Chapter 2: G and G Hamlet, The Sand Canyon Archaeological Project: Site Testing

G and G Hamlet, Site 5MT11338, was initially recorded in 1986 as Site CC86-123 during a cultural resources reconnaissance by a Crow Canyon crew (Van West et al. 1987). The site was later selected to be tested as part of Crow Canyon's Sand Canyon Project Site Testing Program. During the 1991 field season, the site was tested using stratified random sampling. Mark D. Varien and Kristin A. Kuckelman directed excavations.

The site was selected for testing because it seemed likely that excavation would produce data useful in answering the research questions posed by the Site Testing Program. Of particular interest was the community of sites surrounding Sand Canyon Pueblo. Up-canyon sites tested in 1988, 1989, and 1990 (Lillian's Site, Roy's Ruin, Shorlene's Site, Troy's Tower, Catherine's Site, Stanton's Site, Lester's Site, and Lookout House) were selected because the pottery (a predominance of Mesa Verde Black-on-white) on modern ground surface indicated that these were among the latest sites in the community and were thus possibly contemporaneous with Sand Canyon Pueblo. The sites tested in 1991 (G and G Hamlet and Kenzie Dawn Hamlet), on the other hand, were selected because they are among very few sites in the community that have slightly earlier pottery assemblages (a predominance of McElmo Black-on-white) on modern ground surface. The testing of these two sites was an attempt to (1) establish the existence of a resident population in the area surrounding Sand Canyon Pueblo immediately prior to the population increase, aggregation, and final regional abandonment in the A.D. 1200s; (2) characterize this resident population during that time period; and (3) recover comparative data for the later sites tested. In addition, it was hoped that testing of McElmo-dominated sites (sites dating to the last half of the A.D. 1100s) would add to the understanding of a time period which has been very poorly tree-ring dated across the southern Colorado Plateau (Berry 1982:Figure 12C). For additional discussion of the Site Testing Program objectives, see Chapter 1 of this volume.

G and G Hamlet is located in Montezuma County, southwestern Colorado. This mesa-top site is located on a low ridge between two secondary drainages of Yellow Jacket Canyon, near the south rim of that canyon (Figure 1.7). Sand Canyon Pueblo is 3000 ft (914 m) due south. The site sits at an elevation of 6820 ft (2078 m) and slopes approximately 2 degrees. The nearest known permanent water source during the time of occupation was the spring at Sand Canyon Pueblo.

The primary vegetation on the site today is pinyon pine (Pinus edulis), juniper (Juniperus osteosperma), rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus nauseosus), cheat grass (Bromus tectorum), and Mormon tea (Ephedra viridis). The original vegetation in the area was removed by "chaining" in the 1960s. Chaining involves uprooting vegetation by traversing the landscape with an anchor chain stretched between two pieces of heavy machinery. This procedure was performed in an attempt to improve the quality of the range; most of this portion of the mesa top was used as rangeland historically. The procedure also undoubtedly damaged cultural material on and near the modern ground surface.

Also in the historic past, looting occurred at G and G Hamlet. Several looters' pits were observed in the south midden prior to excavation. The remainder of the site appeared to be intact.

The remains visible on the modern ground surface include a north-south-trending masonry rubble mound, a pit structure depression to the east of the rubble mound, a slight linear, topographic rise surrounding the pit structure depression on three sides, two midden areas, and an artifact scatter (Figure 2.1).

The site was divided into horizontal strata for stratified random sampling (Figure 2.2). Surface remains were used to define the sampling strata. The rubble mound was designated Sampling Stratum 1. The pit structure depression is Sampling Stratum 2. The courtyard, or Sampling Stratum 3, consists of the area immediately surrounding the pit structure depression. Sampling Stratum 4 is the "architectural inner periphery," which surrounds the rubble mound and the courtyard, and includes both a buffer strip west of the rubble mound, and the linear, topographic rise around the pit structure. The larger midden, southeast of the architecture, is designated Sampling Stratum 5. Sampling Stratum 6 is the smaller midden, which is northeast of the architecture. Sampling Stratum 7 is a buffer area around the south midden. Sampling Stratum 8 includes the artifact scatter on the south half of the site, and Sampling Stratum 9 is the scatter on the north half of the site.

Testing at G and G Hamlet consisted of the excavation of 50 randomly selected 1-×-1-m test pits, one judgment 1-×-1-m pit, and two judgment 1-×-2-m pits (Figure 2.2). Testing resulted in the definition of features and structures associated with two separate site occupations, including two masonry surface rooms, an earth-walled pit structure, a masonry-lined kiva, two midden areas, and many extramural features. Both occupations appear to be habitations, judging from the number and variety of structures, features, and artifacts associated with each.

One judgment 1-×-2-m unit was excavated at the southeast edge of the roomblock in order to complete an east-west stratigraphic profile through the roomblock. This profile was necessary to document the stratigraphic relationship between the early and late components. The other two judgment units were excavated to sample the hearth in the kiva and to expose an east-west stratigraphic profile through this structure in order to establish its contemporaneity with the masonry roomblock. The major cultural units defined by this testing are shown in Figure 2.3.

The early occupation of the site dates to the Pueblo II period; an earth-walled pit structure, the north midden, and many of the extramural features are believed to be associated with the early occupation. Most of these extramural features are post holes from post-and-adobe rooms.

The remains of an occupation dating to the Pueblo III period were also exposed. These remains include a masonry-lined kiva, two masonry surface rooms, the south midden, and a few extramural features.

The site grid is oriented to a masonry wall line in the rubble mound observable at modern ground surface. This wall line is oriented 347 degrees, which is one-half of one degree east of true north, or 13 degrees west of magnetic north. Pieces of rebar were set in concrete at grid points 65N/100E and 100N/100E; the tops of these markers are also secondary vertical datums. The primary vertical datum is a piece of rebar on the rubble mound. The top of this rebar was arbitrarily designated 100 m elevation. The elevation of the top of the rebar at 65N/100E is 99.59 m, and the rebar at 100N/100E is 98.86 m in elevation.

The remainder of this chapter is organized by sampling strata, which are presented in numerical order. Cultural units are described, also in numerical order, with the sampling stratum in which they were discovered.

Surface Architecture (Sampling Stratum 1)

Sampling Stratum 1 was defined by the surface architecture that was observable on the modern ground surface, that is, the masonry rubble mound. There was no attempt to define or include the area or areas that might contain remains of earlier post-and-adobe surface rooms, although remains of this type were encountered in this sampling stratum and elsewhere at the site.

Sampling Stratum 1 encompasses 50 m². Five 1-×-1-m units were randomly selected for excavation (79N/93E, 79N/91E, 80N/92E, 80N/91E, and 87N/94E). In addition to these random pits, a 1-×-2-m judgment unit (80N/94E) was excavated to establish the stratigraphic relationship between the Pueblo III masonry roomblock and the Pueblo II post-and-adobe rooms.

During testing in this sampling stratum, two masonry surface rooms and 28 extramural features were encountered, including at least 16 post holes (Figure 2.4). The masonry surface rooms are described first, followed by discussions of stratigraphy and extramural features by excavation unit. Basic data for the extramural features encountered in this sampling stratum are listed in Table 2.1.

Structure 2 (Surface Room)

Structure 2 is an unburned masonry surface room at the south end of the rubble mound (Figure 2.5, Figure 2.6). Short sections of walls and a 1-×-1-m area of floor were exposed during testing. The northwest corner of the room was observed in unit 80N/92E, the northeast corner was exposed in judgment unit 80N/94E, and the floor was observed in unit 79N/93E.

Construction

Structure 2 measures 2.1 m east-west and at least 1.52 m north-south (the south wall was not located during testing). Wall, roof, and floor construction are described in this section.

Walls. Very small sections of the north, east, and west walls were exposed. All three walls are of compound construction. Too little of each wall face was exposed to determine the type of vertical coursing. The walls rest on a foundation of construction fill (refer to Figure 2.6 and the stratigraphy discussion). The mortar in all three walls is a fine-textured, dark reddish brown material containing sandstone flecks. The mortar beds are flush with the rock faces and measure 2 cm thick and 2 to 3 cm wide.

The north wall is known to be 2.1 m long, but only 31 cm of this length is exposed. The wall reaches a height of 63 cm (three courses) above the floor and is 30 cm thick. This wall is abutted by the east and west walls of the room. Eighty percent of the observed rocks had been shaped by pecking, and the remaining rocks were unshaped. Eighty percent are blocky, 10 percent are tabular, and 10 percent are irregularly shaped. The few chinking stones observed were spalls.

The east wall was observed from the outside of the room only. The wall is 20 cm high (four courses), as measured on the outside face of the wall, but actually rises only 7 cm above the level of the Structure 2 floor. The wall is 24 cm wide, and it abuts the north wall. One-half of the faces have been shaped by pecking; the other half are unshaped. All of the stones observed are tabular. Tabular, chunk, and spall chinking were all noted in the east wall.

The west wall rises to a height of 32 cm (three courses) above the floor, and it is 28 cm wide. This wall abuts the north wall. The faces of the stones are mostly pecked (80 percent), but a few (10 percent) are flaked or were left unshaped (10 percent). One-half of the rocks are tabular, and one-half are irregular. All of the chinking stones observed in the west wall were spalls.

Roof. No roof-support features were detected on the floor of Structure 2, but surface structure roofs were commonly supported by the walls during this time period. A stratum of what has been postulated as roof fall was documented during excavation and stratigraphic profiling (Figure 2.6). However, no vegetal material was included in this deposit, and a good deal of rotted wood was preserved in other contexts on this site. Thus, either this structure was never roofed, or the roof beams were salvaged.

Surface 1. Surface 1 is the floor of Structure 2. It is formed of sandstone slabs and rocks set into a bed of adobe 1 to 4 cm thick (Figure 2.5 and Figure 2.6). This surface was not recognized when it was initially exposed during excavation, because of the rather poor execution of the paving and the substantial disturbance caused by a tree growing in the southwest corner of the excavation unit. The surface was constructed on 25 to 30 cm of intentional fill on top of the Pueblo II occupation surface (see stratigraphic description below).

Surface 1

Surface 1 is the floor in Structure 2. An area of floor measuring 1.1 m² was exposed during testing. Because the paving was neither well executed nor well preserved, no artifacts or features were recognized as being associated with this surface during excavation.

Stratigraphy

Structure 2 contains 30 to 40 cm of natural deposits and structural collapse and rests on a foundation of 25 to 30 cm of constructional fill. Figure 2.6 illustrates the east-west stratigraphic profile through the roomblock along the 80N line. No artifacts were recovered from the fill of this room. The section of the profile that portrays the fill in Structure 2 is discussed from the modern ground surface to undisturbed sterile sediment.

Stratum 1 is brown to dark brown silt loam containing very small and sparse charcoal flecks and sandstone ranging from very small pieces to rocks of building-stone size (10 × 20 cm). The boundary with Stratum 2 is fairly clear and smooth. This stratum is the result of the most recent depositional event, and it contains most of the wall fall stones. The sediment between the rocks is primarily aeolian and alluvial, however.

Stratum 2 is brown silty clay loam containing sparse charcoal flecks and sparse sandstone bits. The boundary with Stratum 3 is very abrupt and smooth. This is the initial deposit after the Pueblo III occupation. It may be roof collapse, because it contains few inclusions and looks similar to adobe. If it is roofing material, the timbers must have been removed; rotted wood is preserved elsewhere on the site.

Stratum 3 is a brown to dark brown silt loam containing adobe nodules as large as 2 cm in diameter, burned adobe flecks, abundant charcoal flecks, sparse calcium carbonate flecks, a moderate number of sandstone bits, and a small number of sandstone rocks as large as 5 cm in diameter. The boundary with undisturbed sterile sediment is very abrupt and smooth.

The undisturbed B-horizon surface upon which Stratum 3 rests is the Pueblo II occupation surface; thus, Stratum 3 postdates the Pueblo II occupation. This stratum appears to consist of material intentionally deposited as construction fill to provide a level foundation for the Pueblo III masonry roomblock.

Dating

No absolute dates are available for Structure 2, and no artifacts were recovered from the fill or floor of the structure. However, the construction technique of this room and of the roomblock of which it is a part indicates that the roomblock is associated with Structure 1 (kiva). The kiva has been dated by pottery to the Pueblo III period.

Interpretations

Structure 2 is an unburned, masonry surface structure of unknown function. Stratigraphy and associated architecture indicate that the room was constructed during the Pueblo III occupation of the site. The room was built on construction fill that was intentionally placed on the Pueblo II occupation surface as a foundation, not only for this end of the roomblock, but for the courtyard surface to the east as well (Figure 2.6). The paved floor probably provided a firmer, more stable use surface than the construction fill alone would have afforded.

This structure appears to be an addition attached to the south end of the roomblock because both its east and west walls abut its north wall. Thus, the room probably was not constructed at the beginning of the Pueblo III occupation.

There is some evidence that Structure 2 was roofed--the stratum resting on the floor appears to be the sediment portion of the collapsed roof. If this is the case, then the roof must have been supported by the walls, because no post holes were exposed on the floor. Also, the roofing timbers must have been salvaged, because unburned timbers are well preserved in other contexts on the site. The remainder of the fill in Structure 2 is wall fall and other natural deposits.

Structure 3 (Surface Room)

Structure 3 is an unburned masonry surface room that adjoins Structure 2 on the north (Figure 2.5). Very short sections of the inside and outside faces of its west and south walls were exposed in random unit 80N/92E. Also exposed in this unit was a small area (32 × 44 cm) of floor in the southwest corner of the room. A section of the outside face of the east wall was exposed in judgment unit 80N/94E.

Construction

Structure 3 measures 2.0 m east-west and at least 1.28 m north-south (the location of the north wall of the room is not known). These measurements are to the outside faces of the walls. The architecture of this structure is described in this section, including walls, roof, and floor.

Walls. Sections of the south, west, and east walls were documented during testing. All three walls rest on a foundation of construction fill (see the stratigraphy discussion for Structure 2). The outside of the south wall has been described above as the north wall of Structure 2; the inside of this wall is described here. The south wall is known to be 2.1 m long, although only 31 cm of it is exposed. It reaches 73 cm (eight courses) in height above the floor, and it is 30 cm wide. This wall is tied to the west and east walls. The masonry is semicoursed and is compound in cross section.

Of the observable stones in the south wall, 40 percent are blocky, 40 percent are tabular, and 20 percent are irregular; none have been shaped. The types of chinking stones include tabular, chunk, and spall. The mortar beds are flush, measuring 3 cm wide and 2 cm thick. The mortar is a fine-textured, strong brown sediment that contains flecks of calcium carbonate.

The west wall is 30 cm high and 32 cm wide; 46 cm of length was exposed. The two vertical courses that survive appear to be semicoursed, and the wall is one stone wide. The west wall is tied to the south wall. None of the stones in this wall are shaped; 90 percent are tabular and 10 percent are blocky. Chinking stones are of the chunk type. The mortar beds are concave and measure 4 cm wide and 2 cm thick. The mortar is the same as that described for the south wall.

A 51-cm-long section of the outside face of the east wall was exposed during testing; 1.15 m of the top of this wall was observable at modern ground surface. It is 65 cm high (five courses) and 31 cm wide. The masonry is semicoursed, compound in cross section, and it appears to be tied to the south wall. All of the exposed stones are tabular; 80 percent of the faces are pecked, 10 percent are abraded, and 10 percent are unshaped. The mortar beds are flush, 5 cm wide and 2 cm thick. The mortar is the same as that described for the other walls.

Roof. A stratum of fill resting on the floor may be the remains of roof fall (see Stratigraphy, below). This stratum is the same color and texture as Stratum 2 in Structure 2, which is interpreted as possible roof fall (Figure 2.6). No post hole was observed in the southwest corner of the room, so a roof would have been supported by the walls. No vegetal material was observed during testing of Structure 3, so if the room contains roof fall, the timbers must have been salvaged.

Surface 1. This surface is the floor of Structure 3. Unlike the floor in Structure 2, there was no evidence of paving in the small area exposed. In fact, there appeared to be no preparation of this surface beyond the construction fill that forms the foundation for this end of the roomblock and the courtyard surface to the east. The top of this fill coincides with the base of the masonry walls.

Surface 1

An area of floor 32 × 44 cm was exposed during testing. No features were documented, and no artifacts were point-located on the surface. Several artifacts were recovered from the fill just above the floor, however, and these may be associated with the use of the room; one Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray sherd and six pieces of chipped-stone debris were recovered.

Stratigraphy

The fill in Structure 3 is similar to that described for Structure 2 (Figure 2.6) and consists of approximately 70 cm of postabandonment deposits and 16 cm of construction fill beneath the floor. This stratigraphy is described from the modern ground surface to undisturbed sterile sediment.

Stratum 1 is 30 cm of brown to dark brown silt loam containing sparse charcoal flecks, sandstone ranging from very small pieces to fist-size rocks, and a small number of calcium carbonate flecks. The boundary with Stratum 2 is clear and smooth. This stratum is the final deposit in the room, and it consists of wall fall stones in a matrix of alluvial and aeolian sediment.

Stratum 2 is 35 cm of brown silty clay loam containing tiny charcoal, adobe, and calcium carbonate flecks, and sandstone ranging in size from small bits to rocks as large as 20 × 15 cm. The boundary was not clearly visible in the profile because of poor lighting, but it was easily observed during excavation. Stratum 2 appears to be a combination of wall collapse and the sediment portion of roof fall; no vegetal material was observed.

Stratum 3 is 16 cm of strong brown silty clay loam containing a moderate number of calcium carbonate flecks and sparse, tiny charcoal flecks. The boundary with sterile sediment is very abrupt and smooth. This material is interpreted to be construction fill placed on top of the Pueblo II use surface during construction of the Pueblo III roomblock.

One Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray sherd and four pieces of chipped-stone debris were recovered from the fill of Structure 3. The origin of these artifacts is unknown.

Dating

No absolute dates are available for Structure 3. Stratigraphically, the room is associated with the Pueblo III occupation of the site. The two pottery sherds recovered from the room are Pueblo III types as well.

Interpretations

Structure 3 is an unburned, masonry surface room of unknown function. It adjoins Structure 2 on the north. The stratigraphy and the associated pottery date the room to the Pueblo III occupation of the site. The room was built on intentional construction fill placed on the Pueblo II occupation surface. At the time of construction, Structure 3 was probably the southernmost room in the roomblock; Structure 2 appears to have been added later, as its east and west walls abut the south wall of Structure 3.

The position of Structure 3 in the rubble mound suggests that it has four walls; the west, south, and east walls were defined, and the rubble mound continues for several meters to the north, so a north wall is assumed to have existed. If the room does contain four walls, then one would assume that the structure was roofed. No post hole was detected in the southwest corner of the room, so the roof would have been supported by the walls. As in Structure 2, the absence of vegetal remains indicates that the timbers were salvaged, since unburned timbers were well preserved elsewhere on the site.

Sampling Units 79N/91E, 80N/91E, and 80N/92E

These three units are adjacent to one other and so will be discussed together. Portions of unit 80N/92E are within Structures 2 and 3 (surface rooms), but the remainder of that unit, and all of test pits 79N/91E and 80N/91E, are immediately west of the masonry roomblock. The areas within the masonry surface rooms have been discussed under the structure headings; the areas west of the masonry rooms are discussed here.

Two occupation surfaces were defined (Figure 2.6). Surface 1 is associated with the masonry roomblock (Pueblo III) and Surface 2, which is 5 to 10 cm below Surface 1, is associated with the Pueblo II occupation of the site. No artifacts or features are associated with Surface 1 in these test units, but 14 features and several artifacts were documented on Surface 2.

Surface 1

Surface 1 is the occupation surface west of the masonry roomblock that is associated with that roomblock (Figure 2.6); this surface dates to the Pueblo III period. Surface 1 was not clearly recognizable during excavation because of poor preservation. It was formed by placing 5 to 10 cm of construction fill on top of the Pueblo II surface. This fill is substantially thicker inside Structures 2 and 3 (surface rooms) and in the courtyard to the east of the masonry roomblock (Figure 2.6) than it is here. No features or artifacts are associated with the Pueblo III surface in this area.

Surface 2

Surface 2 is the use surface west of the masonry roomblock that is associated with the Pueblo II occupation of the site (Figure 2.4 and Figure 2.6). The surface was easily recognized during excavation, as several features were detected on it. The surface itself was up to 10 cm thick; additional features were detected each of several times the area was dampened and re-troweled. This phenomenon is probably the result of sediment having accumulated during the Pueblo II occupation.

Features. Fourteen features were documented on Surface 2 in these three random test units (Figure 2.4): Features 1, 2, 3, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, and 22. Basic data for these features, as well as for all other features in Sampling Stratum 1, are given in Table 2.1. Most of these features are simple post holes and pits that require no additional explanation. A few of the features are more complex, however, and additional description of those features follows (Features 16, 18, and 19).

Feature 16 (Trench): Post hole features 1, 2, 3, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 17 are horizontally within this trench, but are deeper than the trench itself. The north half of the exposed section of trench trends north-south, but the south half trends slightly to the southwest. This feature is similar to Feature 9 in unit 79N/93E in this sampling stratum and to Feature 10 in Sampling Stratum 4. These features appear to be the remains of post-and-adobe walls.

Feature 18 (Hearth): This pit had no fire-reddening on its walls or base, but it is inferred to be a hearth because of its size and basin shape and because a small, adjacent, unburned pit (Feature 19) was filled with ash. The fill of the hearth contained several small sandstone rocks, some of which were burned, and charcoal flecks. This material may be roof fall or wall fall from the post-and-adobe structure it is within or just outside of. A number of artifacts were recovered from this fill:

23 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherds
1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray rim sherd
2 Mancos Corrugated Gray rim sherds
1 Mancos Gray rim sherd
2 Late White Painted body sherds
3 Pueblo II White Painted sherds
2 Late White Unpainted sherds
1 Mancos Black-on-white rim sherd
8 pieces of chipped-stone debris
1 peckingstone
nonhuman bone

Feature 19 (Ash Pit): This feature is elongated north-south and is adjacent to, and east of, Feature 18. The fill of the pit contained an ash lens, but the feature walls and base showed no signs of thermal alteration. It is therefore inferred that the ash in this pit originated in Feature 18 (hearth).

Stratigraphy

The stratigraphy west of the roomblock is illustrated in Figure 2.6. Three strata were recognized. Strata 1 and 2 have been described in the Structure 2 stratigraphy discussion above. Stratum 2 behind the roomblock is probably a combination of roof fall and wall fall from the masonry rooms. Stratum 3 is not present outside of Structure 2.

Stratum 4 consists of brown to dark brown silty clay loam containing substantial pockets of unburned adobe. Flecks of charcoal, sandstone ranging from small pieces to actual rocks, and very small and very sparse flecks of burned adobe are also present. The boundary with the undisturbed B horizon (Pueblo II surface) is abrupt and smooth.

This stratum contains some burned and unburned structural material that may be associated with the Pueblo II occupation. The construction material inside the masonry rooms and in the courtyard to the east contains fewer and smaller inclusions. Thus, the Pueblo II structural collapse west of (behind) the masonry roomblock may not have been cleared away as thoroughly here as it was in the area of the roomblock and the courtyard.

Sampling Unit 79N/93E

This random unit is entirely within Structure 2 (surface room), and the stratigraphy and the Pueblo III surface has been described under that heading. Below the room floor (Surface 1) is approximately 30 cm of construction fill that rests on the Pueblo II use surface (Surface 2). Surface 2 is undisturbed sterile sediment, and it did not exhibit the vertical accumulation observed with this surface west of the masonry roomblock. Seven features were documented on Surface 2 (Features 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10). Four of these are post holes believed to be the remains of a post-and-adobe structure. Data for these and other features in Sampling Stratum 1 can be found in Table 2.1. The only artifacts associated with Surface 2 were recovered from feature fills.

Sampling Unit 87N/94E

This is a random test pit that appears to be just north of the masonry roomblock. The Pueblo III occupation surface was defined as being at the bottom of the masonry wall fall (see below), although this surface was not observable during excavation. The Pueblo II surface was observable, however, and is formed of the undisturbed B-horizon sediments. Three features were documented: Feature 23 (hearth) and Features 24 and 25 (post holes). Data for these and other features in Sampling Stratum 1 are presented in Table 2.1. The only artifacts associated with this surface were recovered from feature fill.

Stratigraphy

The fill in this sampling unit is 40 to 50 cm deep and includes at least two episodes of structural collapse. The stratigraphy will be described from modern ground surface to undisturbed sterile sediment.

Stratum 1 is 6 to 18 cm of dark brown silt loam containing some sandstone rocks and charcoal flecks. The boundary with Stratum 2 is abrupt and wavy. This deposit contains some masonry wall collapse, but it is primarily aeolian and alluvial in origin.

Stratum 2 is 19 to 44 cm of dark reddish brown silt loam containing a great deal of sandstone wall fall, abundant charcoal, and sparse calcium carbonate flecks. The boundary with Stratum 3 is abrupt and smooth. This deposit is wall collapse from an undefined masonry structure to the south.

Stratum 3 consists of reddish brown silty clay loam, as much as 15 cm thick and containing few charcoal and calcium carbonate flecks. The boundary with sterile sediment is clear and smooth. This deposit rests on the Pueblo II use surface (undisturbed B horizon). The color, texture, and paucity of inclusions suggests that Stratum 3 is roof fall; the presence of post holes on Surface 2 suggests post-and-adobe construction in this area. Therefore, Stratum 3 may be roof fall from a Pueblo II post-and-adobe structure.

This unit was probably originally within or very near a Pueblo II post-and-adobe structure. After abandonment, the structure collapsed. During the Pueblo III occupation, masonry structures were built not far to the south. After the Pueblo III abandonment, masonry wall fall covered the unit, and natural deposits accumulated between and on top of these rocks.

Sampling Unit 80N/94E

This is a 1-×-2-m judgment trench oriented east-west. This trench was excavated to complete an east-west stratigraphic profile through the masonry roomblock in order to define the vertical relationship between the Pueblo II and Pueblo III occupation surfaces (Figure 2.6). The stratigraphy in this unit is consistent with that described for Structure 2 (surface room) above. Features and artifacts were associated with both of these surfaces.

Surface 1

This courtyard surface is associated with the masonry roomblock. As in Structure 2 (surface room), the surface is on top of a layer of constructional fill; however, because the maximum amount of fill below the courtyard surface is approximately 5 cm less than in Structure 2, the courtyard surface is 5 cm lower in elevation. Also unlike the Structure 2 surface, the courtyard surface was not paved with sandstone rocks.

Features. Two features in this judgment trench were defined as being associated with this surface, but one of these (Feature 1) is only partly within this unit. Most of Feature 1 is within random unit 80N/96E, which is in Sampling Stratum 3. Thus, that feature will be discussed with Sampling Stratum 3. The other feature is Feature 28 in Sampling Stratum 1, and it is discussed here.

Feature 28 (Pit): Only the north edge of this feature was exposed in this test pit. The feature consists of a basin-shaped lens of ash (Figure 2.6) that measures 41 cm east-west and 6 cm deep. The main reason for assigning a feature number to this lens was that a 7-cm-long line of fire-reddened sediment was observed at the base of the lens, indicating that the ash was the result of an in situ burn. Thus, this feature appears to be an informal, burned pit associated with the Pueblo III occupation.

Artifacts. One Pueblo III White Painted bowl body sherd and one tree-ring sample were also associated with this surface. The tree-ring sample was dated to 1043 ++vv⁽¹⁾ and thus was probably reused from the Pueblo II occupation.

Surface Architecture (Sampling Stratum 1) Summary

The surface architecture sampling stratum is defined as the masonry rubble mound. No attempt was made to include areas that might contain remains of earlier post-and-adobe rooms, although such rooms were assumed to exist and were, in fact, encountered in this stratum as well as in Sampling Strata 3 and 4.

Five randomly selected test units (79N/91E, 80N/91E, 80N/92E, 79N/93E, and 87N/94E) were excavated in Sampling Stratum 1. One 1-×-2-m judgment unit was also excavated. The reason for excavating this unit was to complete an east-west stratigraphic profile through the roomblock to establish the vertical relationship between the Pueblo II and the Pueblo III occupation surfaces (Figure 2.6).

During testing in Sampling Stratum 1, masonry Structures 2 and 3 and Feature 28 (pit) were sampled on the Pueblo III occupation surface. On the Pueblo II occupation surface, 27 features (including at least 16 post holes) were documented (Table 2.1). The number and variety of features other than post holes on the Pueblo II surface indicate that a range of domestic activities was being carried out on this surface. Many of the post holes are within trenches and appear to be the remains of post-and-adobe construction. As a result of the limited horizontal exposure, it was not possible to define the layout of the structures themselves (Figure 2.4).

Evidence of structural burning was observed in the post hole fill. Burned adobe casts were noted in some of the fills. Several of the post remnants were charred near the top of the post hole but were rotted below ground. This pattern of charring indicates structural burning, whereas rotting at the top and charring below ground (see Sampling Stratum 4, Feature 1) indicates charring of the end of the timber prior to construction, probably as a felling or preserving technique (Kuckelman 1988:70). In any case, at least some of the post-and-adobe structures burned at abandonment.

During the construction of the Pueblo III masonry rooms, the burned debris was cleared away (burned post remnants remained in some of the post holes), and construction fill was placed on top of this early surface. The fill ranges from 10 cm thick west of the masonry roomblock to 25 cm thick under the courtyard east of the masonry roomblock and 30 cm thick under Structure 2. Masonry rooms were then constructed on this fill.

The original masonry roomblock appears to have consisted of approximately four rooms and to have extended from about the 86N grid line southward to Structure 3. Structure 2 appears to have been added on to the south wall of Structure 3 later. The Structure 2 walls were constructed, then a layer of adobe was placed on top of the construction fill inside the room. Sandstone slabs and rocks were laid in this adobe to form a paved surface. No such prepared surface was noted in Structure 3. The absence of vegetal material in the fill of these two rooms indicates that the roofing timbers were salvaged for reuse elsewhere.

Eighteen tree-ring samples were collected from Sampling Stratum 1 and submitted to the Tree-Ring Laboratory for analysis; eight of these were datable. In chronological order, the dates are 833 vv, 977 vv, 985 vv, 1004 ++vv, 1043 ++vv, 1053 ++B, 1057 vv, and 1062 +vv. Two of the datable samples were recovered from Pueblo III surfaces--977 vv and 1043 ++vv. These dates are too early to be consistent with the architecture and pottery associated with the Pueblo III occupation on the site. Both timbers were probably reused from Pueblo II structures. The 1053 ++B, 1057 vv, and 1062 +vv dates are the latest and are consistent with the Pueblo II pottery recovered at the site; these dates probably most closely reflect the actual time of construction of the Pueblo II structures.

Pit Structures (Sampling Stratum 2)

This sampling stratum is east of the masonry rubble mound, and it was designated to test the only observable pit structure depression at the site. Twenty-six 1-×-1-m units are included in this stratum, and four of these (83N/96E, 83N/98E, 83N/100E, and 84N/100E) were randomly selected for excavation. Two judgment units were excavated (1-×-1-m unit 83N/97E and 1-×-2-m unit 84N/98E) to ensure excavator safety, to stratigraphically tie the masonry roomblock to the kiva, and to sample the kiva hearth. These random and judgment units are all within Structure 1 (kiva), with the exception of unit 83N/96E, which is just outside the kiva to the west.

Random unit 84N/101E, in Sampling Stratum 3 (courtyard), overlapped the east edge of the kiva and contained part of a kiva-associated feature. The feature is discussed with Structure 1, but the remainder of the discussion of this unit is included with Sampling Stratum 3.

Structure 1 (Kiva)

Structure 1 is an unburned, masonry-lined kiva (Figure 2.7, Figure 2.8, Figure 2.9, and Figure 2.10). Sections of the floor, benches, pilasters, hearth, and other features were exposed during testing. The extrapolated diameter of the structure is 3.3 m, bench face to bench face.

Construction

The construction of Structure 1 is described in this section, including the walls, roof, and floor.

Walls. Sections of the east and southwest upper lining walls and bench faces were documented. The east upper lining wall is described first, followed by a description of the east bench face.

The exposed portion of the east upper lining wall is 2.14 m long and rises 42 to 50 cm above the bench surface. The masonry is 22 cm thick. The wall is formed partly of irregularly shaped, vertical slabs and partly (above and between the slabs) of uncoursed masonry. There are two courses of horizontal masonry above the vertical slabs. The wall rests on undisturbed sterile sediment. More than 95 percent of the rocks in the east upper lining wall are unshaped; a few stones are flaked or pecked. Approximately 50 percent of the wall is formed by vertical slabs, 30 percent of the stones are tabular, 15 percent are blocky, and 5 percent are irregularly shaped.

The mortar is flush, with beds as much as 5 cm thick and 5 cm wide. The mortar consists of a brown, fine-textured sediment and contains charcoal and calcium carbonate flecks and small sandstone bits. No chinking was observed in this wall. No plaster was detected.

The exposed section of the east bench face is 1.83 m long and reaches a height of 83 to 87 cm above the kiva floor (Figure 2.11). The bench-face masonry is 20 cm wide and rests on a natural layer of caliche. The masonry is almost fully coursed and is 14 courses high. No chinking was observed. Eighty-five percent of the bench face rocks are shaped by pecking, 2 percent are flaked, and 13 percent are unshaped. Ninety-four percent of the stones are tabular, 5 percent are blocky, and 1 percent are irregularly shaped.

The same mortar was used in the bench as in the upper lining wall (see above). Most of the mortar in the bench face is flush, but a small amount is concave and a small amount is extruded. The beds are as wide as 4 cm and as thick as 4 cm. No plaster was observed on the bench face.

The exposed section of the southwest upper lining wall is 96 cm long, 47 to 52 cm high, and 10 cm wide. The wall is 65 percent vertical slab (at the base of the wall) and 35 percent semicoursed horizontal masonry formed of tabular stones (30 percent) and blocks (5 percent). There are three courses of horizontal masonry above the vertical slabs. Ninety-six percent of the upper lining wall is of unshaped stones, 2 percent is of pecked stones, and 2 percent is of flaked stones. The construction rests on undisturbed sterile sediment.

The mortar is the same as that described for the east upper lining wall. The mortar beds, which are flush, are a maximum of 3 cm wide and 2.5 cm thick. No chinking or plaster was observed.

The exposed section of the southwest bench face is 1.19 m long, 85 cm high, and 16 cm wide. The semicoursed masonry stands 13 courses high and rests on a natural layer of caliche. Eighty percent of the bench face stones are tabular, 10 percent are blocky, and 10 percent are irregularly shaped. Thirty percent of the bench face is of pecked rocks, 5 percent is of flaked stones, and 65 percent of the face is of unshaped rocks.

The mortar is the same as that described for the east upper lining wall. The beds are flush, measuring as much as 5 cm wide and 3 cm thick. One chunk-type chinking stone was observed. No plaster was noted.

Roof. Indirect evidence of roof construction in Structure 1 includes the presence of Pilasters 1 (Feature 11) and 5 (Feature 10). These and four other pilasters are assumed to have supported a typical, kiva-style, cribbed roof. A thick stratum of what is believed to be the sediment component of roof fall was documented just above floor surface (Figure 2.12). The timbers apparently were salvaged at abandonment for reuse elsewhere. Refer to the stratigraphic description below for more information on this deposit.

Surface 1. Surface 1 is the floor of Structure 1. It is formed of leveled, undisturbed caliche in some areas, and of leveled caliche covered with adobe in other areas (Figure 2.10). Adobe was also used to conceal hearth remodeling and to fill small dips in the caliche surface. A large area of floor was not coated with adobe, however, and the natural, leveled caliche surface was used as the floor surface in this area.

Surface 1

Surface 1 is the floor of Structure 1. Fourteen features and eleven artifacts were associated with the occupation of this kiva.

Features. The features in Structure 1 are discussed in numerical order, except for Feature 14 (original hearth), which is discussed with Feature 4 (final hearth).

Feature 1 (Rock Concentration): This feature consists of a roughly linear concentration of approximately 20 unshaped sandstone rocks resting on prehistoric ground surface along the east edge of the kiva. The exposed portion of the concentration measures 1 m north-south and 55 cm east-west. The rocks range from fist size up to 30 cm in diameter and slope down toward the center of the kiva depression. These rocks do not appear to be in situ (and so are not shown in Figure 2.10); rather, they are probably the remains of peripheral kiva roof construction.

Feature 2 (Bench 5): A large section of Bench 5 was exposed during testing. The bench face has been described under Construction, so only the bench surface is described here.

Bench 5 is the fifth section of bench, numbering clockwise from the southern recess. The exposed section of bench surface measures 129 cm long and 38 cm wide. The outer edge of the bench surface is formed of the uppermost course of bench-face masonry rocks. The remainder of the surface is of undisturbed sterile sediments, except for a small amount of adobe noted between and immediately behind the bench face stones.

The bench surface is not well preserved. It is generally level, but it has been damaged by roots and rodents. One artifact (PL 24)⁽²⁾, a slate/shale axe fragment, was recovered from this surface.

Feature 3 (Bench 1): Approximately one-half of the surface of Bench 1 was exposed during testing. Bench 1 is the first bench surface clockwise from the southern recess. The exposed section of Bench 1 is 85 cm long and 44 cm wide. The surface consists of the tops of the uppermost bench-face masonry stones and of undisturbed sterile behind that. No adobe was noted.

The bench surface is generally level, sloping a maximum of 4 cm down to the bench face. One artifact (PL 25, a complete, flaked, ground/polished, and pecked tool), was recovered from this surface.

Feature 4 (Final Hearth) and Feature 14 (Original Hearth): The east walls and the east half of the south walls of these two features were not observed during testing. The exposed portion of Feature 14 is described first.

Feature 14 is the original hearth in Structure 1. It is a large, steep-sided pit excavated into the undisturbed caliche below the floor of the structure. The pit measures 70 cm long, approximately 65 cm wide, and 21 cm deep. The south wall of this pit was destroyed when the feature was remodeled into Feature 4. The walls and floor of Feature 14 were lined with adobe, areas of which subsequently became fire-reddened and charred through use. No use-associated fill remained in this hearth, as it was cleaned out during remodeling.

Feature 4, the final hearth, was constructed inside Feature 14. This hearth is smaller, rectangular, and slab lined (Figure 2.13). The feature is 55 cm long, 45 cm wide, and 22 cm deep. To set the vertical slabs of Feature 4 in place, shallow grooves were excavated into the adobe floor of Feature 14. To complete the remodeling (on the north and west sides of the feature), construction fill consisting of ash, charcoal pieces, adobe nodules, and 26 small sandstone rocks was packed between the adobe walls of Feature 14 and the vertical slabs forming the walls of Feature 4 (a 1-liter flotation sample was collected from this fill). A layer of adobe 2 cm thick covered this fill at the level of the kiva floor. The south wall of Feature 4 was formed by plastering a small vertical slab into a groove in the Feature 14 floor. The construction of the east wall was not observable.

The upper fill of Feature 4 consisted of 4 to 6 cm of structure roof fall. The roof fall material was similar to Stratum 4 (Figure 2.12) but contained fewer inclusions and was brighter orange. Sandstone rocks and large slabs were numerous in this upper hearth fill and in the structure fill just above the hearth. This kind of deposit is very common in pit structures and appears to be collapse from hatchway construction in the structure roof.

The lower 10 to 17 cm of fill in Feature 4 was use-associated ash containing small charcoal inclusions and nodules of burned adobe. This ash was sampled by collecting four 1-liter flotation samples. The remaining ash was passed through one-sixteenth-inch mesh, and the residue was bagged for later lab analysis. One artifact, a fragment of an abrader, was recovered from the fill of Feature 4. See Chapter 16 for macrobotanical data from this feature.

Feature 5 (Ash Pit): Feature 5 is the ash pit adjacent to the south edge of Feature 4. The exposed portion is 30 cm long, 20 cm wide, and 14 cm deep. The north wall of the feature is formed by the small vertical slab that is the south wall of Feature 4. The south wall is also formed of vertical slabs. The west wall and the floor of the pit are adobe-coated, undisturbed caliche. The east wall was not observable.

The fill of Feature 5 was composed mostly of ash identical to the ash observed in Feature 4 (final hearth). A lens of adobelike material in this ash appeared to be structural collapse either from the hearth wall to the north or from the kiva hatchway. The ash in this feature was sampled in the same way as Feature 4 (see Chapter 16 for macrobotanical data).

Feature 6 (Ash Pit): This feature is adjacent to Feature 5 (ash pit). The exposed portion measures 37 cm long, 15 cm wide, and 18 cm deep. The north wall is formed by the small vertical slabs that form the south wall of Feature 5. One large, Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherd protruded from between two of the slabs forming the north wall of the feature. The west and south walls are formed of adobe-coated, undisturbed sterile sediments. The east wall was not observable.

The fill of this pit contains a high percentage of ash but also contains reddish brown sediment; together, they formed a pale brown ashy mix. This mix contained small nodules of adobe and pieces of charcoal up to 1 cm in length. Similar material was noted in small pockets at the bottom of Feature 4. Thus, although most of the fill in Feature 4 was the gray ash also found in Feature 5 (ash pit), the ash mix in Feature 6 probably also originated from Feature 4 and contained some adobe that had exfoliated from the bottom of that hearth.

Feature 7 (Pit): This feature is a small, cylindrical pit northwest of the kiva hearths. The pit measures 14 cm in diameter and 20 cm deep, and it was excavated into the undisturbed caliche below the kiva floor. The pit was filled with brown silty clay loam containing tiny flecks of calcium carbonate, charcoal flecks, and sandstone bits. The uppermost 2 to 3 cm of fill consisted of an adobe cap. Thus, the feature was not in use at the time of structure abandonment. The function of this feature is unknown.

Feature 8 (Floor Patch): Feature 8 is a dip in the floor surface south of Feature 6 (ash pit) that was brought up to level by patching. The exposed portion of the dip measures 45 cm long, 34 cm wide, and 5 cm deep. The patching material is a compact, brown clay loam containing charcoal flecks, sparse calcium carbonate flecks, small adobe nodules, and small sandstone bits. No artifacts were recovered from the patching material.

Feature 9 (Bench 4): Bench 4 is the bench north of Pilaster 5 (Figure 2.10). Only a 34-cm-long section of this bench was exposed during testing. The bench-face masonry was described above under Construction. Only the bench surface is discussed here. The bench surface is 35 cm wide, and it is 80 cm above the kiva floor. The surface slopes 7 cm from the back of the bench to the front edge of the bench. The front edge is formed by the tops of the uppermost stones in the bench-face masonry, and the back of the surface is formed of undisturbed sterile sediments. A small remnant of adobe indicates that the entire surface was once coated. No artifacts rested on this bench surface.

Feature 10 (Pilaster 5): Feature 10 is thought to be the fifth pilaster clockwise from the southern recess. Very little of this pilaster survives. In fact, the feature might not have been detected at all if not for the coinciding break in the upper lining wall masonry. The pilaster measures 35 cm front-to-back, 50 cm side-to-side, and a maximum of 10 cm high. One rock and some mortar are all that remain of the masonry. The reasons for such poor preservation are unknown.

Some small-diameter charred wood fragments appeared to have been seated into what would have been the top of the junctures between the upper lining wall and this pilaster. The accompanying in situ charred sediment is the only evidence of structural burning in this kiva. This would have been a very small, localized fire at the edge of the roof. Two of these charred wood fragments yielded dates of 996 vv and 1064 +v. As with the tree-ring dates associated with the Pueblo III surface in Sampling Stratum 1, these dates are inconsistent with the pottery and architecture of this kiva; thus, this wood was probably salvaged from Pueblo II structures at the site.

Feature 11 (Pilaster 1): This feature is the first pilaster clockwise from the southern recess (Figure 2.14). The above-bench portion of this construction is typical. The pilaster measures 35 cm front-to-back and 47 cm side-to-side; 31 cm of height survives. Three courses of masonry are present, but only the bottommost course is completely intact. The corners of the pilaster are well shaped by pecking. The mortar is a brown to dark brown silt loam with small bits of charcoal, calcium carbonate, burned adobe nodules, and sandstone. No plaster was detected on this masonry.

Accompanying this pilaster below the level of the bench surface is an 8- to 12-cm jog in the bench face at the southeast edge of the pilaster (the masonry of this bench face was described under Construction, above). The construction is not a column, because the bench face then continues around the kiva flush with the front edge of the pilaster, rather than jogging back in at the northwest edge of the pilaster. Also, the above-bench Pilaster 1 construction rests on the bench surface, and there is the usual 1 to 4 cm setback of the pilaster from the edge of the bench. In any case, when the pilaster was intact, the effect was probably not unlike that of a floor-to-ceiling column, and it can be assumed that Pilaster 6 (not exposed) is constructed in the same way. Column-type pilaster construction was also noted in a kiva at Lillian's Site (Chapter 3, Structure 1, Feature 2, this volume).

Feature 12 (Pit): This feature is a small, very shallow pit northeast of the hearths. The pit measures 8 cm long, 7 cm wide, and 1 cm deep. The feature was excavated into the undisturbed sterile sediment beneath the floor of the kiva, and it was later filled with brown to dark brown silty clay loam containing many tiny flecks of calcium carbonate. This fill is slightly browner and siltier than the 3 cm of floor adobe that capped it. Thus, the feature was not in use when the kiva was abandoned. The function of the feature is unknown.

Feature 13 (Pit): Located north of Feature 7 (pit), this feature is only partly within the excavation unit. The exposed portion of this basined pit measures 10 cm long, 10 cm wide, and 4 cm deep. It was excavated into the undisturbed sterile sediment beneath the floor of the structure. The fill in the pit was a brown to dark brown silty clay loam containing calcium carbonate and charcoal flecks. The pit was intentionally filled sometime before the roof collapsed. Roof fall is much darker brown and contains more inclusions. Neither the kiva floor nor the top of this feature fill was covered with adobe.

Feature 14 (Original Hearth): See Feature 4 description.

Artifacts. A number of artifacts are associated with the occupation of the structure. The nine artifacts listed below were found on the structure floor (the two artifacts on the bench surface are discussed under Features 2 and 3): core (PL 1), Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherd (PL 2), Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherd (PL 3), Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherd (PL 6), Indeterminate Plain Gray jar sherd (PL 9), one piece of chipped-stone debris (PL 10), one piece of chipped-stone debris (PL 11), one Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherd and one Late White Unpainted jar sherd (PL 17), and Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherd (PL 23). These artifacts appear to have been left on the floor incidentally at abandonment.

Stratigraphy

Four strata were documented in Structure 1 (Figure 2.12 and Figure 2.15). They are described in numerical order.

Stratum 1 is the most recent postabandonment deposit. It consists of a brown/dark brown silt loam that has an orange cast at the east end of the profile. The stratum contains a few tiny charcoal flecks, burned adobe flecks, small sandstone bits, and very sparse and very small sandstone rocks. The boundary with Stratum 2 is clear and smooth.

Stratum 2 is a banded deposit, with layers of dark brown and brown/dark brown silt loam. Moderate numbers of tiny charcoal and burned adobe flecks, an occasional burned adobe nodule, sparse sandstone bits, and very sparse small sandstone rocks were observed. The boundary with Stratum 3 is abrupt and smooth. The dark bands of sediment in this stratum appear to be charcoal stained, although the origin of the charcoal is not known. The stratum was deposited naturally, long after the site was abandoned.

Stratum 3 is brown/dark brown, fine sandy silt containing abundant sandstone, a moderate number of charcoal flecks, sparse burned adobe flecks and nodules, and alluvial lenses of yellower sand and charcoal-stained sediment. The sandstone ranges in size from bits to moderate-size rocks to shaped and unshaped angular rocks and blocks as large as 30 × 20 × 10 cm. The boundary with Stratum 4 is clear and smooth.

This stratum is primarily postabandonment wall fall and alluvium from the masonry roomblock to the west of the structure. Some sediment and a few rocks also entered the kiva depression from the east. The rocks were probably from the upper lining wall.

Stratum 4 consists of a silt loam that ranges from brown/dark brown to strong brown in color. This sediment contains a few building-stone-size sandstone rocks, sparse sandstone bits, plentiful charcoal (from small flecks up to fragments 6 cm long), pockets of unburned adobe, a few burned adobe nodules, and calcium carbonate flecks. The boundary with the floor is very abrupt and smooth.

This deposit is massive, with no visible alluvial lenses. The massive structure, the apparent rapid deposition, and the mottling and location on the kiva floor lead to the interpretation that this is roofing material that collapsed onto the floor at abandonment. Apparently some small area or areas of the roof burned, resulting in the charcoal content in this stratum. Small areas of charred sediment were noted just above and behind the upper lining wall in the area of Pilaster 5. Any roofing timbers left unburned evidently were removed, as no rotted wood was observed, and wood preservation elsewhere on the site is very good.

Stratum 5 is a postabandonment deposit; it is located outside the structure to the west. This material is a dark yellowish brown silt loam containing a few tiny charcoal and burned adobe flecks, small sandstone bits, and stones as large as those shown on the profile map (Figure 2.12). This stratum grades into the adjacent strata within Structure 1. It is most similar to Stratum 1, but Stratum 5 contains wall fall from the masonry roomblock to the west.

The fill of Structure 1 contains a substantial number of artifacts:

87 Indeterminate Plain Gray sherds
1 Mancos Gray sherd
1 Cortez Black-on-white sherd
13 Mancos Black-on-white sherds
1 Early White Painted sherd
4 Early White Unpainted sherds
4 Indeterminate Local Red Painted sherds
5 Indeterminate Local Red Unpainted sherds
24 Pueblo II White Painted sherds
323 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray sherds
3 Mancos Corrugated Gray sherds
1 Mesa Verde Corrugated Gray sherd
2 McElmo Black-on-white sherds
1 Mesa Verde Black-on-white sherd
24 Late White Painted sherds
86 Late White Unpainted sherds
13 Pueblo III White Painted sherds
1 Indeterminate Local White Painted sherd
4 Indeterminate Local White Unpainted sherds
1 biface
1 abrader
2 projectile points
3 cores
1 fragment of ground slate/shale
1 hammerstone
1 modified flake
1 mano fragment
1 peckingstone
2 fragments of petrified wood
327 pieces of chipped-stone debris
5 gizzard stones
nonhuman bone
1 human bone

This is a large number of artifacts to have been deposited naturally into a kiva depression. Some of the sherds that date earlier than the Pueblo III period may have been incorporated incidentally into the kiva roof during construction, but many of these artifacts probably entered the kiva depression colluvially from the artifact-rich, topographically raised area surrounding the kiva to the north, east, and south.

Dating

Three methods of dating (tree-ring, archaeomagnetic, and pottery) were used to date Structure 1, with marginal success. Forty-four tree-ring samples were submitted for analysis. The dates of the 21 samples which were datable follow in chronological order (Table 2.2):

923 +vv
927 vv
959 +vv
964 vv
970 +vv
988 vv
993 +vv
996 vv
999 vv
1007 vv
1018 ++vv
1021 vv
1031 ++vv
1034 +vv
1052 vv
1064 +v
1064 +v
1065 v
1065 vv
1066 vv
1067 +vv

These dates are not consistent with the latest pottery recovered from the structure or with the architectural style of the structure (a typical masonry-lined kiva). Thus, these timbers were probably salvaged from the structures built during the Pueblo II occupation of the site. These tree-ring dates will be presented again and discussed more fully in the Site Summary and Conclusions section at the end of this chapter.

The rim of Feature 14 (original hearth) was sampled for archaeomagnetic dating. The results are one span, A.D. 1020-1250. The Pueblo III occupation of the site is undoubtedly somewhere in this span, as is the Pueblo II occupation. The great length of the span limits its usefulness for dating purposes.

The pottery from the fill of Structure 1 indicates that the late occupation of the site occurred during the late A.D. 1100s or early 1200s (Wilson and Blinman 1991:47).

Interpretations

Structure 1 is an unburned, masonry-lined kiva constructed during the Pueblo III occupation of the site. Testing in this structure exposed approximately 3.75 m² of floor area, three sections of bench face and surface, two pilasters, two ash pits, three miscellaneous floor pits, and a remodeled hearth. Eleven artifacts were associated with the bench and floor surfaces. The construction style and features are consistent with other Pueblo III, masonry-lined, six-pilaster kivas.

The remodeling of the hearth may indicate that the structure was used for longer than a few years. Hearth remodeling is common in kivas in the Sand Canyon area (see Features 3 and 4, Structure 1, Chapter 8, Lester's Site; Feature 4, Structure 6, Chapter 5, Kenzie Dawn Hamlet; Feature 1, Structure 2, Chapter 11, Catherine's Site, all in this volume). The kiva hearth in Structure 1 at Lester's Site is similar to the one at G and G Hamlet (although they were probably constructed 100 years apart). Both are large, oval to subrectangular basins that were remodeled to smaller, rectangular, slab-lined pits. The reasons for these alterations are not known.

The jog in the bench face that accompanies Pilaster 1 (and presumably Pilaster 6 as well) is unusual and has not been documented at any of the excavated kivas at Sand Canyon Pueblo (Bruce Bradley, personal communication 1991). The only known similar construction in the Sand Canyon locality was exposed at Lillian's Site (Chapter 3, Structure 1, Feature 2) in a structure that was tree-ring dated to the early A.D. 1200s. Lillian's Site is 0.7 mi northwest across the mesa from G and G Hamlet.

Although the tree-ring dates do not date the construction of this structure, they probably do date construction during the Pueblo II occupation at approximately A.D. 1065. The pottery recovered from Structure 1 indicates that the structure filled in the late A.D. 1100s to early A.D. 1200s (Wilson and Blinman 1991:47).

There is evidence that a small area of the roof burned in Structure 1. The remainder of the timbers apparently were salvaged for reuse elsewhere, because unburned wood is absent from the roof fall stratum and unburned wood is well preserved elsewhere on the site. Roof fall contacts the floor surface with no intervening aeolian or alluvial sediment, so roof dismantling and burning probably occurred at the time of site abandonment.

The remainder of the kiva depression filled naturally after abandonment. The masonry wall fall in the fill proves that the masonry roomblock was collapsing at the same time the kiva was filling and that these two structures are thus contemporaneous.

Sampling Unit 83N/96E

This random test pit is predominantly outside and west of the kiva. The stratigraphy in the unit was discussed under Structure 1 and is shown in Figure 2.12. A portion of a pit feature was documented on the Pueblo III courtyard surface in the southwest corner of this unit.

Feature 1 (Pit)

Approximately one-quarter of this pit feature was exposed during testing. The exposed portion of the basin is 19 cm long, 13 cm wide, and 10 cm deep. The pit was excavated into the undisturbed sediment beneath the courtyard surface. A small amount of adobe was detected along the north rim, so the feature may have been carefully constructed. The feature was filled with dark brown silty loam mixed with gray ash. This material contained sparse flecks of charcoal, sandstone, and calcium carbonate. A 1-liter flotation sample was collected from the ashiest part of the fill. No artifacts were recovered.

The feature appears to be a courtyard fire pit, although a more specific function could not be determined. Its vertical location indicates that it is associated with the Pueblo III occupation of the site.

Pit Structures (Sampling Stratum 2) Summary

The pit structure sampling stratum was tested by excavating four randomly selected 1-×-1-m units (83N/96E, 83N/98E, 83N/100E and 84N/100E), one judgment 1-×-1-m unit (83N/97E), and one 1-×-2-m unit (84N/98E). Structure 1 artifacts, floor, and features were encountered during the excavation of these units. The tree-ring dates from Structure 1 are inconsistent with the Pueblo III architectural style and the Pueblo III pottery recovered. Thus, the timbers are assumed to have been salvaged from the Pueblo II structures on the site.

One burned pit feature was documented on the courtyard surface west of the kiva. This feature is believed to be associated with the Pueblo III occupation.

Courtyard (Sampling Stratum 3)

The courtyard sampling stratum is defined as the nonroomblock area immediately surrounding the pit structure sampling stratum. The courtyard perimeter was defined by the east edge of the masonry rubble mound on the west and by the slight topographic rise surrounding the courtyard on the north, east, and south.

A total of 52 m² is contained in this stratum. Four 1-×-1-m units were randomly selected for excavation (79N/103E, 80N/102E, 80N/96E, and 84N/101E). No judgment excavation was undertaken in this stratum.

Four features and evidence of the edge of one pit structure (Structure 4) were encountered during testing (Figure 2.16). The stratigraphy and the features are described for each test unit.

Sampling Unit 79N/103E

This unit is at the southeast edge of the courtyard. No features were found in this unit. Cultural fill extends as much as 92 cm below modern ground surface (northeast corner of the unit only), and it is composed of three strata. The uppermost stratum is 28 to 34 cm of dark brown silt loam containing sparse, fist-size sandstone rocks, sandstone bits, ash, and numerous charcoal flecks. The boundary with Stratum 2 is abrupt and smooth. This material appears to contain secondary refuse from the Pueblo III occupation.

Stratum 2 consists of 10 to 40 cm (northeast corner of the unit) of reddish brown silt loam containing charcoal flecks, calcium carbonate flecks that increase in number with depth, and very sparse sandstone rocks up to 10 cm long. The boundary with Stratum 3 is abrupt and smooth. This deposit is probably the result of sediment eroding down into the Structure 4 depression to the northeast after the Pueblo II occupation.

Stratum 3 is 2 to 9 cm of redeposited sterile slump in the northeast corner of the unit. This material rests on undisturbed B-horizon sediment. The depth of the cultural deposits in the northeast corner of this test pit indicates that the wall of Structure 4 (pit structure) is just outside the excavation unit to the north (see Sampling Stratum 4, Structure 4).

Sampling Unit 80N/102E

This unit is diagonally adjacent to unit 79N/103E. One pit feature (Feature 4) was documented at the interface between cultural fill and undisturbed B-horizon sediments. The stratigraphy in this unit consists of 25 to 30 cm of the Stratum 1 material already described for unit 79N/103E and of 4 to 11 cm of the deposit described as Stratum 2. Stratum 2 rested on undisturbed B-horizon sediments.

Feature 4 (Pit)

This irregularly shaped pit feature was excavated into undisturbed sterile sediments, and it measures 47 cm long, 37 cm wide, and 8 cm deep. The fill consists of gray brown silt loam containing charcoal and adobe flecks. The irregularity of the feature may indicate that it is not cultural; or the irregularity may be the result of postabandonment root disturbance. The function of the pit is unknown. This feature is probably associated with the Pueblo II occupation, but it is not possible to state this with certainty, as only one use surface was defined in this area.

Sampling Unit 80N/96E

This unit is the easternmost 1-×-1-m unit shown on the stratigraphic profile through the roomblock (Figure 2.6). The pertinent strata in this profile (Strata 1, 6, 7, and 8) are described in this section. Three features were documented in this unit; two are associated with the Pueblo III occupation (Surface 1), and one is associated with the Pueblo II occupation (Surface 2).

Surface 1

Surface 1 in this area of the courtyard is the Pueblo III occupation surface. This surface was not defined in this excavation unit, but it was observable, especially in profile, in the 1-×-2-m unit adjacent to the west (80N/94E). From the north stratigraphic profile in that unit, it was apparent that in 80N/96E, this Pueblo III courtyard surface had been eroded by the postabandonment filling of the kiva depression to the northeast.

Features. Even though the surface was not preserved, two features associated with the surface were defined.

Feature 1 (Hearth): Feature 1 is a large, slab-walled hearth containing primary refuse in the lower strata and postabandonment deposits in the upper strata (Figure 2.6, Figure 2.16, and Figure 2.17). Only the portion of the feature within 80N/96E was excavated.

The exposed portion of the feature measures 76 cm long, 74 cm wide, and 22 cm deep. The feature is constructed of several large, sandstone slabs, some of which are shaped. These slabs were set vertically into grooves that extended into the undisturbed B horizon, and they lined the vertical sides of a pit that had been excavated into the construction fill below the Pueblo III courtyard surface. Small patches of adobe were noted around these slabs, so adobe was apparently used to plaster the slabs into place. The floor of the feature is also coated with adobe, which is fire-reddened.

The stratigraphy in this hearth is illustrated near the east end of Figure 2.6. Stratum 1 was described with the stratigraphic description for Structure 2 (Sampling Stratum 1), but at this location, Stratum 1 grades into very fine sandy silt instead of the silt loam previously described. This material is postabandonment structural collapse from the masonry roomblock upslope to the west.

Stratum 5 consists of a brown/dark brown sandy clay loam containing tiny and sparse charcoal flecks and sandstone bits. The boundary with Stratum 7 is abrupt and smooth. Stratum 5 is natural postabandonment aeolian and alluvial deposits from upslope.

Stratum 6 consists of a brown/dark brown ash and silt containing charcoal pieces, a few sandstone bits, and small burned adobe nodules. The boundary with Stratum 7 is gradual. The origin of the silt content in this material is not known, but the high ash content indicates that the stratum must have been deposited culturally prior to abandonment.

Stratum 7 consists of a dark grayish brown ash containing few sandstone bits, charcoal pieces as large as 4 cm in diameter, and small burned adobe nodules. The boundary with the adobe floor is very abrupt and smooth. This is primary refuse resulting from the burning of one or more fires in this hearth. Four 1-liter flotation samples of ash were collected; the remainder of the ash was passed through one-sixteenth-inch mesh, and the residue was bagged for later analysis. One small tree-ring sample was recovered; it was not datable. The archaeomagnetic sample collected from the floor of the feature yielded possible date spans of A.D. 600-725, 900-1010, and 1350-1725. None of these spans is consistent with either of the occupations at G and G Hamlet.

Several artifacts were recovered from the fill of Feature 1: modified flakes (N = 2), nonhuman bone, an Indeterminate Plain Gray body sherd (N = 1), Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray jar sherds (N = 7), Late White Unpainted sherds (N = 4), a McElmo Black-on-white jar sherd (N = 1), chipped-stone debris (N = 4), and a Pueblo III White Painted body sherd (N = 1).

Feature 2 (Pit): Nearly one-half of this feature was exposed along the north edge of the excavation unit. The exposed portion of the feature measures 58 cm long, 20 cm wide, and 15 cm deep. Originally, the feature was approximately 27 cm deep, but the feature and the courtyard surface with which it is associated eroded after the Pueblo III occupation of the site. The floor of the feature is undisturbed B-horizon sediment. The walls of the pit are formed by the fill below the Pueblo III courtyard surface.

The fill is construction material consisting of orange mottles within a charcoal-stained silt loam. This loam contains charcoal pieces as large as 2 cm in diameter, abundant calcium carbonate flecks, tiny burned adobe flecks, and sandstone bits. The function of this feature is unknown.

Surface 2

Surface 2 consists of undisturbed sterile deposits and a few centimeters of sediment that accumulated during the Pueblo II occupation. It is not possible to state whether the exposed surface is inside or outside of a structure. Lines of post holes were exposed in various areas of the site on the Pueblo II surface (Figure 2.4 and Figure 2.16). Thus, it is believed that post-and-adobe structures were present originally even though these structures could not be defined horizontally. No artifacts were point-located on this surface, but one feature was documented.

Feature 3 (Post Hole). Approximately one-half of this feature was exposed in the southeast corner of the excavation unit. The exposed portion measures 21 cm long, 14 cm wide, and 11 cm deep. This pit is a small, steep-sided basin excavated into undisturbed sterile sediment. The fill consists of brown silt loam containing abundant charcoal flecks and a few small sandstone rocks. The pit also contained a concentration of charred wood fragments, with individual pieces up to 2 cm in length. These were near the center of the pit fill, and they are believed to be the remains of a charred post. The walls of the pit are not burned, nor was burned adobe noted in the fill. This post hole may be associated with the line of post holes defined in excavation unit 78N/98E (see Sampling Stratum 4).

Stratigraphy

The stratigraphy within Feature 1 (hearth) was discussed above in the description of that feature. The stratigraphy in the remainder of the unit is illustrated in Figure 2.6 and will be described here.

Stratum 8 (see Figure 2.6) is a brown silt loam containing numerous charcoal flecks, burned adobe nodules, and sandstone bits. The boundary with the Pueblo II surface is abrupt and smooth. Stratum 8 apparently is a postabandonment deposit that accumulated after the Pueblo III surface was truncated by the erosion of sediment into the kiva depression to the northeast. After the kiva depression was nearly filled, sediments began to accumulate in this area of the courtyard. The one tree-ring sample recovered from this stratum dated to A.D. 1006 vv. This wood was probably used originally during the Pueblo II occupation and reused during the Pueblo III occupation.

Sampling Unit 84N/101E

This random unit is at the east edge of the kiva (Structure 1). The one feature documented in this unit (Feature 1, rock concentration) is associated with the kiva and was described under that structure heading. A bone awl (PL 7) was recovered from rodent-disturbed material in the northeast corner of this test unit. The stratigraphy of the unit is described below.

Stratum 1 is 20 cm of brown silt loam containing charcoal, adobe, and sandstone bits. Also present are several large stones; the largest measures 75 × 30 cm. The sediment appears to have eroded down from the culturally originated topographic rise at the east edge of the courtyard.

Stratum 2 is 5 to 9 cm of reddish brown silty clay loam containing very sparse charcoal and adobe flecks. This stratum was prehistoric ground surface during the Pueblo III occupation.

Courtyard (Sampling Stratum 3) Summary

Four randomly selected test units were excavated in the area defined as the courtyard (79N/103E, 80N/102E, 80N/96E, and 84N/101E). In these units, the south edge of Structure 4 (a Pueblo II pit structure), one hearth (Pueblo III), one post hole (Pueblo II), and two miscellaneous pits (one Pueblo II and one Pueblo III) were documented. No judgment excavations were undertaken in this sampling stratum. Only on the west side of the courtyard (80N/96E) could use surfaces for both the Pueblo II and Pueblo III occupations be defined.

Architectural Inner Periphery (Sampling Stratum 4)

This sampling stratum was defined on the basis of a low, linear mound that extended north, east, and south of the surface architecture, pit structure, and courtyard sampling strata (Figure 2.2). A strip west of the roomblock was included in this stratum in order to create a buffer between the surface architecture stratum and the outer periphery stratum. The outer boundary of this stratum was defined by the outer edge of the linear mound.

This sampling stratum is 285 m² in area. Nine randomly selected 1-×-1-m units were excavated (77N/107E, 78N/98E, 82N/105E, 86N/104E, 90N/97E, 91N/92E, 92N/91E, 92N/100E, and 92N/102E). No judgment excavations were conducted in this stratum. During testing, one structure (Structure 4) and 26 extramural features (including at least 13 post holes) were documented. Table 2.3 gives summary data for these features. Features requiring additional description are discussed under the appropriate excavation unit heading. Structure 4 (pit structure) is discussed first, followed by discussion of the other excavation units.

During excavation of the random units in this sampling stratum, it was observed that some of the units contained secondary refuse, and some did not. The units that contained refuse (78N/98E, 86N/104E, 90N/97E, 92N/100E, and 92N/102E) are discussed as a group in the following section.

Structure 4 (Pit Structure)

Structure 4 is an unburned, earth-walled pit structure. Random test pit 82N/105E overlapped the north wall and nearly 1 m² of floor area (Figure 2.18). The north-south dimension of Structure 4 is approximately 3 m, judging from the location of this wall and from the observation that unit 79N/103E is apparently just south of the south wall of this structure. The short section of north wall observed appeared to be straight rather than curved, so the structure may be square or rectangular in plan.

Construction

The construction of Structure 4 is described in this section, including the walls, roof, and surfaces.

Walls. A 69-cm-long section of the north wall of Structure 4 was exposed during testing. Only the lowermost 51 cm of wall surface was observable; this presumably was a result of postabandonment slumping of the upper wall. The lower wall is vertical and is composed of undisturbed sterile sediments consisting of reddish brown clay loam (upper 10 to 41 cm) and caliche (lowermost 12 to 20 cm).

Roof. A stratum of roof fall measuring 60 cm thick and found directly on the floor of the pit structure (Figure 2.19) indicates that the structure was roofed. The roof fall deposit contained fragments of burned timbers (seven tree-ring samples were collected), although most of the vegetal material from the roof was absent. No post holes were observed in the area of the floor exposed, so the roof may have been supported by prehistoric ground surface around the perimeter of the structure.

Surfaces. Surface 1, the final use surface in Structure 4, is composed of a layer of redeposited caliche 2 to 5 cm thick. This surface is not smooth, but undulates slightly. Surface 2 consists of undisturbed caliche coated with a thin layer of adobe.

Surface 1

Features. Two pit features were documented on Surface 1.

Feature 1 (Pit): This irregularly shaped basin is located in the southwest corner of the excavation unit. The exposed portion measures 40 × 38 × 12 cm deep. The pit was excavated through Surface 2 and into the undisturbed caliche below. The fill of the feature is unconsolidated caliche that contains lumps of adobe and three pieces of tabular sandstone. One corrugated sherd was recovered from this fill. The feature was intentionally filled prior to abandonment. The function of this feature is unknown; however, the evidence is consistent with other observed dismantled mealing bins.

Feature 2 (Pit): This is a much smaller pit, located in the bottom of Feature 1. It is cylindrical and measures 9 cm in diameter and 12 cm in depth. The feature was excavated into the undisturbed caliche beneath Feature 1. Prior to the filling of Feature 1, Feature 2 was intentionally filled with reddish brown silt loam containing calcium carbonate flecks and one lump of adobe 2 cm in diameter. This fill was then capped with floor adobe. The function of this feature is unknown.

Artifacts. The following artifacts are associated with Surface 1:

PL 3 peckingstone
PL 4 chipped-stone debris
PL 5 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 6 chipped-stone debris
PL 8 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 9 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 10 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 11 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 12 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 14 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 15 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 17 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 18 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 19 2 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherds
PL 21 peckingstone
PL 22 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 23 peckingstone
PL 24 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 25 nonhuman bone
PL 28 1 Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray body sherd
PL 29 chipped-stone debris

The presence of three peckingstones in such a small floor assemblage strengthens the theory that Structure 4 may have been a mealing room.

Surface 2

No artifacts or features are associated with Surface 2.

Stratigraphy

The stratigraphic profile of Structure 4 is illustrated in Figure 2.19. This stratigraphy is described from the modern ground surface to the top of Surface 1 (floor).

Stratum 1 is a dark brown silt loam that contains sandstone bits. The boundary with Stratum 2 is abrupt and smooth. This material is recent aeolian and alluvial deposition.

Stratum 2 is a strong brown silt loam containing charcoal and adobe flecks, sparse calcium carbonate flecks, and a few small sandstone rocks. The boundary with Stratum 3 is abrupt. Stratum 2 accumulated after Feature 4 (wall) was built, but it is not clear whether all of this stratum accumulated during the Pueblo III occupation, or if some of the stratum accumulated after site abandonment.

Stratum 3 is a dark brown silty clay loam that contains charcoal flecks and sandstone bits. The boundary with Stratum 4 is abrupt and smooth. The base of Stratum 3 may have been prehistoric ground surface when the Pueblo III occupation began. If so, Stratum 3 would have accumulated during the Pueblo III occupation of the site. Feature 4 (wall) appears to truncate this deposit. See the detailed discussion of Feature 4 under sampling unit 82N/105E.

Stratum 4 is a strong brown silt loam containing charcoal and calcium carbonate flecks. The boundary with Stratum 5 is abrupt and smooth. This stratum contains evidence that, after the Pueblo II occupation of the site, alluvium entered this structure depression during 10 to 12 depositional episodes.

Stratum 5 rests on Surface 1 and consists of brown silty clay loam with the following inclusions: plentiful calcium carbonate nodules and small adobe nodules; larger adobe lumps, as mapped; several building-stone-size sandstone rocks near the bottom of the stratum; and plentiful charcoal flecks and sparse remnants of roofing timbers as large as 6 cm in diameter. The boundary with Surface 1 is abrupt and smooth.

The massiveness of this deposit and the presence of the roofing timber remnants indicate that Stratum 5 consists of roof fall minus the majority of the timbers. These timbers were probably salvaged for reuse elsewhere.

Artifacts recovered from the fill of Structure 4 include: Indeterminate Plain Gray sherds (N = 5), Mancos Corrugated Gray sherds (N = 2), Indeterminate Local Corrugated Gray sherds (N = 35), Pueblo II White Painted sherds (N = 4), Late White Painted sherds (N = 8), Late White Unpainted sherds (N = 9), pieces of chipped-stone debris (N = 30), and nonhuman bone. The pottery is consistent with a Pueblo II date for the structure.

Dating

Seven tree-ring samples were collected from the roof fall of Structure 4; five of these were datable. The dates returned are 920 vv, 998 +vv, 1010 vv, 1021 vv, and 1058 vv. These dates are comparable to tree-ring dates from other proveniences on this site, Pueblo II and Pueblo III alike. Therefore, these dates need to be corroborated by other dating methods. The earth walls of Structure 4 indicate that the structure was probably built during the Pueblo II occupation rather than during the Pueblo III occupation. Also, the masonry wall (Feature 4, Sampling Stratum 4) is intrusive into the upper fill of Structure 4 (shown in plan in Figure 2.16 and in profile in Figure 2.19). Thus, the masonry wall is thought to date to the Pueblo III occupation, which would affiliate Structure 4 with the Pueblo II occupation. The sherds from the fill and floor of the structure (see above) also suggest a Pueblo II occupation. If Structure 4 is Pueblo II, then the tree-ring dates tell us only that the structure was constructed or was still being used at least as late as A.D. 1058.

Interpretations

Structure 4 is an unburned, earth-walled, probably rectangular pit structure. The structure measures approximately 3 m north-south. This pit structure appears to have been constructed during the Pueblo II occupation of the site, according to the tree-ring dates, pottery, architecture, and stratigraphy. Two use surfaces were defined in the 1 m² of floor area that was exposed during testing. A number of artifacts and two pit features of unknown function are associated with the latest use surface.

There is little evidence of the function of this structure, but the small size, noncircular plan, and earth-walled design are not inconsistent with subterranean mealing rooms from this time period (Harriman and Morris 1991:342, 355; Morris 1986:32-42, 1988a:162-169). In addition, the sizable chunks of unburned adobe in the fill of Feature 1 could be the result of the dismantling of mealing bins. The three peckingstones that appear to be associated with the floor provide evidence that metates were maintained there. Alternatively, Structure 4 could be a small, domiciliary/religious pit structure. Roof fall rested on the latest use surface. A number of charred timber fragments were recovered from this stratum for tree-ring dating. These fragments are similar in size and number to the fragments recovered from the fill of Structure 1. There was evidence of localized roof burning along the east wall of Structure 1, but the remaining timbers are assumed to have been salvaged. That appears to be the case for Structure 4 as well, because there is not enough evidence of burning for the entire roof to have burned, but rotted timbers are also absent. Thus, most of the roof timbers were salvaged from Structure 4.

Structure 4 filled naturally until the advent of the Pueblo III occupation, when culturally deposited material began accumulating. During the Pueblo III occupation, a masonry wall of unknown function was constructed across the upper fill of Structure 4. Additional cultural material accumulated on both sides of the wall until the end of the Pueblo III occupation, and a small amount of natural deposition occurred after abandonment.

Sampling Unit 82N/105E

This sampling unit is the one in which Structure 4 was exposed, and thus most of the data for this unit was presented above. However, the masonry wall (Feature 4, Sampling Stratum 4), high in the fill of Structure 4, requires additional description.

Feature 4 (Wall)

Measurements of the exposed portion of this wall can be found in Table 2.3. This wall, which is oriented southwest-northeast, consists of two large sandstone slabs set on top of several smaller stones. The cross section of this feature shows that the smaller stones may have been laid in a foundation trench (Figure 2.19). Most of the rocks are unmodified; however, the west face of the southernmost large slab was pecked. This same edge had been burned, as had the west edge of a lower-course rock. No mortar was observed; the wall may have been dry-laid or the mortar may have weathered from between the rocks.

The wall does not extend across the entire excavation unit. It is observable in the center of the southern area of the unit and continues northeastward. However, it ends 30 cm from the northeast corner of the test pit. It is not clear whether the wall ended at this location or whether a section of wall had been destroyed. It also is not known how far the wall continues to the southwest outside the excavation unit. This wall is believed to date to the Pueblo III occupation of the site because it is on top of 1.10 m of fill within Structure 4, a small, earth-walled pit structure containing timbers that tree-ring date to the Pueblo II period.

Sampling Unit 77N/107E

The fill of this excavation unit consisted of 10 to 13 cm of naturally deposited brown silt containing charcoal, flecks of burned adobe, and a few small sandstone rocks. At the bottom of this deposit, the undisturbed sterile B horizon was encountered.

Features

Two features are associated with the surface at the top of the B horizon.

Feature 5 (Charcoal Concentration). The basic data for this feature are given in Table 2.3. The feature consists of a concentration of charcoal and charcoal-stained sediment. The charcoal appeared to be charred sagebrush. The concentration is roughly circular and basin shaped; it may be contained in a shallow pit, but this is difficult to determine because the area is rodent disturbed.

Because no fire-reddened sediment could be detected, it was inferred that the charcoal originated elsewhere and was deposited here. The origin of this charcoal may have been Feature 6 (hearth), which is 15 cm west of Feature 5. The cultural affiliation of this feature is unknown.

Feature 6 (Hearth). The basic data for this feature are given in Table 2.3. Feature 6 is a fired pit whose walls and floor are lined with slabs. Most of the slabs are fire-reddened or blackened. A small amount of adobe was noted between the stones lining the floor of the pit. The pit was excavated into the undisturbed sterile B horizon.

The fill of the feature is strong brown silt that contains flecks of charcoal, small pieces of sandstone, and small, sparse nodules of burned adobe. This fill is primarily postabandonment aeolian and alluvial sediment; there is evidence that charcoal was removed from the pit at least once (see Feature 5 above). Features 5 and 6 are associated with the same occupation surface (as is Feature 23, a post hole near the southwest corner of this unit--see Table 2.3), but whether this surface is Pueblo II or Pueblo III is unknown.

Sampling Units 91N/92E and 92N/91E

These two random units are near the northwest corner of the architectural inner periphery stratum. They contained more refuse than the outer periphery units, but less refuse than the units in the organically stained, topographically higher area of this stratum (see next heading). Also, the refuse did not appear to be in situ but seemed to have eroded from the higher ground to the east and south.

In these two units, the stratum containing cultural material was 15 to 20 cm thick and consisted of brown sandy loam to silt loam containing charcoal, burned adobe and calcium carbonate flecks, plentiful small sandstone rocks and a few larger stones. No features were detected in these two units.

Sampling Units 78N/98E, 86N/104E, 90N/97E, 92N/100E, and 92N/102E

These five excavation units contained a moderate to high quantity of artifacts in stained sediment and are clearly on the topographic rise surrounding the courtyard. Twenty-two features were documented in these units; basic data are contained in Table 2.3. Additional discussion of one of the features in this table (Feature 10, trench) will be presented below.

The cultural deposits in these units vary from 18 to 35 cm thick. The sediment is a strong brown to dark brown silt loam containing charcoal flecks, burned adobe flecks and nodules, and a moderate to abundant quantity of artifacts. Sandstone was also present. Abundant stones fist-size and smaller were noted in the three test pits north of the courtyard; a few larger rocks were present in all five units.

Cultural fill rests on the undisturbed B horizon that is inferred to be the Pueblo II occupation surface. The basis of this inference is that the features in 78N/98E (Features 1, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16--see Table 2.3) are at the same elevation as the features on the lower surface in nearby units 79N/91E, 80N/91E, 79N/93E, 80N/94E, and 80N/96E, which has been stratigraphically demonstrated to be the Pueblo II occupation surface (Figure 2.6). The features in the other four units are generally in the same elevation range as the features in nearby unit 87N/94E, which is also associated stratigraphically with the Pueblo II occupation (see the Sampling Unit 87N/94E heading in the surface architecture section).

Feature 10 (Trench)

Basic data for this feature can be found in Table 2.3. This trench is similar to Feature 16 in Sampling Stratum 1 (Table 2.1), which contained eight post holes. Feature 10 contains four post holes. The trench and the post holes it contains are believed to be the remains of a post-and-adobe wall that appears to have been curved. An additional post hole (Feature 15) is located in the northeast corner of the test pit. Features 12 and 13 (pits) are shallow and basined, but might be post holes that, along with Feature 15, formed a cross-wall to the wall formed by Features 1, 8, 11, and 14.

Architectural Inner Periphery (Sampling Stratum 4) Summary

Nine randomly selected units were excavated to test the architectural inner periphery (78N/98E, 77N/107E, 82N/105E, 86N/104E, 90N/97E, 91N/92E, 92N/91E, 92N/100E, and 92N/102E); no judgment units were excavated in this sampling stratum. Testing revealed one unburned, earth-walled pit structure (Structure 4) and 26 extramural features, at least 13 of which are post holes. The stratigraphy suggests that the pit structure and most of the extramural features are associated with the Pueblo II occupation of the site. The three features in unit 77N/107E cannot be firmly associated with either occupation, primarily because of the horizontal distance of these features from the nearest dated surface.

In this sampling stratum, 19 tree-ring samples were recovered and submitted for analysis. Thirteen of these were from general fill and extramural features, and six were from roof fall in the pit structure (Structure 4). The dates from general fill and features are 889 vv, 934 vv, 998 vv, 1025 vv, 1047 vv, 1055 vv, 1059 v, and 1083 vv. The dates from the pit structure are 920 vv, 998 +vv, 1010 vv, 1021 vv, and 1058 vv. These timbers clearly date to the Pueblo II component of the site, but many have lost an indeterminate number of rings. It can be stated, however, that because 1083 vv is the latest tree-ring date, the Pueblo II occupation continued until at least that year.

The cultural fill above the Pueblo II surface in the horseshoe-shaped rise surrounding the kiva contains a large quantity of artifacts, which indicates that the stratum was intentionally deposited. The sherds in this fill are predominantly Pueblo II style (see the material culture tables at the end of this chapter). However, the rise itself appears to be associated with the Pueblo III component, because it surrounds the kiva and is not oriented to any known Pueblo II architecture. Thus, this rise may have been constructed during the Pueblo III occupation using refuse from the previous occupation. The purpose or significance of the rise is unknown. Similar, but less well-defined, linear mounds were documented in Sampling Stratum 4 at Lillian's Site (Chapter 3), Roy's Ruin (Chapter 4), and Shorlene's Site (Chapter 6), all reported in this volume.

South Midden (Sampling Stratum 5, Nonstructure 1)

This sampling stratum is the midden located southeast of the architectural area at the site. The extent of this midden was defined by stained sediment and by a topographic rise. The midden as defined encompasses 88 m². Eight 1-×-1-m units were randomly selected for excavation (59N/109E, 60N/111E, 61N/109E, 62N/112E, 63N/104E, 65N/110E, 66N/105E, and 67N/112E) (Figure 2.2). No judgment excavation was undertaken in this midden.

The stratigraphy noted in these excavation units is summarized first. Descriptions of two possible pit features follow under the appropriate sampling unit heading. Artifacts recovered from this sampling stratum are listed in Table 2.4, Table 2.5, Table 2.6, Table 2.7, and Table 2.8.

Stratigraphy (All Sampling Units)

The stratigraphy in the midden units varied little between test pits. The uppermost stratum consisted of 10 to 23 cm of brown to dark brown silt or silt loam containing charcoal and adobe flecks, abundant artifacts, and as many as 40 pieces of sandstone (fist size and smaller). The exception was unit 63N/104E, in which Stratum 1 was as much as 48 cm thick; however, this was partly a result of looting, which had altered the topography of modern ground surface. Stratum 1 is secondary refuse dating to the Pueblo III occupation of the site.

Beneath Stratum 1 was 4 to 18 cm of reddish brown silty clay loam containing very little cultural material. This stratum is thought to have been prehistoric ground surface prior to the use of the area as a midden. Stratum 2 rests on undisturbed B-horizon sediment.

Sampling Unit 59N/109E

One pit feature (Feature 1) was documented at the bottom of Stratum 2 in this excavation unit. The basin measures 16 cm long, 13 cm wide, and 5 cm deep, and it had been excavated into the undisturbed B-horizon sediment. The fill in the pit was brown silt loam containing charcoal flecks and one sherd. If this is a cultural feature (it may be rodent disturbance), it appears to date to the Pueblo III occupation.

Sampling Unit 61N/109E

A portion of a pit feature (Feature 2) was exposed in the northwest corner of this test unit. The exposed portion of the pit measures 16 cm long, 14 cm wide, and 19 cm deep. This straight-sided pit was excavated into the undisturbed B-horizon sediment. The fill of the feature consisted of a dark brown silt loam containing sparse charcoal flecks. The function of this feature is unknown, but the pit appears to originate at the Pueblo III surface. Like Feature 1, it is possible that this feature is actually the result of rodent disturbance.

South Midden (Sampling Stratum 5, Nonstructure 1) Summary

This midden was sampled by the excavation of eight randomly selected units (59N/109E, 60N/111E, 61N/109E, 62N/112E, 63N/104E, 65N/110E, 66N/105E, and 67N/112E). One stratum of culturally deposited refuse is present. Two possible pit features were noted on the surface beneath the refuse.

No tree-ring samples were collected during testing of the midden. The pottery assemblage indicates that this midden area is associated with the Pueblo III occupation of the site.

North Midden (Sampling Stratum 6)

This midden area is northeast of the architecture at the site. The area encompasses 46 m². Four 1-×-1-m units were randomly selected for excavation (95N/105E, 96N/105E, 97N/107E, and 99N/104E). No judgment excavation was conducted in this sampling stratum. During the testing of this midden, secondary refuse was sampled, and one feature (a burial) was encountered. The stratigraphy documented in these test units is summarized first, and discussion of the burial follows.

Stratigraphy

Stratum 1 consisted of 10 to 45 cm of brown to dark brown silt loam containing small pieces of charcoal and burned adobe nodules, abundant artifacts, and small sandstone rocks. This stratum is secondary refuse.

Stratum 2 consisted of 6 to 10 cm of reddish brown silty clay loam between the overlying layer of refuse and the underlying undisturbed B horizon. This stratum is believed to have been prehistoric ground surface prior to the use of this area as a midden.

Feature 1 (Burial)

A portion of a human burial was found in random unit 97N/107E; for legal reasons, the skeleton was neither completely exposed nor removed from the ground. The portion of the body in 97N/107E was partly exposed in order to document burial context and temporal affiliation. The elements exposed were mapped, photographed, and described, and an attempt was made to determine the age and sex of the individual. All elements and associated grave goods were left in situ during recording and analysis.

The general portion of the body exposed extended from the proximal end of the humerus to mid-tibia. The body is extended and is lying supine with the arms folded across the abdomen. The body is oriented northwest-southeast, with the upper part of the body to the northwest. The head is west of the excavation unit; the lower legs and feet are southeast of the southeast corner of the excavation unit. The exposed portion of the body measured 1.2 m long, 47 cm wide, and 11 cm thick.

Not all of the elements within the excavation unit were exposed. Elements more or less exposed include the following: left and right humerus, left and right radius and ulna, sternum, distal ends of three left ribs, three right phalanges, innominates, sacrum, left and right femur, left and right patella, and left and right tibia. The only elements observed to be disarticulated were the phalanges. All bone observed was very well preserved.

A field assessment of the age and sex of the individual indicates that the body is that of a male in his late twenties. No evidence of trauma or other indication of cause of death was observed.

The body had been interred in a pit. The only part of the pit that was detectable was the portion that extended below the midden deposits into undisturbed B-horizon sediment. The pit is 76 cm wide, and it extends a maximum of 11 cm into the B horizon on the uphill, or southwest, side and only a few centimeters into the B horizon on the northeast, or downhill, side of the body. Thus, some refuse must have already accumulated for the interment to have been complete. The uppermost element exposed is 25 cm below modern ground surface.

Several artifacts are believed to have been intentionally interred with the burial. The following items were located on either side of the upper body: a Moccasin Gray jar, complete or nearly complete (not fully exposed); a black-on-white bowl, complete or nearly complete (extends outside the excavation unit); a ground-stone item, 10 cm wide, .5 cm thick, and over 12 cm long, with edges shaped on the portion exposed (also extends outside the excavation unit); a Mancos Black-on-white bowl sherd; and a San Juan red ware bowl rim sherd. These grave goods suggest a Pueblo II interment, with the Moccasin jar being a curated or uncharacteristic type for the time period.

North Midden (Sampling Stratum 6) Summary

Four randomly selected 1-×-1-m units were excavated to sample this midden. Secondary refuse 10 to 45 cm thick rested on 6 to 10 cm of prehistoric A-horizon sediment. One feature, a human burial, was partly exposed and documented, but was left in situ. The reason for the apparently unorthodox location of this midden (northeast of the architecture) is unknown.

A variety of artifacts was recovered during the testing of this midden. These artifacts are listed under Sampling Stratum 6 in Table 2.4, Table 2.5, Table 2.6, Table 2.7, and Table 2.8. The artifacts recovered during testing of the midden and the artifacts associated with the burial indicate that these deposits date to the Pueblo II occupation of the site. This assemblage also has the variety of artifacts one would expect on a habitation site.

South Midden Periphery (Sampling Stratum 7)

The south midden periphery sampling stratum is a narrow buffer area around the south midden. This area was designated so that artifacts that had been slightly displaced from this midden during erosion, chaining, or looting could be tentatively associated with this midden, rather than being relegated to the south outer periphery general artifact scatter.

This area encompasses 138 m², and four 1-×-1-m units were randomly selected for excavation (59N/112E, 60N/113E, 64N/112E, and 68N/104E). No judgment excavation was undertaken, and no architectural units or features were encountered in this sampling stratum. The artifacts from this sampling stratum are listed in Table 2.4, Table 2.5, Table 2.6, Table 2.7, and Table 2.8.

Stratigraphy

The cultural material in these excavation units consists of 5 to 12 cm of brown to dark brown silt to silt loam containing as many as 10 sandstone rocks per unit and perhaps a few flecks of charcoal and calcium carbonate. This stratum also contains a moderate number of artifacts. Stratum 1 is thought to be material that eroded down from the midden mound.

Stratum 2 is 5 to 9 cm of reddish brown silty clay loam containing very sparse noncultural inclusions. This material is inferred to be the prehistoric A horizon prior to the deposition of Stratum 1.

South Outer Periphery (Sampling Stratum 8)

The south outer periphery was designed to sample the peripheral artifact scatter in the south half of the site. The outer limits were defined by the extent of the Pueblo II/Pueblo III pottery scatter (to exclude a Basketmaker artifact scatter adjacent to G and G Hamlet to the south).

The south outer periphery encompasses 1,446 m². Seven 1-×-1-m units were randomly selected for excavation (44N/92E, 52N/106E, 52N/111E, 60N/93E, 66N/115E, 71N/92E, and 72N/112E). No judgment excavation was conducted in this stratum, and no features or architecture were encountered during testing.

Stratigraphy

The stratigraphy is consistent across this sampling stratum. Stratum 1 consists of 5 to 19 cm of brown to reddish brown silt to silt loam containing tiny and sparse charcoal flecks and sandstone bits. A few of the excavation units also contained a few small sandstone rocks. Artifacts were sparse to absent.

Stratum 2 consists of 1 to 16 cm of reddish brown silty clay loam containing tiny, sparse charcoal flecks. This deposit is inferred to be the prehistoric A horizon prior to the deposition of Stratum 1.

North Outer Periphery (Sampling Stratum 9)

This sampling stratum was defined to allow us to sample the peripheral artifact scatter in the north half of the site, and it covers 938 m². The limits of the area were defined by the extent of the artifact scatter. Five 1-×-1-m units were excavated to test this peripheral area (76N/86E, 83N/78E, 93N/124E, 101N/117E, and 104N/101E); no judgment units were excavated in this sampling stratum. No architecture and no cultural features were encountered.

Stratigraphy

The excavation units north and west of the architecture (76N/86E, 83N/78E, and 104N/101E) exhibited similar stratigraphy. In these units, Stratum 1 consisted of 10 to 25 cm of naturally deposited brown silt to silt loam containing a few charcoal flecks and a small amount of sandstone. Stratum 1 rested on undisturbed B-horizon sediment.

In 93N/124E (downslope northeast of the architecture), Stratum 1 consisted of 15 to 20 cm of reddish brown silt loam to silty clay loam with only a few small pieces of sandstone and charcoal. Also recovered from this stratum were 20 obsidian flakes and flake fragments, which is the largest concentration of obsidian collected from this site. Thus, although the sediment in this stratum was probably naturally deposited, these flakes must have been culturally deposited here or slightly upslope from here.

Stratum 2 in this same unit is 6 to 16 cm of brown to reddish brown silty clay loam containing some charcoal flecks, very sparse sandstone bits, and abundant calcium carbonate nodules. The origin of the calcium carbonate is unknown. The base of Stratum 2 is believed to have been the prehistoric ground surface during the occupation of the site.

Sampling unit 101N/117E contains cultural material that eroded downslope from the north midden. This material extends 45 cm below modern ground surface, but the stratum is thought to have been altered and mixed during chaining of the site, possibly by the uprooting of a large tree.

G and G Hamlet Artifacts

Artifact data for G and G Hamlet are presented in Table 2.4, Table 2.5, Table 2.6, Table 2.7, and Table 2.8. The quantity and variety of artifacts recovered suggest that the site was used as a permanent habitation. The presence of two middens that are spatially and temporally distinct indicates that the site was occupied on two different occasions. This evidence is corroborated by the stratigraphy and architecture observed on the site. An abnormally high quantity of artifacts was also recovered from excavation units in Sampling Stratum 4 (the architectural inner periphery), which is the horseshoe-shaped topographic rise surrounding the kiva.

The pottery assemblage from the north midden has a high percentage of Pueblo II sherds. Of the decorated white ware sherds that were assigned to a type, 20 (90 percent) are Mancos Black-on-white and 2 (10 percent) are McElmo Black-on-white. No Mesa Verde Black-on-white sherds were identified from the north midden. From the south midden, on the other hand, 15 (41 percent) of the black-on-white sherds are Mancos, eight (22 percent) are McElmo, and 14 (38 percent) are Mesa Verde. These percentages suggest that there was one late Pueblo II occupation and one Pueblo III occupation at the site. The quantity and variety of sherds indicate that during both of these occupations the site was used as a permanent habitation.

From Sampling Stratum 4, eight sherds were assigned to a decorated white ware type. Five of these (63 percent) are Mancos Black-on-white, two (25 percent) are McElmo Black-on-white, and one (13 percent) is Mesa Verde Black-on-white. Although these numbers are very small, they suggest that the horseshoe-shaped topographic rise encircling the kiva is composed more of early-occupation refuse than of late-occupation refuse. The purpose or significance of this feature is unknown.

Other artifacts from the four units excavated in the north midden (Sampling Stratum 6) include:

1 hammerstone
1 peckingstone
2 modified sherds
4 modified flakes
393 pieces of chipped-stone debris
1 gizzard stone
1 axe
nonhuman bone

Other artifacts recovered from the eight units excavated in the south midden (Sampling Stratum 5, Nonstructure 1) are as follows:

1 abrader
1 hammerstone
2 peckingstones
5 modified sherds
11 modified flakes
974 pieces of chipped-stone debris
5 gizzard stones
3 bifaces
3 projectile points
10 cores
1 pendant fragment
nonhuman bone

A wide range of subsistence activities are represented in these assemblages, which supports the supposition that the site was used twice as a permanent habitation.

Artifacts from the nine excavation units in Sampling Stratum 4 include:

543 pieces of chipped-stone debris
1 drill
1 shaped sherd
1 biface
5 modified flakes
3 metate fragments
2 axe fragments
3 cores
1 modified core
1 maul
6 peckingstones
2 modified sherds
nonhuman bone
2 gizzard stones

Evidence of extraregional trade was recovered from the site. Four Wingate Polychrome pottery sherds indicate interaction with central Arizona. Numerous obsidian flakes and flake fragments suggest contact with an obsidian source (nonlocal); the nearest source is Polvadera Peak in the Jemez Mountains of northwestern New Mexico. The source of the nonlocal chert/siltstone debitage is unknown. Washington Pass chert was also recovered from the site. This material was obtained west of Chaco Canyon in northwestern New Mexico. The source of the petrified wood collected during testing cannot be specified; it occurs naturally in several areas of northwestern New Mexico and in southeastern Utah. Thus, although trade goods from outside the local area are present at G and G Hamlet, they constitute a very small proportion of the total artifact assemblage.

Site Summary and Conclusions

G and G Hamlet was tested by excavating 50 randomly selected 1-×-1-m units, one 1-×-1-m judgment unit, and two 1-×-2-m judgment units (Figure 2.2). Testing resulted in the definition of features and structures associated with one site occupation dating to the Pueblo II period and one occupation dating to the Pueblo III period. Cultural phenomena encountered during testing include two masonry surface rooms (Structures 2 and 3), an earth-walled pit structure (Structure 4), a masonry-lined kiva (Structure 1), two middens, and 62 extramural features (Figure 2.3, Figure 2.4, and Figure 2.16).

Structures 2 and 3 are adjoining, unburned masonry surface rooms dating to the Pueblo III occupation. The structures were built on a stratum of intentional fill on the Pueblo II occupation surface. Structure 3 appears to have been the southernmost room in the original masonry roomblock. Structure 2 must have been added later, because its east and west walls abut the south wall of Structure 3. The floor of Structure 2 is slab lined. No features or artifacts are associated with the floors of these rooms that might indicate their functions. The roof timbers appear to have been salvaged at abandonment for reuse elsewhere, and the remainder of these rooms filled naturally after abandonment.

Structure 4 is an earth-walled pit structure dating to the Pueblo II occupation. The floor-associated artifacts do little to clarify the function of this structure. However, the straightness of the section of wall exposed, the small size of the structure, and the absence of masonry are consistent with other subterranean rooms that were used for mealing and that date to this time period. One of the partly exposed floor features could be a dismantled mealing bin. Alternatively, this pit structure might have been used for domiciliary/religious purposes. However, if Structure 4 is a mealing room, then an additional, domiciliary/religious pit structure is assumed to have been present during the Pueblo II occupation. No evidence of an additional pit structure was noted during testing.

The roof of this structure appears to have suffered a small amount of localized burning at abandonment; the remaining timbers must have been salvaged. The pit structure depression then filled naturally until the Pueblo III occupation, when a masonry wall was constructed across the top of the structure fill.

Structure 1 is a masonry-lined kiva built during the Pueblo III occupation. In this structure, portions of three bench segments, two pilasters, a remodeled hearth, two ash pits, and three miscellaneous floor pits were exposed. Few artifacts were associated with the bench and floor surfaces. As in Structure 4, the roof of Structure 1 apparently suffered a small amount of localized burning at abandonment, and the remaining roof timbers were salvaged. The structure depression then filled naturally.

The north midden appears to be associated with the Pueblo II occupation and the south midden with the Pueblo III occupation. These associations were determined by the pottery recovered during testing. The burial documented in the north midden appears to date to the Pueblo II occupation, judging from the associated grave goods.

The Pueblo III midden is typically located, that is, it is southeast of the architecture. The overall layout of the Pueblo II post-and-adobe architecture is not known, but the post holes that were documented are in the general area of the Pueblo III architecture. Thus, the Pueblo II midden is northeast of the associated architecture, which is atypical.

Sixty-two extramural features were documented. Most are associated with the Pueblo II occupation, and many are post holes (some within trenches) that are the remains of post-and-adobe structures. Exposure of post holes was too limited to permit the definition of rooms or a stockade wall, but both of these types of structures are well documented for the Pueblo II period (Kuckelman 1988; Harriman and Morris 1991; Morris 1988b, 1991b; Martin 1938; Hill 1985).

Both occupations of G and G Hamlet were habitational. Evidence of this can be seen in the presence of surface structures and pit structures, in the number and variety of features, and in the number and variety of artifacts in the middens.

From the site as a whole, 83 tree-ring samples were collected and submitted for analysis; 43 of these were datable (Table 2.2). The tree-ring dates are consistent with the architecture and pottery types from the early occupation of the site. These dates indicate initial construction in the A.D. 1060s. The 1083 vv date stands alone as a late date, and it may be the result of construction or repair late in the Pueblo II occupation. None of the tree-ring dates is consistent with the Pueblo III pottery recovered or the late architectural style observed. This suggests that the Pueblo III construction was accomplished by reusing timbers from the Pueblo II structures.

The archaeomagnetic samples collected from this site are of little use in dating the Pueblo III component. The hearth (Feature 14) in the kiva (Structure 1), returned a date span of A.D. 1020-1250; this span probably includes both occupations. Feature 1 (hearth) in the courtyard (Sampling Stratum 3) yielded three possible spans--A.D. 600-725, 900-1010, and 1350-1725; neither occupation falls within these spans.

The paucity of Mesa Verde Black-on-white pottery at G and G Hamlet indicates that the Pueblo III component predates the main occupation at Sand Canyon Pueblo and probably predates the Pueblo III components at the other tested sites as well. In fact, the primary goal of excavating G and G Hamlet was to test a habitation site that slightly predated the A.D. 1200s sites already tested, in order to acquire settlement-patterning time depth and comparative data for other sites in the Sand Canyon locality. The hiatus between the two occupations at G and G Hamlet is similar to that documented at Lillian's Site and perhaps at Shorlene's Site. Kenzie Dawn Hamlet also has one occupation dating to the late A.D. 1000s and another dating to the late A.D. 1100s or early 1200s.

1. The following suffixes, provided by the Tree-Ring Laboratory, Tucson, Arizona, are used throughout this publication:: B = bark is present.
r = less than a full section is present, but the outermost ring is continuous around the available circumference.
v = a subjective judgment that, although there is no direct evidence of the true outside on the sample, the date is within a very few years of being a cutting date.
vv = there is no way of estimating how far the last ring is from the true outside; many rings may be lost.
+ = one or a few rings may be missing near the outside whose presence or absence cannot be determined because the series does not extend far enough to provide adequate crossdating.
++ = a ring count is necessary beyond a certain point in the series because crossdating ceases.

2. The Crow Canyon system uses a two- or three-part code (e.g., 324-1-16) to identify an artifact. The first number in the code is a provenience indicator (PD), the second number is a laboratory catalog number (FS), and the third number, when assigned, is a point-location number (PL). Together these numbers identify the exact location of an artifact at a site.

The Sand Canyon Archaeological Project: Site Testing

The Sand Canyon Archaeological Project

Site Testing

Edited by Mark D. Varien

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G and G Hamlet