Hohokam arrowhead
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The site dates back approximately 1,000 years. Head on over to Saguaro National Park West to see some of the most well-known and ancient Arizona petroglyphs made before and during the Hohokam period! Featuring over 200 petroglyphs, Signal Hill is just a short trail away from the Signal Hill picnic area. Marana has 3 areas that you can visit to see some petroglyphs for yourself! Signal Hill These rock drawings give archaeologists and casual visitors a like an idea of how the Hohokam people saw and attempted to understand the world around them. Today, you can stroll through the site and experience the history of it firsthand, with a system of walking paths and interpretive signs.īesides the remnants of their dwellings and buildings, the Hohokam people left behind thousands of petroglyphs on rocks, mountain faces, canyons, and everywhere in between throughout Southern Arizona. The site was used in more recent history as a camp by Juan Bautista de Anza on his expedition from Sonora to California, and was also used as a stop on the Butterfield Stagecoach Route. In addition to the mortar holes, the site contains remnants of Trincheras (which is the Spanish word for “terraces”, and also refers to a civilization that predates the Hohokam, who originally carved the feature), a ballcourt where a variant of the Mesoamerican Ball Game was played, remains of pit houses, and trash mounds, where pottery pieces are frequent on the ground. It is thought by archaeologists that people would gather at the clustered mortars to chat while they worked, so these beds of rock are sometimes known as “gossip stones”! The mortar holes were used to grind mesquite pods, seeds, and corn. Named after the mortar holes found in volcanic rocks throughout the site, Los Morteros is a well-preserved village site. Their remains offer several experiences to immerse yourself in the culture of a lost civilization! Marana and the surrounding areas, especially the Tortolita Fan (a fan-shaped landform made of fine dirt and loose rocks that carries water down the mountain) and Santa Cruz Valley, are dotted with the remains of Hohokam settlements. Stretching for hundreds of miles, these canals were the most advanced and largest in the Americas, and supported a significant population in the Southwest. These early canals helped inspire Arizona’s present-day irrigation systems. These native peoples are famous for their engineering feats constructing ballcourts, pit houses, and canal systems that helped the Hohokam water their crops. The name refers to the mysterious collapse and disappearance of their civilization around 1450. The name “Hohokam” comes from the O’odham word meaning “all used up” or “exhausted”, but was also used to refer to anyone or anything that had perished, according to Al Dart from the Old Pueblo Archaeology Center.