In dialogue and narrative, one deeply feels that Chaco is haunted, magical. In a remote canyon in northwestern New Mexico sits one of America's greatest historical treasures and one of the Southwest's greatest mysteries. Its massive stone and timber buildings were constructed starting in 800 A.D. with materials taken from as far away as the Zuni Mountains to the south and the Chuska Mountains to the west. The Mystery of Chaco Canyon - Ritterbush - 2001 - American Anthropologist - Wiley Online Library Skip to Article Content Skip to Article Information So how did the ancestral Puebloans manage it? THE MYSTERY OF CHACO CANYON helps students to appreciate the scientific and cultural achievements of a significant civilization in pre-Columbian North America. Pueblo Indians, descendants of the Chacoan people, regard Chaco as a place where their ancestors lived in a sacred past. Today, the legacy of the extraordinary Chaco culture is threatened by both natural and human developments. When I watched this I had mixed feelings. From the 9th to the 12th century BCE, Chaco Canyon was the center of a pre-Columbian civilization that flourished in the San Juan Basin of the American Southwest. Pueblo leaders speak of the significance of Chaco to the Pueblo world today.The film challenges the notion that Chaco Canyon was primarily a trade and redistribution center. He and Wilson, who was then an undergraduate in biochemistry at the University of Colorado, Boulder, read up on the properties of dried wood and published their conclusions last year. and Terms of Use. Sofaer, Anna (screenwriter) Register to request a quote. The duo and their colleagues described their experiment Feb. 22 in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. After three months of training with tumplines for six or seven days a week, Kram and Wilson were ready to try a real log. The ancient Native American ruins of a Great House in Chaco Culture National Historical Park Archaeology February 22, 2023 How scientists hauling logs on their heads may have solved a Chaco Canyon mystery by Daniel Strain, University of Colorado at Boulder James Wilson, left, and. What is known is that beginning around the mid-800s, Chaco people began building here, creating multi-story stone buildings on a grand scale. Lekson suggests that much of what we believe about the ancient Southwest should be radically revised. They used sticks called "tokmas," which Nepalese sherpas also employ, to take breaks, resting the log without lowering it all the way to the ground. Dec 3, 2018. Credit: Patrick Campbell/CU Boulder. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy Pot from Chaco collection . The authors mention that sherpas in Nepal still use tumplines to carry loads as heavy as 111 kilograms, all the while guiding tourists whose shoulders are likely burning with much . The Mystery of Chaco Canyon TV Movie 1999 56 m IMDb RATING 7.3 /10 212 YOUR RATING Rate Documentary America's Stonehenge? Surprisingly, these buildings that required such large investment of labor and planning reveal little evidence of residential use. Although this solar marker is considerably older than the one on Fajada Butte, here in succession both the early morning shadow-line and Sun Dagger itself appear to emanate from the hand of an anthropomorphic figure, first bisecting a spiral and then, a few minutes later, an S-shaped image. Its wide roads, circular ritual sites called kivas, and sprawling. However, Kram et al. A new explanation of the mystery is emerging. Dr. Brad Eden, UNLV, MC Journal'Make(s) a compelling case for this ancient people's astronomical prowess. To construct these great houses, archaeologists have estimated that the Chacoans would have needed wood from some 200,000 trees, and those 16-foot-long wooden beams must have been transported from mountain ranges as far as 70 miles (110 km) away. the mystery of chaco canyon transcript. Ten years after the events described in Massacre at Point of Rocks, Dan and Roque joined by Doa Loca and Jicarilla Apache, Peregrino Rojo, are set on a quest by a dying Masonic brother. This small calendar allowed for those living at Chaco Canyon to determine the beginning . Chaco Canyon Worksheets. They used sticks called tokmas, which Nepalese sherpas also employ, to take breaks, resting the log without lowering it all the way to the ground. I multiplied by 16 feet and realized, That cant add up to 275 kilograms.. Under the terms of a U.S. National Park Service field research permit some location- specific site data has been deliberately redacted from this document, as required by the U.S. Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979. An examination of the prehistoric remains found in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, which functioned as a complex ceremonial center, harmonized by extraordinary astronomical alignments of buildings and roads, and elegant light and shadow markings. Murphy said it's not uncommon to see lights moving among the ruins or to hear sounds coming from parts of the canyon.. The one hour documentary, narrated by Robert Redford . The SSE orientation tradition continued during the peak of Bonito Phase construction activity (A.D. 1020-1100). Kram developed his own theory about how the Chacoans managed the feat, starting with his realization a few years ago that the assumptions since 1980 about the mass of a typical roof beam (viga) used in one of the great houses was likely too high: 275 kilograms, a bit more than 600 pounds. He read a statistic suggesting that the mass of a typical roof beam, or viga, in a Chacoan Great House likely averaged around 275 kilograms (more than 600 pounds). It beckons night sky tourists with its spectacular treasures. Weiner said the teams results show that supplying Chaco Canyon with goods may not have been as back-breaking an undertaking as archaeologists once assumed. Landscape, directions, sun and moon, and movement of shadow and light were used by the Chacoan builders to unite with a cosmic order. The study found that about 1 in 6 adult deaths in the U.S. are related to excess weight or obesity. Thus specific cultural systems including cosmovisions emerged, which allowed man to establish and maintain order and rhythm in personal and social life, interacting with given environmental conditions and to answer the human questions about the whys and wherefores concerning him and the world. America's Stonehenge?America's Stonehenge?America's Stonehenge? To make sure they were being safe, Kram and Wilson started with light loads and worked their way up, said Joseph Carzoli, a study co-author and certified strength and conditioning coach. Everybody else who was hiking there scratched their head and asked us what the heck we were doing, Kram recalled. Click here to sign in with Survey results were assessed in the context of positional astronomy, Pueblo ethnography, and the archaeological record including published construction dates for the sites. These include front-facing south-southeast (SSE) orientation, front facing east-southeast (ESE) orientation, alignments to the cardinal directions of North-South and/or East-West (NS/EW), and the construction of Great Houses at workable calendrical stations with horizon foresights for solstice dates. "The mountains are the most sacred places for the descendant Din and Pueblo peoples. It seemed unrealistically high to him. The planned Thacker Pass lithium mine in remote northern Nevada has drawn protests and a lawsuit from local tribes. Half hour versions of both films are avaliable for teaching (please emailinfo@bullfrogfilms.comfor this option). More information: The sample of Chacoan Great Houses assessed for astronomical associations was unchanged from the mid 1990s to 2007. Chaco Canyon National Historical Park is one of those extraordinary gems and an excellent example of ArchaeoAstronomy. The team's findings show that the key to this testament to human labor may have been simple devices called tumplines. James Herriots adventures as a veterinarian in 1930s Yorkshire get a new TV adaptation. 2023 Cond Nast. That changed the calculation significantly when determining how many people would have been needed to carry the timbers 60-70 miles. (Credit: Patrick Campbell/CU Boulder) By Daniel Strain, Nicholas Goda Feb. 22, 2023 This region was historically occupied by Ancestral Puebloan people (better known as Anasazi) and is now part of the Chaco Culture National Historical Park. They first tried carrying a log on their shoulders. or, by Daniel Strain, University of Colorado at Boulder. When a load is positioned at the top of the head, the spine supports the weight and it doesnt fatigue muscles. The number, Kram discovered, could be traced back to a study published in the 1980s. Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. Colorado Sun. Scientists may have solved a Chaco Canyon mystery by hauling logs with their heads James Wilson, left, and Rodger Kram, right, use tumplines to carry a log weighing more than 130 pounds in Boulder's Chautauqua Park. Between approximately 800 A.D. and 1100 A.D., the ancient Chacoans built settlements . These achievements emerged a thousand years ago in the exceptionally demanding environment of New Mexicos San Juan Basin. "As they became more comfortable with their training, we began alternating training days between carrying light loads for greater distances and heavier loads for shorter distances.". Ever since she discovered the Sun Dagger, Anna Sofaer and her Solstice Project team of researchers have been exploring the enigmas posed by the massive prehistoric ruins in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. They help porters to support weight using the bones of their neck and spine rather than their muscles. Written on the Landscape: Mysteries Beyond Chaco Canyon. The film reveals that between 850 and 1150 AD, the Chacoan people designed and constructed massive ceremonial buildings in a complex celestial pattern . part may be reproduced without the written permission. James A. Wilson et al, Were timbers transported to Chaco using tumplines? Engineered roads stretch across dozens of miles in straight lines to significant landforms, but with little evidence of travel or trade. "I cut a 1-foot-long section of pine and weighed it on my bathroom scale," said Kram, who lives on a wooded property in the hills west of Boulder. These structures offered humans a domestic sphere within a realm of wild nature, ensuring stability, centricity, meaning, security, familiarities, knowledge of controlling, social and power classifications. The ancient ruins of Chaco Canyon, built in 850 and 1150 A.D. in New Mexico, are described in the movie. It is the summation of 20 years of research. Join this channel to get access to perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa6vhwh3rTB0rmu6mN9bj3A/joinMAD HISTORY .. HISTORY has no sides, no opinions no rig. The Mystery Of Chaco Canyon examines the deep enigmas presented by the massive prehistoric remains found in Chaco Canyon in northwestern New Mexico, revealing that between 850 and 1150 AD, the Chacoan people designed and constructed massive ceremonial buildings oriented in a complex celestial pattern throughout this vast desert region. Human porters would have needed to carry 16-foot-long wooden beamsto Chaco Canyon by footfollowing a network of ancient roads to sites like the Chuska Mountains to the west. The Mystery of Chaco Canyon Since the discovery of the prehistoric ruins of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, their purpose has baffled archaeologists. They describe the deliberate action of their ancestors to seal off the buildings and these aspects of their past. Director Anna Sofaer Writers Matt Dibble Anna Sofaer Stars Paul Pino Robert Redford (voice) Anna Sofaer See production, box office & company info Watch on Prime Video included with Prime More watch options Add to Watchlist Use one of the services below to sign in to PBS: You've just tried to add this video to My List. The new Great Houses built during the Late Bonito phase at Chaco after A.D. 1100 are all either involved in inter-site cardinal NS alignments, or positioned at or in proximity to observing locations that can function as solstice calendrical stations. NASA began researching Chaco Canyon in the 1970s, when the organization discovered some 300 kilometers of sophisticated roadways and underground kivas through multispectral scanning technology. In the process, we get a whole new picture of the intelligence at work behind Chacoan society and its architectureThe Mystery of Chaco Canyon interweaves a narrative that is both attentive to indigenous thought and values, and robustly grounded in the rigors of scientific method. James Wilson, left, and Rodger Kram, right, carry a ponderosa pine log weighing more than 130 pounds in Chautauqua Park in Boulder, Colorado. Ad Choices. WIRED Media Group The latest theory is that the Chacoans may have used simple devices called tumplines, still favored by sherpas in Nepal, according to a new paper published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. The teaching materials in the Guide are designed to be used with the film THE MYSTERY OF CHACO CANYON. The Mystery of Chaco Canyon. They first tried carrying a log on their shoulders. How did an ancient civilization, with no known written language, arrange its buildings into a virtual celestial calendar, spanning an area roughly the size of Ireland? The composition and photography could not have been betterthe publicwill eat it up and ask for more.'F. The Mystery of Chaco Canyon challenges the long-held assumption that Chaco was a center of trade and offers an explanation of the site which reveals the brilliant astronomy of ancient pueblo people. CU Boulder Today is created by Strategic Relations and Communications. However, we do not guarantee individual replies due to the high volume of messages. Riddle Of The Ancient Sarcophagus And Its Strange Properties Can Science Solve This Mystery? The Mystery of Chaco Canyon: Unveiling the Ancient Astronomy Since its release in 2000, our award-winning film, The Mystery of Chaco Canyon, has aired more than 10,000 times on 95% of PBS stations across the country. Focusing on the enigmatic monumental center at Chaco Canyon, the book provides a historical analysis of how Southwest archaeology confined itself, how it can break out of those confines, and how it can proceed into the future. Ancient Chaco. The Late Bonito calendrical Great Houses may have been intended as pilgrimage destinations where people could witness a dramatic solstice sunrise or sunset. What Does The Brain Of The Homo Erectus Fossil With The Lowest Cranial Capacity Tell About Evolution? Human porters would have needed to carry 16-foot-long wooden beams to Chaco Canyon by footfollowing a network of ancient roads to sites like the Chuska Mountains to the west. Faculty-Staff Email Archive Student Email Archive Graduate Student Email Archive New Buffs Email Archive Senior Class Student Email Archive CommunityEmail Archive COVID-19 Digest Archive. Copyright 2023 Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), all rights reserved. Thousands of people, the ancestors of today's Din, or Navajo, and Pueblo peoples, may have lived there from around A.D. 850 to 1200. And I had thoughts, gut feelings, about the place itself. His first move was to revise the inaccurate 600 pound weight estimate by doing his own weight estimations on a log from his wood pile. Astronomical analysis of 10th to 12th century A.D. cultural evidence at Chaco Canyon New Mexico began in the 1970s. James Wilson and Rodger Kram carry a log with tumplines with the Boulder Foothills in the background. For more information, contact Bullfrog Films, Box 149, Oley, PA 19547; 1-800-543-FROG . February 17, 2014 Chaco Canyon in New Mexico is one of the largest archeoastronmical sites in the world. The duo wanted to find out if such a journey would be possible. "Tumplines allow one to carry heavier weights over larger distances without getting fatigued," said Wilson, now a medical student at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus. Landscape, directions, sun and moon, and movement of shadow and light were the materials used by the Chacoan architects and builders to express their knowledge of an order in the universe. Kram got interested in Chaco Canyon several years ago. Then the researchers hit on the idea of tumplines, which are depicted in ceramic effigies recovered from close to Chaco Canyon. Aerial and time lapse footage, computer modeling, and interviews with scholars show how the Chacoan culture designed, oriented and located its major buildings in relationship to the sun and moon. They first tried carrying a log on their shoulders. The teaching materials in the Guide are designed to be used with the film THE MYSTERY OF CHACO CANYON. Speaker: Anna Sofaer and her colleagues Robert Weiner and Richard Friedman. Wilson and Kram rest their log on supports called "tokmas." Get weekly and/or daily updates delivered to your inbox. Could more local solutions work. Peter Whiteley, Chair, Dept. The mountains are the most sacred places for the descendant Din and Pueblo peoples. As these guys showed, you dont have to be super trained to carry a log, he said. Privacy Legal & Trademarks Campus Map. In consequence and accompanying hominid evolution, which caused a partially freeing up from strong drives, organizing the world into a meaningful consistent and dynamic framework of interacting subsystems was necessary to integrate and orientate the human lifeworld within changing natural ecospheres. This site uses cookies to assist with navigation, analyse your use of our services, collect data for ads personalisation and provide content from third parties. These cosmographic concepts of habitation across cultures are transformed into designed landscapes, cultic caves, tents, campsites, houses, cities, or temples. "Instead, we carried sand and heavy logs around using our heads.". Concepts of housing the world are implemented in the architecture of lodgings, cultic buildings, settlements, territories, and the artificial shaping of the landscape. Chaco Canyon was a huge ancestral Puebloan city located in what is now Northern New Mexico, about 100 miles south of Durango. This film describes and demonstrates the intricate and precise astronomical alignments among the many buildings spread over a wide desert area. Chaco is central to the origins of several Navajo clans and ceremonies. A majority of the Great Houses built before A.D. 1000 are front-facing to the SSE. It is the summation of 20 years of research. The halo Great House at Bis saani includes a cardinal North-South and East-West (NS/EW) structure, a possible SSE-facing room block, and a June solstice sunrise horizon foresight. The complexes also featured large circular ceremonial areas called kivas.