A Synthesis of the Prehistory of the Central Little Colorado Valley, Arizona

Abstract Recent excavation by the Museum of Northern Arizona has provided a basis for a review of the prehistory of the poorly known region of the central Little Colorado basin of northeastern Arizona. A regional sequence of considerable complexity is established beginning with a Clovis-Folsom horizon and culminating in Pueblo IV (see Table 1). An amalgam of Anasazi and Mogollon traditions with a dominant Kayenta base is apparent as early as Basketmaker III. The introduction of Little Colorado White ware, beginning about A.D. 1075, signals the beginning of the Winslow branch, a distinguishable regional Anasazi variant, lasting until the abandonment of much of this desert region in the mid-13th century. The archaeological distinctiveness of the region is apparently due to its location between the Anasazi and Mogollon area and the necessary adaptations to the arid, basin environment.