Treasures in the Ground

Today in New Mexico there are 22 different Indian nations - the Navajo nation, two Apache nations (Jicarilla in the North and Mescalero in the Southeast) and 19 Pueblos. The Indians of the 19 Pueblos are descendants of the Anazazi people who once lived in the great cities such as Mesa Verde, Canyon de Chelley (pronounced Canyon de 'Shay'), and Chaco Canyon. Even though the Pueblo Indians have common ancestors, they consider themselves different nations with different traditions and customs.

When the Spanish, led by Francisco Vazquez de Coronado, entered what is now New Mexico from Mexico to the South, there were many more Pueblos throughout the area.

Finding no wealth in the Cibola (present day Zuni Pueblo) and surrounding areas, Coronado moved his armies East to the Pueblos along the Rio Grande River in September, 1540. The name given to this collection of Pueblos along the River was Tiguex (pronounced 'Ti-wesh').

Our house is located in the midst of the area where many of these Pueblos existed at the time of Coronado.

Shortly after we decided to get some horses, we had our back lot cleared of all the sagebrush. After several rains and wind storms we began to find an occasional pottery shard. We have found dozens of plain pottery shards, similar to the ones below, that were from pots that were probably functional in nature.

What became exciting for us is when we began to find pottery shards that were from decorated pots. We believe these decorated pots were more important because of the work involved, but we don't know their function. Most were gray or white with black markings...

We even found two shards from redware pottery...

It's always amazing to me when I see a shard in the ground that I'm touching something that was last touched by someone who lived on our land over 460 years ago. If you close your eyes, it's easy to imagine the Pueblo Indians who lived and walked on our land so many years ago.

Coronado may not have found the gold he was looking for, but we have found treasures in the ground where we live.

Today is January 24 and if today is your Birthday then you share your day with: Mary Lou Retton (Olympic gold medal gymnast), Yakov Smirnoff (Russian dialect comedian), John Belushi (comedian, "Saturday Night Live" and "Blues Brothers"), Neil Diamond (singer, "Kentucky Woman"), Aaron Neville (singer, The Neville Brothers), Ernest Borgnine (actor, "McHale's Navy"), and Edith Wharton (author).

On this day in 41 AD Gaius Caesar (Caligula), Roman emperor from 37, was murdered. Caligula, or Little Boots, was a nickname he acquired as a child. In 1848 gold was discovered by James Wilson Marshall at his partner Johann August Sutter's sawmill on the South Fork of the American River, near Coloma, California. This prompted the "California Gold Rush." In 1899 the rubber heel is patented by Humphrey O'Sullivan. In 1908 the first Boy Scout troop was organized in England by Sir Robert Baden-Powell, a general in the British Army. In 1911 the U.S. Cavalry is sent to preserve the neutrality of the Rio Grande during the Mexican Civil War. In 1916 the U.S. Supreme Court finds the income tax is constitutional and we've been screwed ever since. In 1922 Christian K. Nelson of Onawa, Iowa, patented the Eskimo Pie. In 1935 Krueger Cream Ale, the first beer to be sold in cans, went on sale in Richmond, Virginia. And in 1972 Japanese soldier Shoichi Yokoi was discovered on Guam, having spent 28 years hiding in the jungle thinking the war was still going on.