Archaeologists are continually misunderstanding the white slip on Salado polychromes. The oft-repeated theory that the black organic paint on Salado polychromes is achieved through low temperature firing is wrong, or at least partially wrong. The firing temperature might be lower than some other southwestern pottery but on the whole I would suggest no lower than …
Nothing effects the quality and beauty of a pottery vessel more than its body clay. I would dare say that it is even more important than the potter himself for without decent clay what can the potter achieve? Patience has been a hard lesson for me to learn, my inclination from the time I first …
In my previous post I discussed the passage of the main body of the expedition and the various narratives we have of their passage. Now I will attempt to put together all the information from the all the various sources into one composite itinerary for this leg of the journey. Then I will overlay that …
In my previous post I discussed the passage of Cabeza de Vaca, Marcos de Niza and Melchor Díaz, now let’s examine the passage of the main body of the expedition. Itinerery Coronado left the Valley of Hearts on or around May 31 (arrived on May 26, rested 4 days) and travelled the 80 leagues to …
The Chichilticalli Trail Part III – The Expedition Read More »
Read part I here While everyone likes to point out that Coronado was following established trade routes, it is not mentioned often enough who chose the route. The route Coronado followed was the same as that traversed by Fray Marcos de Niza the year before, and to a large extent, the same as that followed …
The Chichilticalli Trail Part II – The Pathfinders Read More »
Much has been written about and much conjecture has taken place concerning Coronado’s path through Northern Sonora and Southern Arizona. I will now attempt to spell out my ideas on this route through several installments on this blog. Many scholars that have undertaken to trace Coronado’s route have the advantages of an understanding of medieval Spanish, or …
