A Tale of Two Sites: a Lithic Analysis Examining Possible Nūche Emergence on the Uncompahgre Plateau, Colorado

Abstract

To explain the historic distribution of Numic (Uto-Aztecan) speakers across the American West, researchers hypothesized a largescale movement of people occurring between A.D. 900 and 1300. This migration, otherwise known as the Numic Expansion, argues people moved across the Intermountain West from an area in the Southwestern Great Basin. Despite a growing body of evidence to support this narrative, it remains difficult to see this shift in specific populations like the Nūche (Ute) of the Colorado Plateau and Rocky Mountains. This research expands on previous investigations by re-examining two excavated sites from western Colorado: Christmas Rockshelter (5DT2) and the open occupation Shavano Spring (5MN40). Together, the two sites chronologically encompass the Paleoindian period through historic times. In my analysis, I compare the chipped stone procurement and production strategies through time and between the two sites to characterize the degree of continuity of lack thereof. My results identify aspects of projectile point and biface production and raw material selection strategies that are unique to occupations occurring during and after the Numic Expansion. I argue these differences represent changes in the area and broader region and may reflect the movement of people, development of new communities, and exchange of materials, ideas, and knowledge.