The Anasazi

"More archaeology has been done in the southwestern United States than in any other area of comparable size in the world. After a century of excavation, archaeologists realize how little they know of the prehistoric people of the Southwest, even though the broad outlines of the story have been discernible for decades. Several major groups have been defined, among them the Anasazi, who lived in the region surrounding the point where the modern states ofUtah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico meet. Dozens of archaeologists have devoted their lifetimes to studying the Anasazi. In the process, they have written many thousands of detailed pages describing the ruins, artifacts, and lifeway of these ancient people.
This book is an attempt to reduce the voluminous technical literature to a more easily grasped visual and verbal form, condensing the information that has been so painstakingly gathered on the Anasazi. It is the efforts of several generations of archaeologists and their co-workers that have made this book possible, but in the interest of brevity and readability, references are not given in the text. For the few original ideas expressed in the following pages, I will happily take the credit or blame, but the germs for those thoughts often have been planted by others.
During the course of the preparation of this book, a number of people have been most generous with their time and talents. For making collections available for photography, allowing access to specific ruins, making helpful suggestions on the text and photographs, typing, assisting with the myriad details of publication[…]"

Dick Ambler was born in Colorado and has lived most of his life in the Southwest. His thirty years of archaeological work has included excavations and surveys in alI FourCorners states, as well as Wyoming and Texas. He holds an M.A. degree in anthropology from the University of Arizona and received his Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Colorado in 1966. He presently is Research Professor of Anthropology Emeritus at Northern Arizona University. The Anasazi are one of his main research interests, particularly the earlier stages of their development. Currently, he is engaged in studies of the technology of the Anasazi and other prehistoric groups. He is the author of numerous technical articles and books dealing with southwestern archaeology.

Marc Gaede has been a U. S. Marine Corp photographer, Curator of Photography for the Museum of Northern Arizona, temporary assistant to Ansel Adams, and Photographer in Residence at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona. Mr. Gaede holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Anthropology from Northern Arizona University and a Master of Fine Arts from Art Center College of Design.