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53 N. Macdonald
Mesa, AZ 85201
(One block north of Main Street in downtown Mesa.
Take US 60 or 202 to Country Club Drive, go to Main
Street, and proceed one-half mile east to
Macdonald) -
View
Map
Phone:
480-644-2230
E-mail |
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Native Peoples of the Past
The Southwest Gallery presents information on the
ancient cultures of central Arizona from the
Paleoindian hunters who arrived around 13,500 years
ago to the advanced irrigation systems of the
Hohokam farmers that operated until A.D. 1450. The
gallery presents displays of prehistoric artifacts
and replicas of Hohokam homes excavated by museum
archaeologists in the Mesa area.
The first native people of the American Southwest
are the Paleoindian cultures, the Clovis and Folsom
people who hunted the large ice-age mammals such as
the mammoth, mastadon and ground sloth. Several
famous Paleoindian sites dating from 13,500 to
10,000 years ago have been found along the San Pedro
River in southern Arizona.
The Archaic or Desert Cultures represent the
longest span of human occupation in Arizona, dating
from 10,000 years ago to A.D. 1. These peoples had
an intimate knowledge of the plants and animals
around them and lived a hunting and gathering way of
life. Small bands of people moved seasonally across
the landscape gathering wild plants and hunting
animals.
The later prehistoric cultures in the southwest
are known for their ceramic art. The ceramic
timeline dramatically displays how ceramics changed
through time in the Hohokam, Anasazi and Mogollon
cultures.
The pithouse was the traditional home for a
Hohokam family. These structures were constructed in
pits that were dug into the ground. The soil
surrounding the house provided insulation from the
heat of the summer and the cold of the winter
months. A series of individual pithouses were
arranged around a rectangular courtyard where daily
activities took place.
The Hohokam built the largest irrigation systems
in the prehistoric New World. Individual canals
measured up to 45 feet across and 15 feet deep and
used advanced engineering principles. By the end of
the Classic Period, circa A.D. 1450, the Hohokam
used water from the Salt River to irrigate over
110,000 acres in the phoenix area.
The displays give you the opportunity to walk
though replicas of Hohokam dwellings, and glimpse
artifacts used in daily activities, such as cotton
weaving, jewelry manufacture, pottery making,
hunting activities, food preparation and storage.
Try your hand at this 3-D mammoth puzzle.
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