Near Gunnison,a small college town in the mountains of central Colorado, an archeologist and hundreds of students have spent 20 years uncovering remains of a village dating to the end of the Ice Age, 10,400 years ago, possibly the oldest ruins in the world. (The Egyptian pyramids weren't built until about 3,000 years ago.)
According to Professor Mark Stiger of Western State College in a talk sponsored by the Colorado Historical Society, these ruins predate ruins at Mesa Verde by about 7,000 years, the earliest example of agriculture based society in North America. At the end of the Ice Age global warming in Colorado provided plenty of game and water. This village was probably a seasonal hunting village, as the rubble contains not only Folsom arrows, but rocks shaped for cutting and treating meat and hides. Obsidian found at the site has a "mineral fingerprint" that indicates the migration range of the tribe.
Historians consider the large shelter at the site as being the "men's" building, dedicated to production of arrows and cutting instruments, and several smaller family dwellings as "women's huts," containing sewing needles and needle sharpeners and "women's knives."
No human remains have been found on this site. Stiger thinks the remains exist, not yet uncovered. He says that study and interpretation of ancient burial practices is "highly political." A half-dozen likely sites have been identified, and he estimates he has another 40 years of work ahead.
According to Professor Mark Stiger of Western State College in a talk sponsored by the Colorado Historical Society, these ruins predate ruins at Mesa Verde by about 7,000 years, the earliest example of agriculture based society in North America. At the end of the Ice Age global warming in Colorado provided plenty of game and water. This village was probably a seasonal hunting village, as the rubble contains not only Folsom arrows, but rocks shaped for cutting and treating meat and hides. Obsidian found at the site has a "mineral fingerprint" that indicates the migration range of the tribe.
Historians consider the large shelter at the site as being the "men's" building, dedicated to production of arrows and cutting instruments, and several smaller family dwellings as "women's huts," containing sewing needles and needle sharpeners and "women's knives."
No human remains have been found on this site. Stiger thinks the remains exist, not yet uncovered. He says that study and interpretation of ancient burial practices is "highly political." A half-dozen likely sites have been identified, and he estimates he has another 40 years of work ahead.