proceedings: anthropological society 47 



THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



The 500th meeting of the Society was held at the New National 

 Museum, October 17, 1916, at 4.30 p.m. Dr. Walter Hough, of 

 the National Museum, read a paper on Ancient pit dwellers in New 

 Mexico. 



Dr. Hough said that remains of pit dwellings were indicated on the 

 site of stone ruins explored in western Socorro County, New Mexico, 

 several years ago and that a large cluster of such dwellings not con- 

 nected with stone ruins was observed subsequently near Luna, in 

 Socorro County. The site was productive of interesting results during 

 an exploration for the Bureau of American Ethnology last summer. 

 The field in which the remains occur had been smoothed over by natural 

 agencies and the positions of the houses were shown only by the stronger 

 growth of vegetation over circular areas, this defining the pits. Some 

 of the pits were cleared, and it was found that they were from 12 to 

 14 feet in diameter and 5| feet deep. Remains of roof clay and charred 

 posts and beams indicate that the roof was supported on posts placed 

 around the periphery of the pit. It is thus probable that more than 

 half of the house was underground, and perhaps the position of the 

 walls above ground were banked. The floor arrangement shows a 

 fireplace near the center, a metate and grinding stones near the fire. 

 In one of the pits a burnt clay wall fireplace was found. Adjoining 

 the pits was a rectangular house also rooted with clay. Here were 

 found numerous grinding stones, baking slabs, and remains of pottery, 

 these being about a foot under the surface loam. This house was an 

 open air cooking and mealing shed. Near the first pit excavated was a 

 cemetery of infants; no remains of adults have yet been found on the 

 site. 



A dance amphitheater which was about 100 feet in diameter and 

 10 feet deep lies on the east side of the site. It has been filled by 

 natural agencies with about 5 feet of fire-blackened debris and in it large 

 pine trees have matured. It is on the bank of the former and larger 

 channel of a living stream which traverses the eastern edge of the site. 

 The specimens found are crude metates, rubbing stones, hammer 

 stones, baking slabs, etc.; pottery of Pueblo type, decorated and un- 

 decorated and of some crudity; a few bone awls and small obsidian 

 arrowheads. No stone axes were found. 



Dr. Hough presented the problem as he found it, and hesitated as 

 yet to pronounce upon the affiliations of the people who constructed 

 the pit houses. 



The 501st meeting of the Society was held in the Lecture Hall of 

 the Public Library, on Tuesday evening, November 7, 1916, at 8 

 o'clock. The speaker was Mr. W. E. Saffoed, of the Bureau of Plant 

 Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture. His subject was Magic 

 plant* of the ancient Americans. The paper was illustrated with lan- 

 tern slides. 



