Chapter 2. A sketch of the cultural-historical environment-Part 1: The pre-Columbian past

Abstract

This chapter examines the scope and structure of current archaeological interpretations of the pre-Columbian Native American occupation and use of the Valles Caldera National Preserve (VCNP). The discussion provides useful cultural-historical background for the presentation and evaluation of the structure and organization of Native American land use history, as it is known through documentary sources, in subsequent chapters of this volume. It demonstrates that aboriginal communities have sustained important relationships with the Valles Caldera over millennia even though none ever established year-round residential settlements in this locality. Instead, the Valles Caldera represents an edge for residential centers located elsewhere (see chapter 9 for discussion of the essential relationship between edge and center in Native American understandings and occupations of their aboriginal landscapes.)

Parent Publication

• More than a scenic mountain landscape: Valles Caldera National Preserve land use history

Citation

Anschuetz, Kurt F. 2007. Chapter 2. A sketch of the cultural-historical environment-Part 1: The pre-Columbian past. In: Anschuetz, Kurt F.; Merlan, Thomas. More than a scenic mountain landscape: Valles Caldera National Preserve land use history. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-196. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 11-14.