Cochise Culture

In the southeast region of Arizona, the culture known as the Cochise Culture flourished from about 9000BP (Before Present) to 2100BP. Three distinct phases have been adopted in describing the transitions of the Cochise: Sulpher Springs, Chiricahua, and San Pedro. The first stage demonstrates the notion of big game hunting as the main form of subsistence. Such prehistoric creatures as the mammoth, horse, and camel were the primary prey. Projectile points found below kill sites, as well as percussion-flaked knives, scrapers, and choppers strongly suggest such a claim. As the culture continued to advance technologically, such artifacts as stemmed points, storage pits, and heavy mill stones lead archaeologists to believe that farming had become an influential factor in the subsistence of this culture. By the time of the San Pedro phase, small pit houses were being used as simple shelters for the Cochise peoples. It is believed that the San Pedro phase of the Cochise Culture evolved into the modern Mogollon tradition.

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