Sponsored by: AIA-Santa Fe Society, Santa Fe Archaeological Society
Lecture. Sean Dolan (Los Alamos Laboratories). For nearly two millennia, people in the US Southwest and Mexican Northwest have maintained a significant relationship with turkeys, a bird they domesticated for their feathers, meat, and other resources. Recent archaeological studies reveal diverse regional and temporal patterns in turkey management, but how and why did people in the Mimbres Valley of southwestern New Mexico from CE 1000-1130 manage and interact with these birds? In this presentation, Sean Dolan incorporates Mimbres pottery iconography, bone isotope analysis, and ancient DNA to explore the role and treatment of turkeys in this region.