The Anasazi, also known as the cliff dwellers, lived between ACE 1000 and 1300 in Southwestern United States mostly Arizona, Colorado and Utah. Most of the cliff dwellers left their homes around 1300, possibly because of hostile invaders, low food supply, or perhaps drought. Archaeologists found pottery, bows and arrows, sandals and wooden tools in the ruins.
In 1994, an excavation was conducted at Goat Hill Site, a masonry pueblo, near the Safford Valley of the Gila River in Arizona. There was no evidence of conflict; the site would have been defended easily as it is seventy meters above ground level and the outside walls of the area follow the edges the butte. Also in the site is a system of irrigation ditches, dams, and terraces cultivated by the Indians at the Goat Hill Site. Evidence from this investigation shows the site was a group of western Anasazi who migrated from northeastern Arizona in about A.D. 1270 to 1300.
The artifacts found at Goat Hill also suggest an affiliation with the western Anasazi tribes. The painted pottery types, which account for about 95% of the painted pottery sample, are similar to Maverick Mountain Black-on- red and Maverick Mountain Polychrome. Judging on the dendrochronological dates assigned to the Point of Pines artifacts, the two pieces were probably from about A.D. 1250 to 1300.
About forty pieces were recovered during the dig, a low number compared to sites in the Safford Valley and western Anasazi region. No explanation has been concluded to account for this. Of these 20 to 30 pieces were perforated rim plates, the remainder were not from around there. Also, a stone axe was excavated from the floor. Artifacts such as these are normal in western Anasazi dwellings.
Maybe Pinto Polychrome ceramics at the Goat Hill site are an indication of an residency by a traveling group. Some of these Polychrome pieces show the design styles are similar to western Anasazi styles. Small amounts have been identified as Pinto and Pinto-Gila Polychrome pieces, which add up to about 2% of the painted pottery pieces. They were found on the floor of the pueblo. The Goat Hill Site was most likely not occupied much after that date. The presence of Pinto and Pinto-Gila Polychrome pieces at Goat Hill may enable a correlation with the Maverick Mountain types to determine dates of production and similarity.
World Book,CD Rom, World Book, Inc., 1998
"The Goat Hill Site." University of Texas at Austin (UT), HTTP://www.da.utexas.edu/depts/anthro/projects/goathill/goathill.html(10/17/99)
Written by: Adam Kane