Bradley A. Newbold and Dr. Joel Janetski, Anthropology

During the Spring Term of 2004, the BYU Archaeological Field School excavated a portion of Arrowhead Hill, a Formative (or early agricultural) Period site a few miles west of Escalante, Utah. Two intriguing finds were made during that field season: two pit-house structures of varying style situated within a few meters of each other and multiple large, deep, spherical underground pits. Diagnostic characteristics of Formative Period pit-houses are, among others, the style of structure construction and the style and type of ceramic vessels recovered on or near the original floor of the structure. From this, it was concluded that one residential pit-house was of Anasazi origin, the other, Fremont—two quite different cultural groups. Spatial data and multiple radiocarbon dates collected from the two structures showed them to be contemporaneous—both structures being occupied from about AD 900 to 1100. No site within the Great Basin is yet known to contain both Fremont and Anasazi occupations so close together in both space and time. The spherical underground pits, roughly 1m in diameter, are unprecedented within the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau. It is surmised that they functioned as some form of storage structure, possibly keeping food and other valuables cool, dry, and hidden away. Preliminary dates taken from charred corncobs found within the sediment that filled these pits extend back to AD 600—300 to 500 years prior to the larger Anasazi and Fremont residential structures. It is assumed that the Fremont inhabited the Escalante Valley as early as AD 200, but the dates from the storage pits were derived from the substances that filled them in, not from the actual structures themselves.

Thus arise the questions: who were the constructors of these storage pits that pre-date the residential structures, when did they occupy the site and for how long, and do the Anasazi and Fremont occupations really coincide as much as the previously acquired dates depict? Hair might be the answer. During this same field season, strands of hair of unknown origin were discovered embedded in a matrix of adobe from both the storage pits and the Anasazi pit-house, and they might relate integral pieces of the history of the area. But, how to get them to talk?

The strands of hair were carefully extracted from their adobe matrix at Brigham Young University’s Museum of Peoples and Cultures and sent to the university’s microscopy lab, where they were observed and recorded with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). This specific type of microscope looks at outer surfaces of samples and produces images by scanning an electron beam across the sample, which in turn produces a signal that can be detected and processed into an image. Bill Hess of BYU’s Department of Integral Biology agreed to cooperate, having the experience necessary to help determine whether the strands of hair are of human or animal origin.

SEM images of a control sample of human hair were compared against those of a few strands selected from the archaeological sample. Out of the total 28 strands of hair extracted from the adobe, only ten were observed with SEM due to the physical constraints of the microscope mounts and the fact that, in order to gain a clear image of any type of specimen using SEM, they must be coated in a molecule-fine coat of gold, which destroys any hope of gaining a radiocarbon date from that sample later on. Images were first taken of the external surface of the hair shaft with its accompanying scales. The scale patterns of hair are diagnostic with regard to general groups of mammals though never quite species-specific. Using a comparative collection of thousands of SEM images of hair compiled over the years by Bill Hess, it was tentatively determined that hair from deer, dog, and humans were present within the sample. The strands were then cut vertically and SEM images were taken of the ends of the shafts. The pattern of the cuticle and interior of the hair, whether open, spongy, or solid, can also help determine origin. The visual data drawn from these images supported the prior conclusions of the presence of deer, dog, and humans within the sample.

At the time of the writing of this report, other samples of hair have been sent to BETA Analytic, a radiocarbon dating firm. One catch is that the radiocarbon procedure requires at least 500mg of carbon from the submitted sample. While the total hair sample weighed over 500mg, it is still unsure as to whether or not the necessary amount of carbon can be obtained. If not, the price of the procedure increases almost 50 percent. Also, if the total sample of hair does not meet the standard weight requirements for radiocarbon dating, then sections from the corresponding adobe can and will be substituted. The dates acquired should shed much light onto the history of Arrowhead Hill, by either confirming previously acquired dates of occupation, filling gaps within the sequence of occupation, or even pushing back the first known occupation of the Escalante Valley by Formative Period cultures.

It still has not been determined whether some samples should be sent in for DNA extraction and analysis. This represents a tentative step in the overall plan, since stringent requirements exist for the extraction of viable DNA—sample age, rate of decay, preservation status, presence of the root/follicle, etc. Five strands of hair still possessed their roots, which allow a greater yield of DNA to be extracted than the rest of the shaft; these were removed and separated. However, there still exists the possibility that they might have become too damaged to yield any DNA samples. Such data acquired through DNA extraction would specify exactly what mammals were present at the site during its occupation, specifically, at the construction of the main pit-house and storage pits. Also, if any is found to be human, further investigation could yield great insight into the Formative peoples inhabiting Arrowhead Hill—who they were, as well as their ancestors and descendants.

The purpose of this study is to increase our understanding concerning the peoples who occupied this region over 1000 years ago, answer questions as to their sequence of occupation within the Escalante Valley of southern Utah, and hopefully raise new and future inquiries into the personality of their culture. Although the indigenous cultures of the Eastern Great Basin, namely those of the Fremont and the Anasazi, have been studied intensely for nearly a century, there still exists much debate concerning their length of occupation within the Escalante Valley and the degree of interaction and interrelation one with another. Findings accumulated from BYU’s excavations during the 2004 season alone expand this enigma; yet, something so simple as strands of hair could do much to unravel the mysteries of these Formative peoples.