Papers by Katherine A Dungan
Antiquity, 2018
The Chacoan great houses and great kivas of the U.S. Southwest are monumental, both in their scal... more The Chacoan great houses and great kivas of the U.S. Southwest are monumental, both in their scale and in conveying meaning. Visibility is key to understanding how and by whom that meaning was experienced. Although often discussed in Chaco studies, visibility has been infrequently tested. Here, the authors consider 430 great house and great kiva locations, and evaluate their visibility within their local landscapes. Using a total viewshed approach, they provide new evidence to suggest that great houses, but not great kivas, were often placed to be highly visible to individuals in the surrounding landscape. These patterns may speak to the social and physical properties of the structures.
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 2018
Public or religious architecture in non-state societies has traditionally been interpreted as int... more Public or religious architecture in non-state societies has traditionally been interpreted as integrative, an assumption that has limited the ability of archaeologists to study religious change in these settings. We argue that considering such structures within their local historical contexts offers a better approach to understanding diversity in religious architecture. This study examines great kivas, large public or religious buildings in the prehispanic U.S. Southwest, as potential performance spaces, using structure size to estimate audience capacity relative to community size. We compare circular great kivas present along the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau with rectangular great kivas used in the Transition Zone to the south between the 11th and 14th centuries CE. The two traditions share certain similarities, and some great kivas in the area where the two traditions meet appear to be “hybrids.” However, examining great kivas as potential performance venues in relationship to the surrounding settlements suggests that the social roles played by rectangular and circular great kivas followed notably different historical trajectories. Although settlement size increased in both areas, circular great kivas became less restricted and more accessible through time, while the latest rectangular great kivas were probably less accessible and more exclusive than their forebears.
Collected Papers from the 16th Biennial Mogollon Archaeology Conference, October 8-10. 2010, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico.
The Fornholt Site is a multicomponent settlement situated on Mule Creek in southwestern New Mexic... more The Fornholt Site is a multicomponent settlement situated on Mule Creek in southwestern New Mexico. The large, terminal occupation of the site dates to the 13th century and includes a two-story room block and possible great kiva. The architecture, site layout, and ceramic assemblage of this occupation strongly resemble Tularosa Phase settlements to the north and west. Preliminary research suggests that Fornholt was likely depopulated before the sizeable 14th century Salado occupation in Mule Creek. However, Fornholt may have overlapped with the initial Kayenta/Tusayan occupation identified at the nearby 3-Up site. Several lines of evidence suggest tensions may have existed between these two socially distant groups. Our ongoing work at Fornholt is critical to understanding social organization and regional ties during this pivotal interval between the Classic period Mimbres and Cliff Phase Salado.
Thesis Chapters by Katherine A Dungan
Talks by Katherine A Dungan
Presentation given in November 2015 for Archaeology Southwest's Archaeology Cafe series
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Papers by Katherine A Dungan
Thesis Chapters by Katherine A Dungan
Talks by Katherine A Dungan