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Sorensen Artifact Collection I F = SORENSEN C O L L E C T I O N RESEARCH REPORT OF THE SORENSEN ARTIFACT COLLECTION by Dr. Charles E. Cartmill Ricks College faculty Funded by a Grant from the Ricks College Research Committee 1992-93 school year Rexburg, Idaho 1993 OUTLINE I. Introduction p.1 II. Pottery Collection p.6 A. Pueblo Pottery p.6 1. Zia Pueblo Pottery p.16 2. Acoma Pueblo Pottery p.17 B. Casas Grandes Pottery p.21 III. Paleo Projectile point Collection p.30 IV. Bibliography p.39 IV. Appendix p.41 A. Interviews p.41 1. Mr. Keith Lucero p.41 2. Arthur & Carol Cruz p.43 3. Saebie Shaje p.44 4. Mr. Joe Carr p.47 5. Mrs. Dorothy Sorensen p.48 B. Reflections on the Life of Earl Sorensen p.59 C. Excerpts from the Life and Writings of Earl F. Sorensen p.64 Introduction The accumulation of a truly significant and valuable Indian artifact collection takes us a lifetime of constant and diligent seeking and searching of the places of by-gone years. Places where the aboriginal Indian and his ancestors worked and played in living out an existence that was somewhat plentiful at times, and life threatening at other times. The Indian, in those days, lived in total harmony with nature and her ways. Many of the places where they lived were so remote or so hidden that it seems communication with the "great spirit" is almost necessary in order to discover and uncover the treasures of those people as they speak to us through their tools, instruments, and places of abode in "teaching us" of their philosophies and their way of life. Such a life long endeavor has a pay-off that is far more valuable and encompassing than merely the presence and value of those artifacts obtained. We eventually become an extension of them into these modern times, and an advocate of their uncomplicated way of life. The ancients, as individuals and as a people, become acquainted to the collector through their tools and craftsmanship to the point that a kinship is developed between the collector and the individuals that manufactured the original artifacts. The forgoing is especially true when the 1 collector is the first person to "pick-up" the artifact laid down or dropped by its creator hundreds or even thousands of years ago. Such a collector was Earl Sorensen of Santa Fe, New Mexico. For the better part of his life Earl Sorensen and his family actively searched for Indian artifacts throughout the northwest, with specific emphasis in Idaho and New Mexico. He was an engineer by profession, but an archeaologist at heart, as he spent countless hours and hours either alone or with his family, seeking the knowledge of the past out where the Indians had lived. He did not search on a reservation, but in the open, remote arid desert places of the southwest, where it appears that no one could survive, let alone sustain a reasonable life. He was very successful in his endeavors. Having put so much time and effort into such an adventure acquiring a magnificent collection, his desire was to share it with others, both the artifacts and the knowledge. His feeling was that the collection should be used for educational purposes, to be appreciated by all, while serving as a teaching tool - as a way of getting modern people acquainted with the inhabitants of yester-year. This would serve as a means of having us learn to love and appreciate both the tools and the people that made them. Rather than pass the collection down to relatives and family members or have it divided-up among progenitors, he preferred that it remain intact and be placed in an environment that ensured that its use would accomplish his goals and desires. 2 After much consideration and with the support of his family, he decided to donate the collection to Ricks College. There are many universities, colleges, and museums throughout the nation that would heartily welcome his collection of artifacts. There are several locations in the northwest that display artifacts of the quality of Earl Sorensen's collection. Why Ricks College, a college that doesn't even have an anthropology department, nor an archaeology department within its curriculum? The Sorensens' felt that giving the collection to a major university or museum, one which already had a sizable collection and one which might store it away for years before utilizing its potential could result in the collection being either taken for granted, sort of a ho-hum attitude, or basically ignored all together. They did not want such a possibility to befall such a collection that took a lifetime to gather. They chose Ricks College specifically because of the strong emphasis placed here on teaching at the ground roots level. They felt that the collection had a better possibility of being used right in the classroom and educationally displayed for the public in a college that emphasizes the basics. Ricks College has accepted the gift, along with a commitment to utilize the collection for the purposes given. A portion of the total collection has already been delivered to Ricks College. In order to commence the immediate utilization of the collection, the museum in which it was to be placed had to be remodeled, and rearranged. That process has been accomplished to date, with the 3 remainder of the remodeling scheduled as the complete collection is received. To date, Ricks College has received 43 magnificent pre-columbian pottery bowls and jars dating back as far as 700 A.D., and 106 Paleo projectile points dating back to ancient man's first entrance into this country, some 12000-15000 years ago. In addition, other related artifacts have been received. For the most part, the knowledge and story behind the collection, and information concerning each artifact was to be obtained from Mr. Sorensen himself through interviews and his personal writings. His death, a few months following the decision to give the collection to Ricks College, was unfortunate, for he had a wealth of knowledge and innumerable stories to relate concerning his years of experiencing "life with the Indians". With no first hand resource available, knowledge of the artifacts would depend upon family members, and research that had previously been conducted on similar artifacts. A research proposal was therefore submitted to the Ricks College research committee for the purpose of gaining fundamental knowledge and background information concerning the specific artifacts already received by the college. The research was to provide information to be used in the classroom in teaching about the history and lives of the people producing the artifacts. In addition, the information would be used as part of the collection display to be housed in a "public" museum, in educating the public, as well as the students, concerning the artifacts shown. Selected information from the research would be provided as part 4 of the display so that students and non-students alike may more fully benefit from the display. The following report represents the results of the research conducted thus far. It provides information pertaining to the origin and general utilization of the artifacts represented in the donated collection, and gives background information concerning the people and their location when the artifacts were made. Information concerning the manufacturing of the artifact has been included, where applicable, along with general distribution and use. The report includes the results of interviews with present day Indian "potters", and experts knowledgeable with regard to the artifacts represented in the collection. 5 Pueblo Pottery Pueblo pottery, of which Ricks college has eight magnificent pots is known throughout the United States as some of the finest pottery ever made by Indians in the United States. These pots demonstrate the heritage of Indian art that has been given to us by the Native Americans. Of even more significance, these primitive works of art were constructed without a potter's wheel and fired without a kiln. Their pottery can be compared directly to the best pottery made in the world. Pottery was to the Pueblo Indians what wood carving was to the Northwest Indians, and bead and quillwork to Indians of the Plains. The Pueblo Indians consist of about twenty or so small villages in New Mexico and Arizona. Their general geographic location is shown in Figure 1. The average population is somewhere around a thousand, with the largest tribe being the Hopi (speaking a Shoshonean dialect) with about 9000 inhabitants , and the smallest tribe the Pojoaque with less than 100 inhabitants (speaking a Tanoan dialect). The Pueblo Indians are descendants of the ancient cliff dwellers, whose spectacular ruins exist throughout the Southwest. They were neolithic people - cultivating simple crops, using stone tools, and making 6 • to t/1 0 0 0 Co cc C.) 7 _0 cr C o es ro c a.) 0 • o Z aA • • C5.3 E -0 —• 0 illag • 0 •1/4 t/) 0 V 2 0- ian d In 0 blo • co C f Pue • • . co o C E C/) O 0 ion C t z0 0 co 0 E ° 3 21 O 0 .0 -0 1— 0 s ro 7 0.1 00 l Loca -0 F 0 -.1 • In C, 0 E O 0.) 7 < a. Genera 1. FIGURE DO XICO 0° W ME < o_ • COLORA NE 0 N_ c7 pottery by the traditional method. The pottery art had evolved to an advanced art - far beyond the stage of simple utilitarian wares. The Pueblo Indians were one of the few neolithic cultures to have created glazed pottery, which will be discussed later.
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