Scott Ortman

Scott Ortman is an archaeologist who first came to southwestern Colorado in 1993, when he was a college student intern at Crow Canyon. He fell in love with the Four Corners area and became especially interested in how ancient Pueblo people used materials in the natural environment to make tools and other things that they needed to live. Scott is currently the laboratory director at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center. When he's not studying ancient Pueblo civilization, he enjoys playing soccer, coaching basketball, and hiking and camping in the remote canyons of the Southwest. Here, Scott shares some of his findings from the Crow Canyon laboratory.

"Pueblo people were probably attracted to Woods Canyon as a place to live because of the variety of natural resources that were available in the canyon. Most of the artifacts that we found during our excavations were made from materials that you can find within an easy walk from the village.

"When we analyzed the artifacts from Woods Canyon Pueblo, we could tell that the ancient Pueblo people knew exactly which raw materials were best for making different kinds of tools. The most common artifacts found were small stone flakes and pottery sherds. One particular type of stone, called quartzite, was preferred for making arrowheads. Because of its hardness and texture, this type of stone is one of the best materials in the area for flintknapping.

"In addition to making excellent stone tools, ancient Pueblo people also made beautiful pottery. They collected the clay from nearby sources, mixed it with water, and added crushed volcanic rock, which is also found close to the village. The small pieces of crushed rock made the clay mixture stronger. After they shaped the clay into pots, they decorated them with paints made from minerals and plants. The beautifully painted ancient Pueblo bowls and jars are some of the finest pottery vessels ever made.

"Knowledge of local natural resources and an understanding of how to use them develops through many generations of careful observation, as well as through lots of trial and error. Although modern people learn a great deal about nature by reading books, I think few of us have as much first-hand practical knowledge of our environment as did the Pueblo people who lived at Woods Canyon Pueblo."