Archaeologist to Discuss Folsom Site Research |
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Sept. 20, 2004 Archaeological research at one of the nation's most significant paleoindian sites will be the topic of the sixth annual George C. Frison Institute lecture, Thursday, Sept. 23, at 3 p.m. in Room 302 of the University of Wyoming Classroom Building.
David Meltzer, professor of prehistory at Southern Methodist University and director of the Quest Archaeological Research Program, will give the free lecture, "Back to Where it All Began: Recent Investigations at the Folsom Type Site." He will discuss significant findings at the Folsom site in Colfax County, N.M., which provide evidence of a distinctive archaeological culture dating from around 10,900 to around 10,200 years ago. Researchers there uncovered finely made fluted projectile points -- Folsom points -- lodged between the ribs of a species of bison that went extinct at the end of the Pleistocene.
Meltzer has conducted field research on paleoindians (prehistoric North American inhabitants) for 20 years and has written or edited more than 100 articles and six books, including "Search for the First Americans," by Smithsonian Institution Press. His talk is the highlight of the annual meeting of the Friends of the George C. Frison Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, which is being held jointly with the Wyoming Archaeological Society fall workshop and the Wyoming Association of Professional Archaeologists' fall meeting.
The meetings are part of Wyoming Archaeology Month proclaimed by Gov. Dave Freudenthal.
The schedule of institute events on Thursday, Sept. 23, free and open to the public:
8 10 a.m. Research presentations, Room 57 of the History Building.
10 11 a.m. and 1:30 2:30 p.m. Tours of laboratories and the UW Anthropology Museum, maps will be available in the Anthropology Building lobby.
3 p.m. Meltzer's lecture, Room 302 of the Classroom Building.
4:30 5:30 p.m. Book signing and reception, Anthropology Building lobby, archeologist authors: George C. Frison, Marcel Kornfeld and Mary Lou Larson.
Limited space may be available for free tours of the Hell Gap site in Goshen County on Friday, Sept. 24, 9 a.m. 1 p.m. Registration for the tour will take place on Thursday, Sept. 23, 8 10 a.m., Room 57 of the History Building. Specific information on the tour will be provided at that time. Individuals must provide their own transportation.
Kornfeld, institute director, says, "The institute continues to make strides in many of its research programs, especially at the paleoindian sites such as Hell Gap, Agate Basin and Barger Gulch. Prehistoric use of rock shelters in the Bighorn Mountains teaches us about complexities and evolution of prehistoric adaptations to mountain and foothill environments."
In 1998, UW created the George C. Frison Institute, providing a focus for the study of cultural dynamics and prehistory in North America. Frison is a UW professor emeritus of anthropology known internationally for his contributions to archaeology, particularly in the area of paleoindian research. He has the first UW professor elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
Posted on Monday, September 20, 2004
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