High above the noise and traffic of metropolitan Phoenix, Native American rock art offers mute testimony that another civilization once thrived in the Arizona desert. In the city's South Mountains, prehispanic peoples pecked thousands of images into the mountains' boulders and outcroppings—images that today's hikers can encounter with every bend in the trail. Todd Bostwick, an archaeologist who has studied the Hohokam for more than twenty years, and Peter Krocek, a professional photographer with a passion for archaeology, have combed the South Mountains to locate nearly all of the ancient petroglyphs found in the canyons and ridges. Their years of learning the landscape and investigating the ancient designs have resulted in a book that explores this wealth of prehistoric rock art within its natural and cultural contexts, revealing what these carvings might mean, how they got there, and when they were made.Landscape of the Spirits is the first book to cover these ancient images and is one of the most comprehensive treatments of a rock art location ever published. It conveys the range of different rock art elements and compositions found in the South Mountains—animals, humans, and geometric shapes, as well as celestial and calendrical markings at key sites—through accurate descriptions, drawings, and photographs. Interpretations of the petroglyphs are based on Native American ethnographic accounts and consider the most recent theories concerning shamanism and archaeoastronomy. Written in a simple and accessible style, Landscape of the Spirits is an indispensable volume for anyone exploring the South Mountains, and for rock art enthusiasts everywhere who wish to broaden their understanding of the prehistoric world. It is both an authoritative overview of these ancient wonders and an unprecedented benchmark in southwestern rock art research at a single geographic location.

Landscape of the Spirits: Hohokam Rock Art at South Mountain Park

Arts & Photography

Bostwick, Todd W.

History & Criticism

University of Arizona Press

High above the noise and traffic of metropolitan Phoenix, Native American rock art offers mute testimony that another civilization once thrived in the Arizona desert. In the city's South Mountains, prehispanic peoples pecked thousands of images into the mountains' boulders and outcroppings—images that today's hikers can encounter with every bend in the trail. Todd Bostwick, an archaeologist who has studied the Hohokam for more than twenty years, and Peter Krocek, a professional photographer with a passion for archaeology, have combed the South Mountains to locate nearly all of the ancient petroglyphs found in the canyons and ridges. Their years of learning the landscape and investigating the ancient designs have resulted in a book that explores this wealth of prehistoric rock art within its natural and cultural contexts, revealing what these carvings might mean, how they got there, and when they were made. Landscape of the Spirits is the first book to cover these ancient images and is one of the most comprehensive treatments of a rock art location ever published. It conveys the range of different rock art elements and compositions found in the South Mountains—animals, humans, and geometric shapes, as well as celestial and calendrical markings at key sites—through accurate descriptions, drawings, and photographs. Interpretations of the petroglyphs are based on Native American ethnographic accounts and consider the most recent theories concerning shamanism and archaeoastronomy. Written in a simple and accessible style, Landscape of the Spirits is an indispensable volume for anyone exploring the South Mountains, and for rock art enthusiasts everywhere who wish to broaden their understanding of the prehistoric world. It is both an authoritative overview of these ancient wonders and an unprecedented benchmark in southwestern rock art research at a single geographic location.

Krocek, Peter

Byron Cummings, known to students and colleagues as “The Dean,” had a profound influence on the archaeology of Arizona and Utah during its early development. An explorer, archaeologist, anthropologist, teacher, museum director, university administrator, and state parks commissioner, Cummings was involved in many important discoveries in the American Southwest over the first half of the twentieth century and was a pioneer in the education of generations of archaeologists and anthropologists. This book presents the first comprehensive examination of Cummings’ life, offering readers a greater understanding of his trailblazing work. Todd Bostwick elucidates Cummings’ many intellectual and cultural contributions, investigates the controversies in which he was embroiled, and describes his battles to wrest control of Arizona archaeology from eastern institutions that had long dominated Southwest archaeology. Cummings saw the Southwest as an American wilderness where the story of cultural development revealed by the archaeologist and anthropologist was as important as it was in Europe. Bostwick’s meticulous account of his life reflects his great reverence for the region and pays tribute to a man whose dedication, mentoring, and friendship have forever sealed his place as The Dean.

Byron Cummings: Dean of Southwest Archaeology

Biographies & Memoirs

Professionals & Academics

The Dyck Cliff Dwelling is a relatively obscure habitation site along Beaver Creek, between Montezuma Castle National Monument and its sub-unit, Montezuma Well. The occupancy of the Dyck Cliff Dwelling is contemporaneous with the early occupation of Montezuma Castle. Inhabitants of these sites likely interacted with each other. The untold story of the people who lived in the cliff dwelling is revealed within its walls.Fortunately, the site was protected by its owner, Paul Dyck, for a quarter century until it was excavated professionally from 1962 to 1972. Even though excavations were completed in 1972, a detailed report was never written until the Verde Valley Archaeology Center received the collection from the Paul Dyck Foundation Research Institution of American Indian Culture in 2015. Shortly thereafter, Dr. Todd Bostwick, then the Director of Archaeology of the Verde Valley Archaeology Center, undertook this massive task. The result was a 701-page report, published in 2020, that contains 420 figures and 100 tables of data. While this extensive report was designed for our professional colleagues, this book is a condensed version for the general reader. Our desire is to share the excitement of the past through the discoveries provided by this look into the lives of a typical Sinagua family.

Ancient Verde Valley Family Life: The Sinagua at the Dyck Cliff Dwelling

History

Zoll, Kenneth J.

Americas

WAC Press

Beneath the Runways: Archaeology of Sky Harbor International Airport

Politics & Social Sciences

Archaeology

Pueblo Grande Museum

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Books by Bostwick, Todd W.