Holes & Hohokam

There are signs left by ancient peoples all over this area. In the short time, we have been here, we have visited at least six places where these people have left either pictograph, pottery shards, dwelling walls, or other signs of their lives in the past. 

Today, I went with Rolly Jurgens on a Razor ride to some pictographs and then to some holes in rocks that were said to be made by the Hohokam Indians. (Link takes you to the Wikipedia page for Hohokam Culture.) It is said they inhabited this area about 300 to 1700 AD and left all sorts of signs for us to wonder about.

The holes in the rocks are very interesting. These are said to be carved into the very hard stone by the Hohokam as they ground seeds to make the flour they would bake and then eat. They definitely do not look natural and very much look to be man-made. 

Both Rolly and I had many questions that we could not answer. Why were they located at this spot?  The area where the pottery shards are abundant is much farther upstream. Why would they camp so far away from their seed grinding spot? Did they farm the flats near the rock holes and then use the grinding holes next to the fields and carry the final ground product up to the living site in clay pots?  We talked and talked about all these questions, most of which we may never know the answers to.

The holes in the rock are said to be used to grind seeds.

A pottery shard found on a
"bench" above the stream bed.