures were built

to be seen…but not from other great houses. They represent the nadir

166 Van Dyke, R. ‘Memory, Meaning and Masonry: The Late Bonito landscape,’ American Antiquity, Vol. 69, No.3, 2004, pp. 419- 421.

165


of the new, Late Bonito element in the traditional Chacoan scheme of

balanced dualism- the visible and invisible.’167

This Great House was constructed to be ‘invisible’, to be seen by

some, but not from any other Great House, all of which usually have

a line of sight with each other. It was a way in which the Chacoans

referenced Classic Bonito ideas with a new and improved ideology.

The dualism of this site is further referenced by its symbolic

placement to the east of the center of Chaco Canyon;

‘As we have seen, Tsin Klestin, Pueblo Alto, and New Alto form two north-south axes over the core of Classic Bonito phase Chaco, one an

alignment to the past, one to the present. East-west directional

patterning is evident in the paired opposition of four Late Bonito

great houses on the canyon floor, on either side of this meridian. Kin

Klesto and casa Chiquita extend an arm of the axis to the west, and

[our Great House] and Wijiji extend the axis to the east. All six

structures are symmetrically balanced against each other, with the

core of the old Classic Bonito canyon at its center place.’168

The placement of the Great House was to represent the eastern arm of

the dualism that occurs with the Great Houses in Chaco Canyon. It

is also a reference to the past by placing the core of Classic Chaco

at its center. The Great House is symbolic and portrays the new

Chacoan ideology. Further to this it also has a commanding view of

Fajada Butte and Fajada Gap. Van Dyke has suggested to me in

personal communication that this view may be another reason for its

167 Van Dyke. R, 2004, pp. 425-426.168 Van Dyke. R, 2004, pp.425.

166

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744placement.169 The Fluteplayer sites are connected to the placement of

this Great House in some way and may be connected to the ceremonial

events which took place there; these would have included acts which

involved food products. They were either created during Great House

occupation or were there before. If they were there before the Great

House they may still have been connected to it in some way and

incorporated into the context of the site at that time.

Fluteplayer (K) is different in style to the other two sites

which may have been created by different groups with spatial and

temporal differences. Perhaps it was created to serve a different

function, and within a different time period to the other two

Fluteplayer sites in this area. Ideally, obtaining a preliminary

date will help this theory. Rock art can often be imposed on earlier

sites as a reference to the past and with dating we will be able to

determine if the Fluteplayers found there were established before or

during the Great Houses construction. If the Fluteplayer images, and

perhaps a few others with which they are depicted, were already

present at the site new images may have been created alongside them

to incorporate a new function based on Late Bonito ideology.

Alternatively, the Fluteplayer images may have been added to the

sites during a later phase to alter the sites meaning, or the whole

169 Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Rock Art and Late BonitoStructures. Email to Ruth Van Dyke ([email protected]) July 2012- Present

167

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744site may have been a new creation. These are all plausible ideas

about all three sites, but by modifying and reusing an already

established rock art site it would create a social memory, much in

the way that Van Dyke has suggested in relation to habitation sites

and buildings.170 Dating is paramount to establishing when these

images were created, and thus helping to unlock the context in which

they were produced. What is apparent at this point is the domestic

and ceremonial context of Fluteplayer site (J), which would not have

been located far from the Great House. This site does not differ in

proximity to Great Houses as many of the other sites, and perhaps

seems to be a desired placement for some Fluteplayer images. Late

Great Houses were designed to show symbolism which portrayed the

Chacoan Ideology, whilst their predecessors became residential.

Fluteplayers and metates can also be found in the vicinity of these

older buildings, and this placement appears to be a continuing

tradition. The metate would have been used for similar functions

discussed previously. Tasks like this were ceremonial, and products

produced would have been used in rituals at the Great House, whilst

at other times it would have been used for subsidence. The remaining

two sites have not been found in a context like this, yet their

placement on the rock suggest an interactive and personal connection

to the Chacoan people, along with Fluteplayer (J).

170 Van Dyke, 2004, pp.55-56.

168

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744 All three sights can be found at eye level height, none are

placed high on a cliff face where an imposing grandeur is created.

These sites are personal. They were created to interact with the

Chacoan people, whether it is in relation to tasks such as food

processing or another undetermined function. None of them can be

visibly viewed from a great distance, only the site itself, which is

again in diverse comparison to motifs that are situated high on

cliff faces and are vastly visible from a distance (Fig. 21).

Figure 51: Billboard Rock Art Site from Penasco Blanco Trail. The below image can be seen in

169

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744the centre of the cliff face three quarters of the way up. Authors Photograph, 2011.

These cliff face sites would have been created by a highly skilled

artist and I believe were created as signs to communicate a message

to everybody in Chaco Canyon, much in the way that a modern

billboard communicates a message to us. The Fluteplayer sites that I

have seen could have been created by anybody, and are signs that

communicate a message on a personal level, they are like a poster in

comparison to a billboard. The Fluteplayer sites I have examined in

detail are not bold and intimidating in their height, they are

small, personal and accessible. This is evident by Fluteplayer site

(L) which has Fluteplayer images on either side of the boulder. In

order to interact with both sides’ people would have had to have

physically moved around the site, creating a personal experience in

which they could have communicated with the signs. Whilst moving

around this site the dominant feature of Fajada Butte would have

been present in the background, perhaps reinforcing cosmological

views. This view was also present for the Great House, and may

perhaps be the underlining context of the placement of the site.

Fluteplayer (K) may be the acceptation as it does not have a direct

170

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744view of Fajada Butte and Gap from the placement of the Fluteplayers

vantage point. If this is true, then Fluteplayer (K)’s visual

disadvantage of Fajada Butte and Gap requires further research. Was

it perhaps created before the Great House and other sites?

These three Fluteplayer sites are somehow connected to Fajada

Butte, their clear visibility to such a feature is not a

coincidence, as is the placement of the Great House here. The

placement of the Great House to accommodate this view suggests that

the whole area may be based on this principle. The proximity to the

Great House has revealed a symbolic context based on dualism in

which they were created and incorporated. What the function of the

Fluteplayer was in relation to food production and other tasks

carried out at metates has yet to be established, however we will

never know it’s true function, only the context in which the image

was produced. At present my ideas about the Fluteplayer being a

symbol of Chaco ideology based on site context are speculative, and

will always remain as so. The context does allow us to speculate as

to what function the Fluteplayer may have played in Ancient Chacoan

society. Dating is of the utmost importance to establish a further

context in which they were created and ultimately included in. Were

they created during the Classic Bonito phase, or the Late Bonito

phase with its new and improved ideology? This will also reveal

sociocultural functions about the Chacoan people and how the

171

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Fluteplayer may have evolved in their ideology. Dating will also

establish why they are stylistically different, and reveal whether

they were created by people with spatial or temporal differences,

each with an interpretative variation on the Fluteplayer that

materialised in many different styles. I do not mean to imply that

we will be able to obtain definitive dates however as dating can be

complex and end results not easily obtained. What can be firmly

established at this point in my research is the personal

communication that was created by situating these images at a low

height. The Fluteplayer’s at these sites were signs that

incorporated a Chacoan ideology which was fused into the everyday

lives of the people by making them accessible and interactive.

An Overview of the Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon

The results of my research to date have provided me with enough data

to evaluate the sites and draw some conclusions which will then form

the foundations for future research. All of the sites that I know of

so far are situated near to Great Houses or smaller habitation

sites; none are situated by Great Kivas. The only exception may be

Fluteplayer (I), but I believe that this is more closely associated

with the habitation site which it is situated behind. Great Kivas

were designed for ceremonial purposes, however they could only house

small group of people;

172


‘… it is unlikely that Great Kivas were, in fact, spaces for communal

events open to all. Although the circular interior space facilitated

interaction, not everybody necessarily had access to great kivas.

Ceremonies in the great kivas must have been somewhat restricted,

based on space limitations… 75 people could stand around the 56-m

circumference of an 18-m great kiva, leaving room for activities in

the center. Ceremonies in great house plazas, however, would have been

highly visible to spectators in the plaza or on roof tops.’171

Due to restricted space Great Kivas were not accessible to all,

ceremonies that were conducted on plazas in the Great Houses,

however, would have been accessible and highly visible for the

Chacoan people. No Fluteplayer-figures can be found by, or near to,

Great Kivas, and as a result were not perhaps intended to be seen by

a select view. Their proximity to Great Houses suggests that they

were intended to communicate with a large section of society based

on the idea that Great Houses could hold a greater volume of people.

This may further be suggested by the proximity of metates to Great

Houses and their non-secluded locations. Products created at metates

and Fluteplayer sites may still have been used in Great Kiva

ceremonies, but their proximity and visibility suggest that they

were placed to interact with many people as opposed to a select few.

The Ancient Chacoans who watched ceremonies from Great House roof

tops in the plaza would not have been able to view the images that

are depicted on the cliff faces and boulders surrounding them from

171 Van Dyke, R, 2008, pp. 128.

173

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744their positions, yet the Fluteplayer may have still been

incorporated into ceremonies through its placement by metates.

Certain objects have been found at Great House and Great Kiva

locations which have been attributed to ceremonial purposes. Many of

the Fluteplayer sites appear in conjunction with metates, suggesting

a domestic context for the sites as Quinaln has theorised. In

Puebloan culture, however, it is difficult to separate domestic

tasks from ceremonial and there is no distinction between the two;

‘I don’t think it’s possible to try and separate the ‘domestic’ from

the ‘ceremonial’ in Pueblo culture. These kinds of categorizations are

very Western….Metates [can] also be used to grind pigments. Ground

stone basins are nearly always present in association with stone

circles [and were] probably used to grind pigments for body paints or

other ceremonial purposes.’172

Unlike Western society and culture where there are clear

distinctions between a religious structure, such as a Church, and a

domestic one, like a Mill, there is no such distinction in Puebloan

culture. These sites were not only used for food processing, but

also for other products such as paint pigments which may have been

used in ceremonies. The act of creating these products would have

been ceremonial in itself, despite the intended use of the product.

H Wolcott Toll has further stated the importance of metates as they

172 Personal Communication with Ruth Van Dyke, Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Rock Art and Late Bonito Structures. Email to Ruth Van Dyke ([email protected]) July 2012- Present

174

mailto:[email protected]


MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744were often the heaviest piece of equipment, but the most common to

be taken from dwellings when Ancient Puebloans moved. This coupled

with the ‘…ritual and social importance of grinding corn among the

historic and contemporary Pueblo Indians, it is clear that more

attention should be given to this subject.’173This would suggest that

the Fluteplayer functioned in relation to these tasks and perhaps

signified some importance, especially as it is thought that the

Chacoan ideology was based on precipitation and the production of

nourishment. This can be seen at Fluteplayer sites (D) and (E) which

are situated by fields and metates. The production and processing of

food would have incorporated ritual aspects at a domestic site, and

thus the two merge together so that there is no clear distinction

between daily ritual and ceremonial. These sites are an example of

this notion. Some of the sites are situated in close proximity to

Great Houses, which were symbolic as opposed to residential and

domestic. This may also account for the Fluteplayers close proximity

to Great Houses and the symbolism which they embodied instead of the

smaller dwellings which were residential. These sites would have

reinforced the Chacoan ideology and would have been in busy

locations so that they were seen by many people. The close proximity

to these sites as opposed to Great Kivas may also further suggest

that the Fluteplayer was an image designed to be seen by everybody,

173 Noble. D.G (ed). In Search of Chaco: New Approaches to an ArchaeologicalEnigma, Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 2004, pp.36.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744not just the privileged few who were allowed into the Great Kivas.

Due to this context we know that women would have viewed and

interacted with Fluteplayer images, they were not exclusively male.

From this association questions must now be asked about the

association of Fluteplayers and metates; why are many found in

proximity to each other and what is the relationship and

significance of this? The high association of the Fluteplayer and

domestic and ceremonial contexts also further contributes to the

uncertainty of the theory that the Fluteplayer motif represented

Mesoamerican traders.

In a previous chapter I have already detailed how scholars

such as Duffield and Slifer174 have suggested that the Fluteplayer

depicted Mesoamerican traders who brought goods such as copper bells

and parrots to Chaco Canyon. The theory that Mesoamerican traders

were a common site in Chaco Canyon has already been dismissed,

instead it has been suggested that the items reached the canyon

through numerous trades which would also explain why so few of the

items have been found. It seems unlikely that the Fluteplayer would

depict a person who may never have entered the canyon, and if it was

a representation of a trader then the images would not have been

primarily depicted in ceremonial and domestic sites. Instead they

would have been created in more prominent positions; perhaps even on

174 Slifer. D and Duffield, J. Flute Player Images in Rock Art: Kokopelli. Santa Fe: Ancient City Press, 1994.

176

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744the cliff faces along with other imposing rock art motifs. They

would not have been depicted by a location designed for the

processing of food which was produced in the canyon or at one of the

Great House Communities or for items to be used in ceremonies.

Mesoamerican traders do not feature in the Chaco ideology. At

present I am off a mind to believe that there is no connection to

establish the Fluteplayer as a depiction of a Mesoamerican trader.

One theory that Duffield and Slifer did present was the idea

that the Fluteplayer may be a depiction of an individual who has

Potts disease. This caused inflation of the feet and genitals, among

other symptoms. Although I cannot determine this portrayal from my

research, I am still not dismissing the idea. Perhaps the

Fluteplayer did once represent an individual with this disease, and

over time his symbolic function has been adapted and altered as

indigenous peoples underwent sociocultural changes. I must again be

sceptical of this theory as although there is scientific evidence to

support it, it is impossible to state with certainly the function of

a prehistoric rock art image, such as the Fluteplayer.

The association of the Fluteplayer with ceremonial and domestic

activities appears to establish a context for the majority of sites;

however it does not explain the images that can be found near to, or

on, stairways. Van Dyke has suggested that stairways were used as

access ways for travellers to enter into the canyon, which would

177

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744suggest that the people who would have viewed these sites were

travellers to participate in rituals in the canyon. This would

appear to not be a domestic or ceremonial context for the

Fluteplayer. I need to view these sites before I can comment on them

further. However I believe at present that this is another context

for the motif, yet the image may still have incorporated the same

symbolic functions as it does at domestic sites. If food production

and precipitation were key to the Chacoan ideology then perhaps he

was placed on stairways as a symbol of this to the travellers who

were entering the canyon. This theory does, however, risk implying

the characteristics of ‘Kokopelli’ onto the Fluteplayer motifs, and

I must stress that this theory is based entirely on the evidence

that I have collected, and not any associated with this character.

Further research at these sites will be undertaken to establish

dates and to evaluate the styles of the Fluteplayers so that they

can be compared to cultural features found at their sites. A

detailed study of the motifs that they are depicted with will also

be undertaken to establish whether these sites are shown with

different motifs. This may suggest a different function for the

sites.

Quinlan has suggested that I evaluate the motifs that appear

with the Fluteplayer as very little attention is often paid to the

178

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744numerous images which can be found at sites.175 This is not just

applicable to Fluteplayer sites. By looking at all of the images

shown on the ‘canvas’, we can begin to establish the relationships

and connections between the different motifs. At present the common

motifs that the Fluteplayer is depicted with are; anthropomorphs,

zoomorphs, spirals, footprints and geometric or pattern designs. An

inventory of all motifs needs to be conducted so that we can see the

most frequently associated images, and those which are not so

common. Spirals may be a reference to the Chaco ideology based on

the rains and crops, and the Fluteplayer may be found in the same

context as this. Once a conclusion has been drawn to this in Chaco

Canyon, it would be interesting to compare the associated motifs to

those found at Great House Community sites, especially Aztec and

Salmon which became new centers after the brief drought which

started in 1090AD. If there are different motifs depicted with the

Fluteplayer, or indeed they are found in different contexts, the

function of the image may have been altered during the drought

period. This would then suggest that the image had been reformed to

conform to an altered ideology. Similarly this can be applied to

images that were created during the Late Bonito period which built

on the old Chacoan ideology, but sought to improve it. An evaluation

of stylistic differences may contribute knowledge to this theory,

175 Vendome-Gardner.C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer Rock Art. Email to Angus R. Quinlan ([email protected]) 3rd September 2011.

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MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744however there would need to be drastic changes to the Fluteplayer to

show a new function.

Many of the Fluteplayers in the canyon share key

characteristics; a hump and flute. Many of them also have insect-

like- antenna and genitals. It is these characteristics that lead me

to believe that they were created during a period of a shared

worldview and ideology based on this. It has been suggested that

early depictions of the Fluteplayer show him without his hump, and

with a cane instead of a flute, so if this theory is true then we

can attribute these later characteristics to within a time period

and certainly before the rise of the Kachina cult which eventually

saw an end to Fluteplayer depictions. The Fluteplayer’s may have

been constructed to conform to the Chaco ideology, but have been

based on social memories of previous images. Van Dyke has explored

this idea, but in relation to architectural structures;

‘Social memories of an imagined, shared past also are used to construct common identities among people of different backgrounds.’176

The Fluteplayer may have been a recognisable image in the

Basketmaker period, and was known throughout the shared worldview

that existed at that time. Perhaps the Chacoan leaders used this

image and incorporated him with slightly modified characteristics to

construct an identity and ideology among the Ancestral Puebloans.

176 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp. 128.

180

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744The first Fluteplayer images have been recorded from this period,

and so it is entirely possible that his meaning was altered during

this time of intense social and cultural change. Like religious

architecture, Fluteplayer images would have had to have been ‘…

conservative, incorporating repetitive iconographic symbols easily

recognised by ceremonial participants and observers.’177 This idea

that they needed to be of a standard design and easily recognisable

to communicate their symbolic meaning can be applied to the motifs.

The Fluteplayer would need to be instantly recognisable to

communicate its message. Again this is a theory that needs to be

tested, and is highly speculative at this current point in my

research, but the repetition at so many sites of the frequent

characteristics suggests a shared visual idea of the Fluteplayer and

his symbolic function. The minor stylistic differences at each of

the sites is, I believe, the result of people from different

backgrounds at Great House Communities. In a sense it is an

expression of their individual artistic style rooted in the

geographic areas in which they lived. Each Great House Community

may have had a slightly different view on him. The differences in

style may also be temporal differences between these cultures, and

dating will be needed to determine this. It will be of interest to

establish whether a certain style was more prominent in the Classic

177 Van Dyke. R, 2008, pp. 125.

181

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744and Late Bonito phases, each of which would have involved slightly

different ideologies.

Another avenue of research which is of particular importance is

the use of sunlight and how it may have been controlled at

Fluteplayer sites. We know that the Ancient Chacoans knew how to

control and use sunlight and we need to determine whether this is

apparent at Fluteplayer sites. Were the images only visible at

certain times of the day? If so, is there a pattern between the

sites and cultural features relating to their visibility times? This

may be of particular importance to sites which are situated directly

by or close to metates. The heat can be arduous, so perhaps tasks

were carried out at these sites at particular times of the day, when

the weather was cooler or the sites may be more secluded from the

heat.

Further research avenues and questions from this research are

now apparent. One of the key areas to address is dating. Although we

may never draw a conclusive date for the images we need to try and

establish them. Dates for the images that are depicted with the

Fluteplayer motif should also be obtained. This will then provide

the framework for analysis between the styles and associated motifs

and cultural features at each site. One cultural feature that is

present at some sites is staircases. Further research will be needed

at each site in order to try and determine the significance of

182

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744placing Fluteplayers near to or on them and the different context

which they appear to be in this special social and architectural

situation. The significance of Fluteplayer placements by metates

needs to now be fully researched. What is the relationship between

the two? The placement of Fluteplayers on higher cliff surfaces and

the grandeur that these impose is another research aspect. Do these

sites pose a different context and perhaps message of communication

as opposed to the sites which are situated on boulders and lower

cliff surfaces which are personal, accessible and more intimate?

Research will need to continue at each known Fluteplayer site, and I

will need to view the many that I have not already seen. All of

these questions will need to be answered in order to obtain

knowledge of the Fluteplayer motif and its place in Chaco Canyon.

After conclusions have been drawn it may also be possible to analyse

the Fluteplayers at various Great House communities and compare them

to those found in Chaco so that we can see their placement in wider

Ancient Puebloan society. Much of my research is based on the

function of certain cultural features, such as Great Houses and

metates, within Ancient Puebloan and Chacoan society. This is

primarily based on the research of Ruth Van Dyke. In personal

communication with her she reminded me that the function of the

Great Houses is still non-conclusive, and will remain speculative as

new ideas arise. With the suggestion of new ideas about Chaco Canyon

183

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744and its many great features, concepts about the Fluteplayer will

also change as they are dependent on the context in which they were

produced. The Chaco phenomena and ideas about it will continue to

change in the years to come. Whatever the outcome of future research

may be, and the conclusions that may be drawn from that research, we

know one thing, and that is that we may never know his true

function. We can only see his placement in context and speculate.

After being told to interpret the Fluteplayer by how I felt in his

presence by my friends on Jemez Pueblo I feel, for me, that he is a

musician who has continued to play his songs endlessly throughout

the centuries. He has entertained people with his mystic purpose for

many years, and I am quite certain that he will continue to do so

for many more to come.

184


Conclusion

185


Conclusion

The Fluteplayer rock art motif has seldom been studied from an

approach based in the discipline of Art History and in fact, no

single study yet exists of its presence in the Chaco Canyon; even

though the subject of rock art is often dominated by Archaeology and

Anthropology. Art History can, however, work cross-disciplinary with

these areas to study rock art. I have primarily applied Angus

Quinlan’s landscape approach to the study of the Fluteplayer, and

also Polly Schaafsma’s approach to the form and style of rock art

186

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744motifs. These two key approaches have been central to my

interpretation of the Fluteplayer in this thesis. By situating the

Fluteplayer into the landscape we can determine the context in which

it was produced, and from this suggest possible functions and

sociocultural aspects of the motif. One thing that I feel confident

to say about the Fluteplayer is that it was a sign, in the widest

sense of that term. Art History is one discipline that uses the

approach of semiotics to study images as sign systems, and I have

applied this to the Fluteplayer rock art motif. I believe that it

was a sign intended to communicate with the people who received an

interpreted its message, although I cannot say what this message may

have been. Any speculative ideas about its message will be dependent

on context.

Chaco Canyon is a landscape enshrined with symbolic meaning

and layers of symbolism, both natural and manmade. This symbolism

reflected an ideology which was present throughout much of the San

Juan Basin, but was centred at Chaco. Although many aspects of Chaco

are still open to debate, and are non-conclusive, I have based much

of my research on the work of Ruth Van Dyke and the ideas which she

presents. To her, structures such as Great Houses were placed in

specific places to symbolise this ideology. The structures

themselves were also enshrined with symbols, such as Winter and

Summer Solstice markers. This attention to the cosmos was a direct

187

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744reflection of an ideology which is thought was centred on the

production of food, and reliance on the rains in an unforgiving

environment. Rock art too also reflected this attention to the

cosmos with markers on such prominent features as Fajada Butte.

Roads too were used to symbolise this ideology, and appear to be

symbolic rather than practical. Their grandeur can be seen at the

North Road, where people from Great House Communities entered the

canyon to participate in ceremonial practices, such as the

construction of Great Houses. A short drought circa 1090AD saw a

shift in the ceremonial center place, and Salmon and Aztec to the

north became new centers. The drought ended in 1100AD, and following

this, precipitation increased in the Chaco area. Chaco tried to

reassert itself with a new and improved ideology, with frequent

references to the past. This saw the construction of new Great

Houses which became symbols for this new idea, whilst the older

Great Houses of the Classic Bonito era were used for domestic

purposes. The new ideology was short lived, and unsuccessful.

Another disastrous drought followed and Chaco was partially

abandoned, with only a few remaining behind. Later the canyon was

completely abandoned, along with Salmon, Aztec and Mesa Verde as the

Ancestral Puebloans moved further south, and to modern day Pueblos

such as Zuni. Following this geographic relocation, significant

cultural changes occurred and the Kachina Cult rose. It was in this

188

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744context that the Fluteplayer image was created and was followed by

western misunderstanding and misinterpretations surrounding the

images association with ‘Kokopelli’.

Many of the Fluteplayer sites which I know of are in the

vicinity of, or directly associated with, metates. Metates were not

used for purely domestic purposes; they were also used to grind

products such as paint pigments for activities such as ceremonies.

The act of these tasks was also ceremonial in itself. What the exact

relationship between this feature and the Fluteplayer motif is I am

yet to determine, however we can assume that it was somehow

connected to the acts which took place at these sites. What I can

say is that these sites were not gender specific as women would have

carried out many, possibly even all, of the tasks undertaken at

metates. This would not have excluded male involvement either

however. Another feature that the Fluteplayer can be found in

association to is stairways. This would present a very different

context for the motif, and it would have been seen by a wide

audience. It would not have been restricted as Van Dyke believes

stairways were a means of accessing the canyon. These very public

placements are reflected at many of the sites, and are often in

close association with Great Houses. The products created at metates

may have been used in ceremonies at Great Houses, and so their close

proximity would seem to be for convenience, as well as having a

189

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744prominent symbol of the Chaco ideology present whilst working at

these sites. It would have reinforced views. The Fluteplayer too, I

believe, was a sign that in some way reflected this ideology. It was

a way to communicate with the people more broadly. It cannot be

found by any Great Kiva sites which I know of, which could only

house a limited number of people, and so I further believe that this

image was not restricted in its use, and was a way to communicate

with a large section of society.

I am yet to see all of the sites in Chaco; however the three

which I personally viewed seemed to be very personal and accessible

as opposed to the sites which can be found high on mesa cliffs. Two

of these sites also had a very clear view (which was not hindered in

any way) of Fajada Butte and Gap. This site was an important

symbolic feature in the Chacoan landscape, and so I believe that the

incorporation of this view at the sites is not a coincidence. This

is further suggested by the placement of a Late Bonito Great House

in the area of the sites, which Van Dyke has suggested to me, in

personal communication, may have been placed there to incorporate

this view too. Fluteplayer site (J) has a metate associated with

it, and so the products created there may have been used in

ceremonies at this structure. The placement of the site near to the

Great House would have also made apparent the new ideology which the

Great House symbolised. One site, Fluteplayer (K), does not

190

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744incorporate a view of Fajada Butte, although it is still placed in

proximity to the Great House. Its line of sight is blocked by a

boulder which prevents any visual access to the surrounding area.

The only view is that of the mesa cliff which faces to the other

side. Fluteplayer (K) is also stylistically different, although it

is composed of the same characteristics which the other two

Fluteplayers have, such as ‘antenna’, a flute and hump back. It is

this difference, and view obstruction which currently leads me to

believe that this site may have been created by people with spatial

or temporal differences. Perhaps it was present before the

construction of the Great House? Both of the other sites are

stylistically similar, although part of Fluteplayer (L) and the

other side of the boulder which also housed Fluteplayers has sadly

fallen away. At this site though a zoomorphic figure is depicted

with the Fluteplayer and a stylistically similar one can also be

found with Fluteplayer (J). Fluteplayer (J) also has other features

at this site, such as a spiral and sunburst- like motif, as well as

a metate. I believe at present that this site referenced the Chaco

ideology directly, the spiral perhaps symbolising the cosmos which

helped to chart the seasons, an important aspect in agriculture for

planting and harvesting crops. The metate would have been used to

grind food goods as well as other products. Fajada Butte would have

symbolised these ideas, and was a reinforcement of this ideology.

191

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744What is needed at all of these sites, however, is dating and this

lack of clear chronology is clearing hampering further progress in

understanding the context of this kind of rock art imagery.

Dating is one of the many avenues of future research which have

become apparent with this research. No research like mine, to my

knowledge, has been undertaken at Chaco, and so this thesis was

always intended to be the foundation on which to build a strong

conclusive answer after many years of research. A full and in depth

analysis needs to be undertaken at each Fluteplayer site, this will

not only include dating, but an analysis of the motifs depicted with

the Fluteplayer, its visibility in distance and in the sun as well

as further research into associated cultural features including the

relationship between metates. What we do know is that it is a sign,

a sign which conveyed a symbolic meaning based on Chacoan ideology,

whatever that might have consisted of in its greatest phases of

expression. All of these questions will begin to reveal how the

Fluteplayer was part of this, and what function it may have played

and communicated to the people. One area of future research that we

can address with some certainty is what the Fluteplayer in Chaco

Canyon symbolises for the Pueblo people today. At present I cannot

reveal locations of Fluteplayer sites to anybody, including the

Pueblo people. I have a certain amount of trust from my peers and

colleagues at the Chaco Culture National Historical Park archives,

192

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744and so I cannot break this trust. In time though I hope to be able

to show Pueblo people the images of the Fluteplayer, and perhaps

even to visit sites with them, so that they can help me in

establishing their current symbolic meaning for the indigenous

descendants of the Ancestral Puebloans. This would not be applied to

prehistoric interpretations, but will help to give the native

peoples a voice in the study of their cultures and show the

importance of rock art for the indigenous people today. Whilst in

the finishing stages of writing this thesis, Schaafsma has published

a book entitled ‘Images and Power: Rock Art and Ethics’.178 From the

synopsis which I have read it seems that she addresses the

conflicting ideas between oral traditions and archaeology in regards

to the understanding and in interpretation of the landscape. This is

a concern with the Native American voice. I have already decided

that in my own future research I wish to address this conflicting

issue of ideas by documenting the history of Chaco Canyon and all of

its cultural features with Pueblo oral histories. Who better to

understand the landscape than the descendants of the Ancestral

Puebloans? This may alter Fluteplayer interpretations, but it is of

paramount importance that we interpret the landscape with indigenous

views and knowledge as Chaco is central to their history. Although I

have good relations with both Pueblo people and the National

Historical Park archivists and researchers, I cannot achieve this 178 Schaafsma.P. Images and Power: Rock Art and Ethics, New York: Springer, 2013.

193

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744goal yet, and thus I have mentioned very little about specific

locations and identifications throughout this thesis. This goal is

achievable though, and will require many more years of dedicated

research and trust through which to achieve it.

The intention of this research was to build a foundation on

which I can undertake future research. This thesis has illustrated

the fruits of this, and the future avenues of research that are now

apparent. Despite being a stepping stone into the research of the

Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon I feel that this MRes course and the

thesis project has provided me with more information than I had ever

hoped to have achieved, and more is yet to be attained with further

research.

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Young. J. ‘Profound Offense and Cultural Appropriation,’ The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, Vol.63, No.2, Spring 2005, pp.135-146.

Whitley, D S and Dorn, R I. ‘Chronometric and Relative Age Determination of Petroglyphs in the Western United States,’ Annals andAssociation of American Geographers, Vol.74, No.2, June 1984, pp. 308-322.

Young, M J. ‘Images of Power and the Power of Images: The Significance of Rock art for Contemporary Zunis,’ The Journal of American Folklore, Vol.98, No.387, January-March 1985, pp.3-48.

Video and Film

Dreamkeeper. Film. Dir. Steve Barron. Hallmark Entertainment Productions, 2003.

Avatar. Film. Dir. James Cameron. Twentieth Century Fox, 2009.

Into The West. TV Series. Dir. Robert Dornhelm, Simon Wincer, Sergio Mimica-Gezzan et al, Producer. Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks LLC, 2006.

204

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Thunderheart. Dir. Michael Apted, TriStar Pictures Inc, 1992.

Dances With Wolves. Dir. Kevin Costner, Warner Brothers Pictures, 1990.

Last Of The Dogmen. Dir. Tab Murphy, Twentieth Century Fox, 1995.

Petroglyph National Monument ~ Albuquerque - Native American rock art. YouTube, posted by: ziamediagroup. [Online] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBU3_IPZc04 [09/06/11]

Websites

‘Great Basin National Park-Upper Pictograph Cave’ [Online]

http://www.nps.gov?grba/historyculture/upper-pictograph-cave.htm [27th March 2010]

‘Glen Canyon Archaeology Sites Under attack By Vandals’ [Online] http://www.azcentral.com/private/cleanprint/?1286566251369 [8th October 2010]

‘Introduction: Rainmakers from the Gods’ [Online] http://140.247.102.177/katsina/intoductions.html [7th June 2010]

‘The Origins of the Katsina’ [Online] http://140.247.102.177/katsina/origins.html [7th June 2010]

Jensen, J. ‘Anasazi Rock Art’ [Online] http://www.onlinenevada.org/anasazirockart [27th March 2010]

‘Anasazi People’ [Online] http://www.crystalinks.com/anasazi.html [14th May 2010]

205

./http:%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%3Fgrba%2Fhistoryculture%2Fupper-pictograph-cave.htm

http://www.crystalinks.com/anasazi.html

http://www.onlinenevada.org/anasazirockart

http://140.247.102.177/katsina/origins.html

http://140.247.102.177/katsina/intoductions.html

http://www.azcentral.com/private/cleanprint/?1286566251369

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBU3_IPZc04

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Maestri, N. ‘Anasazi Timeline’ [Online] http://www.archaeology.about.com/od/americansouthwest/a/anasazi_timeline.htm?p=1 [29th July 2010]

‘Bureau of Land Management Colorado, Anasazi Heritage Centre’ [Online] http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc [8th September 2010]

‘National Museum of the American [Online] http://nmai.si.edu [27th September 2010]

Rose, E R. ‘Rock art Ranch’ [Online] http://gosw.about.com/od/arizonatravelguide/p/rockartranch.htm [8th September 2010]

‘The lost City Museum’ [Online] http://museums.nevadaculture.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=397&Itemid=125 also http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Lost-City-Museum/110614428959606 [22nd August 2010]

‘The History of the World Museum’ [Online] http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/wml/ [24th September 2010]

‘The British Museum’ [Online] http://www.britishmuseum.org [16th September 2010]

‘Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford’ [Online] http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk [3rd October 2010]

‘The American Museum in Britain’ [Online] http://americanmuseum.org [25th September 2010]

‘Chaco’ [Online] http://www.chaco.com/park/ [28th December 2010]

206

http://www.chaco.com/park/

http://americanmuseum.org/

http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/

http://www.britishmuseum.org/

http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/wml/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Lost-City-Museum/110614428959606

http://museums.nevadaculture.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=397&Itemid=125

http://museums.nevadaculture.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=397&Itemid=125

http://gosw.about.com/od/arizonatravelguide/p/rockartranch.htm

http://nmai.si.edu/

http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc

http://www.archaeology.about.com/od/americansouthwest/a/anasazi_timeline.htm?p=1

http://www.archaeology.about.com/od/americansouthwest/a/anasazi_timeline.htm?p=1

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744‘Chaco Canyon Tour’ [Online] http://www.colorado.edu/Conferences/chaco/tour/chacomap.htm [28th December 2010]

‘World Heritage Convention: Chaco Culture’ [Online] http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/353/ [28th December 2010]

‘Who were the Anasazi’. [Online]

http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc/who_were_the_anasazi.html#hunt [1st January 2011]

‘Intertribal Council of Arizona: Hopi Tribe’ [Online] http://www.itcaonline.com/tribes_hopi.html [2nd January 2011]

‘Pueblo of Zuni’ [Online] http://www.ashiwi.org/ [2nd January 2011]

‘nps.gov: Chaco Culture’ [Online] http://www.nps.gov/chcu/index.htm [2nd January 2011]

The best website for Chaco Canyon, it includes detailed maps, onlineMuseum Collection and a data base of Rock Art from the area.

‘Chaco Culture; Chaco Canyon Place Names’ [Online] http://www.wnpa.org/freepubs/CHCU/Chaco_place_names.pdf [24th June 2011]

‘Harry Walters Interview’ [Online] http://www.kued.org/productions/thelongwalk/film/interviews/harryWalters.php [24th June 2011]

Heyd. T and Clegg. J. ‘Re-Thinking Aesthetics and Rock Art (Presentation Notes)’ [Online] http://mc2.vicnet.net.au/home/interpret/shared_files/Cleggheyd.pdf [8th July 2011]

207

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http://www.wnpa.org/freepubs/CHCU/Chaco_place_names.pdf

http://www.nps.gov/chcu/index.htm

http://www.ashiwi.org/

http://www.itcaonline.com/tribes_hopi.html

http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc/who_were_the_anasazi.html#hunt

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/353/

http://www.colorado.edu/Conferences/chaco/tour/chacomap.htm


‘Heard Museum Shop’ [Online] http://www.heardmuseumshop.com/browse.cfm/4,8764.html [11th September2011]

‘Chaco Research Archive’ [Online] http://www.chacoarchive.org/cra/ [September 2010- Present]

Articles in Electronic Journals

Holmes, S M. ‘Amendments toughen Anti-Fraud Arts and Crafts Law’. The Washington Post [Online] http://washingtompost.com/ 18th September 2010. Approx. 4 printed pages. [19th September 2010]

Rogers, K. ‘Scientists report Anasazi village site found at Springs Preserve’. Las Vegas Review-Journal [Online] http://www.printthis.clickability.com 9th January 2009. Approx. 2 printed pages. Available: Review Journal.com [15th August 2010]

‘Taos Pueblo Commemorate 49th Anniversary of the Return of Blue Lake’. [Online] http://taospueblo.com/blue lake.php [19th September 2010]

Bornfield, S.’Lost City Museum celebrates 75 years preserving remnants of Ancient Culture.’ Las Vegas Review-Journal [Online] http://www.printthis.clickability.com 24th September 2010. Approx. 2 printed pages. Available: ReviewJournal.com [26th September 2010]

Ryan, C. ‘Museums hit under proposed cuts to state budget’. Las Vega Sun [Online] http://lasvegassun.com/news/2010/oct/19/museums-hit-under-proposed-cuts-state-budget 19th October 2010. Approx.1 printedpage. Available:Lasvegassun.com [22nd October 2010]

Bower, B. ‘Massacre at Sacred Ridge’. Science News [Online] http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/64465/title/Massacreatsac

208

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/64465/title/Massacreatsacredridge%206th%20November%202010

http://lasvegassun.com/news/2010/oct/19/museums-hit-under-proposed-cuts-state-budget%2019th%20October%202010

http://lasvegassun.com/news/2010/oct/19/museums-hit-under-proposed-cuts-state-budget%2019th%20October%202010

http://www.printthis.clickability.com/

http://taospueblo.com/blue%20lake.php

http://www.printthis.clickability.com/

http://washingtompost.com/

http://www.chacoarchive.org/cra/

http://www.heardmuseumshop.com/browse.cfm/4,8764.html

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744redridge 6th November 2010. Approx.8 printed pages. Available:Lasvegassun.com [22nd October 2010]

Krause, R. ‘Rock Art Perspectives: Pictographs and Petroglyphs’ Boise Weekly [Online] http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/rock-art-perspectives-pictographs-and-petroglyphs/ 26th May 2010. Approx.2 printed pages. Available:boiseweekly.com [27th May 2010]

“Rock Art Perspectives: Pictographs and Petroglyphs” now on display at the State Museum’. This is Reno [Online] http://thisisreno.com/2009/12/ Available: boiseweekly.com [12th May 2010]

Schertow, J. ‘Saving North American Sacred Sites’. The Guardian [Online] http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/oct/18/sacred-sites-native-american 18th October 2010. Approx. 2 printed pages. Available:guardian.co.uk [18th October 2010]

Montoya, S. ‘Bandlier Monument shares NM Pueblo people’s story’. Abc News [Online] http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=11482530 Approx. 2 printed pages. Available: abcnews.go.com [26th August 2010]

Liu, M. ‘155 years later, descendants of treaty signers gather to apologise, reconcile’. Seattle Times [Online] http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2012698328_tribe23.html 23rd August 2010. Approx. 3 printed pages. Available:seattletimes.nwsource.com [23rd August 2010]

Rodgers, W. ‘Uncle Sam’s shameful treatment of today’s American Indian’. The Christian Science [Online] http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Walter-Rodgers/2010/1004/Uncle-Sam-s-shameful-treatment-of-today-s-American-Indians 4th October 2010. Approx. 2 printed pages. Available: csmonitor.com [4th October 2010]

Thompson, L. ‘In Arizona, a Native American model for preservation-without the Casino’. The Christian Science Monitor [Online]

209

http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Walter-Rodgers/2010/1004/Uncle-Sam-s-shameful-treatment-of-today-s-American-Indians%204th%20October%202010



http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2012698328_tribe23.html%2023rd%20August%202010

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2012698328_tribe23.html%2023rd%20August%202010

http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=11482530

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/oct/18/sacred-sites-native-american%2018th%20October%202010

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/oct/18/sacred-sites-native-american%2018th%20October%202010

http://thisisreno.com/2009/12/

http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/rock-art-perspectives-pictographs-and-petroglyphs/

http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/rock-art-perspectives-pictographs-and-petroglyphs/

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/64465/title/Massacreatsacredridge%206th%20November%202010

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2010/0917/In-Arizona-a-Native-American-model-for-preservation-without-the-casino 17th September 2010. Approx.1 printed page. Available: csmonitor.com [19th

September 2010]

‘Ancient Rock Art Outside Vegas Damaged by Graffiti’. 8 News Now [Online] http://www.8newsnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=13581513 29th November 2010. Approx.2 printed pages. Available: 8newsnow.com [21st December 2010]

‘I-Team: Las Vegas Paiutes React to Red Rock Graffiti’. 8 News Now [Online] http://www.8newsnow.com/story/13655610/i-team-las-vegas-paiutes-react-to-red-rock-graffiti 11 December 2010. Approx. 1 printed page. Available: 8newsnow.com [21st December 2010]

‘Street Talk Commentary: Help Protect Cultural Sites From Vandals’. 8 News Now [Online] http://www.8newsnow.com/story/13599397/street-talk-commentary-help-protect-cultural-sites-from-vandals 2nd December 2010. Aprrox.2 printed pages. Available: 8newsnow.com [21st December 2010]

Schweizer, M.‘The Prehistoric Treasure in the Fields of Indiana’, npr [Online] http://www.npr.org/2011/01/03/132412112/the-prehistoric-treasure-in-the-fields-of-indiana Approx. 3 printed pages. Available:npr.com [4th January 2011]

Toensing, G. ‘Jemez Pueblo, Santa Fe National Forest Sign Historic Pact’, Indian Country Today [Online] http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/southwest/Jemez-Pueblo-Santa-Fe-National-Forest-sign-historic-pact-113075064.html Approx. 3printed pages. Available: Indiancountrytoday.com [7th January 2011]

Cornett, J. ‘Petroglyphs Depict Bighorn History and Lore’, My Desert [Online] http://www.mydesert.com/article/20101219/COLUMNS08/12180346/1067/LIFESTYLES11/Petroglyphs+depict+bighorn+history+and+lore Approx.2 printed pages. Available: mydesert.com [7th January 2011]

210

http://www.mydesert.com/article/20101219/COLUMNS08/12180346/1067/LIFESTYLES11/Petroglyphs+depict+bighorn+history+and+lore

http://www.mydesert.com/article/20101219/COLUMNS08/12180346/1067/LIFESTYLES11/Petroglyphs+depict+bighorn+history+and+lore

http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/southwest/Jemez-Pueblo-Santa-Fe-National-Forest-sign-historic-pact-113075064.html

http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/southwest/Jemez-Pueblo-Santa-Fe-National-Forest-sign-historic-pact-113075064.html

http://www.npr.org/2011/01/03/132412112/the-prehistoric-treasure-in-the-fields-of-indiana

http://www.npr.org/2011/01/03/132412112/the-prehistoric-treasure-in-the-fields-of-indiana

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/13599397/street-talk-commentary-help-protect-cultural-sites-from-vandals%202nd%20December%202010



http://www.8newsnow.com/story/13655610/i-team-las-vegas-paiutes-react-to-red-rock-graffiti%20%2011%20December%202010

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/13655610/i-team-las-vegas-paiutes-react-to-red-rock-graffiti%20%2011%20December%202010

http://www.8newsnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=13581513

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2010/0917/In-Arizona-a-Native-American-model-for-preservation-without-the-casino%20%2017th%20September%202010




Cross, J. ‘Hopi tribe donation reopens Homolovi ruins for visitors’,KTAR.com [Online] http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110310/Hopi-tribe-donation-reopens-Homolovi-ruins-for-visitors/ Approx. One printed page. Available: www.KTAR.com [10th March 2011]

Hollenhorst. J. ‘Dispute Over Indian Graves Erupts Near Tocqueville’, Ksl [Online] http://www.ksl.com/?sid=15347588&nid=148 Approx. Two printed pages. Available: www.ksl.com [1st May 2011]

‘News Release: Exhibition at the Smithsonian Documents Impact of theRailroads on the Native Southwest.’ [Online] http://newsdesk.si.edu/releases/exhibition-smithsonian-documents-impact-railroads-native-southwest [17th September 2011]

‘Prehistoric Indian archaeological sites in NM national monument reopen after fire, flooding’ The Washington Post [Online]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/prehistoric-indian-archaeological-sites-in-nm-national-monument-reopen-after-fire-flooding/2011/09/26/gIQAwyA6zK_story.html [27th September 2011]

Pahre. R. ‘No Longer Circling the wagons: Many National Parks Get Indian Stories Wrong’ Indian Country [Online] http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2011/08/no-longer-circling-the-wagons-many-national-parks-get-indian-stories-wrong/ [10th November 2011]

Mann. C. C. ‘The Birth of Religion’ National Geographic Magazine [Online]http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/06/gobekli-tepe/mann-text [25.07.2012]

‘Ancient Calif. rock carvings recovered after theft’ The Associated Press[Online] http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/02/01/3156257/ancient-calif-rock-carvings-recovered.html [02.02.2013]

211

http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/02/01/3156257/ancient-calif-rock-carvings-recovered.html

http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/02/01/3156257/ancient-calif-rock-carvings-recovered.html

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/06/gobekli-tepe/mann-text

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/06/gobekli-tepe/mann-text

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2011/08/no-longer-circling-the-wagons-many-national-parks-get-indian-stories-wrong/

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2011/08/no-longer-circling-the-wagons-many-national-parks-get-indian-stories-wrong/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/prehistoric-indian-archaeological-sites-in-nm-national-monument-reopen-after-fire-flooding/2011/09/26/gIQAwyA6zK_story.html



http://newsdesk.si.edu/releases/exhibition-smithsonian-documents-impact-railroads-native-southwest

http://newsdesk.si.edu/releases/exhibition-smithsonian-documents-impact-railroads-native-southwest

http://www.ksl.com/

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=15347588&nid=148

http://www.KTAR.com/

http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110310/Hopi-tribe-donation-reopens-Homolovi-ruins-for-visitors/

http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110310/Hopi-tribe-donation-reopens-Homolovi-ruins-for-visitors/

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744Email Correspondence

Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Southwest Rock Art Research. Email to the National Museum of the American Indian ResourceCentre-Mary Ahenakew ( [email protected]) , 11th January 2011.

Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Catching UP. Email to Randolph Orr ([email protected]) , 9th August 2010.

Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Rock Art Research. Emailto Andrew Gulliford ([email protected]) 28th June 2011.

Vendome-Gardner.C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer Research. Email to Ekkehart Malotki ([email protected]) 1st September 2011.

Vendome-Gardner.C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer Rock Art. Email to Angus R. Quinlan ([email protected]) 3rd September 2011.

Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Chaco Canyon. Email to Wendy Bustard ([email protected]) July 2011- Present

Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Rock Art and Late Bonito Structures. Email to Ruth Van Dyke ([email protected]) July 2012- Present

Vendome-Gardner. C. ([email protected]) Fluteplayer and Thesis Conversations. Email to Jane Kolber ([email protected]) November 2011- Present

Other

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Seminar Paper

Heyd.T and Clegg. J. Re-Thinking Aesthetics and Rock Art, Presented to the Rock Art Society of India International Rock Art Congress. 28th November- 2 December 2004, [Online] http://mc2.vicnet.net.au/home/interpret/shared_files/Cleggheyd.pdf [7th July 2011]

Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project Documents

Please note that the stars obscure a site name which may lead to thelocation of the Fluteplayer site.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D, The Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project, March 2001, The Painted Hunting Scene and Fluteplayer Rock Behind ****, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D, The 1999 Chaco- Rock Art Reassessment Project, The ChacoCulture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D, The Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project, September 2001 and April 2002 **** Trail, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D, The Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project, March 2001 **** to ****, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D, The 1998 Chaco Rock Art Reassessment Project, The ChacoCulture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D. The Great Anasazi Rock Art of Chaco Canyon: Possible and Probable Implications. Paper Presented at the ‘American Rock Art ResearchAssociation Conference’ May 2001, Pendleton Oregon, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

213

http://mc2.vicnet.net.au/home/interpret/shared_files/Cleggheyd.pdf


Kolber. J and Yoder. D. The Anasazi Rock Art of Chaco Canyon. A Preliminary Reportof the Findings, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Kolber. J and Yoder. D. The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Rock Art Projects: Recording, Preserving and Interpreting Rock Art at a National Park in the USA, A Presentation for the ‘Vi Simposio Internacional De Arte Rupestre’ November 2003, Jujuy Argentina, The Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archives Albuquerque.

Authors Declaration

214

MARE 501 The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon Student ID: 10089744At no time during the registration for the Degree of Master of Research has the author been registered for any other University award without prior agreement of the Faculty Committee.

This work will be presented for examination on March 18th 2013 and should be considered in conjunction with this submission.

I certify that the work in this thesis is wholly my own except whereacknowledgment of other sources is clearly made.

In preparing for this thesis, a program of advance study was undertaken, which included a postgraduate course on research in the arts & humanities and a subject- specific research module entitled Research Methods in Art History.

Relevant seminars and workshops were regularly attended at which work was presented.

These Include: Presentations by the Author and Workshops.

Word Count of main body of thesis:

Signed………………………………………………………………………………………..

Date………………………………………………………………………………………….

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MRES Thesis: The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon

Documents

Transcript of MRES Thesis: The Fluteplayer of Chaco Canyon