SUMMARY We may summarize the Mogollon problem as follows: In west-central New Mexico and east-central Arizona have been found certain sites which do not follow entirely the same pattern as Anasazi or Hohokam sites. There are a number of possible theories to explain the development of the culture represented by these sites. It may have been derived from the Anasazi, it may represent an early fusion of the Anasazi and Hohokam cultures or, it may be a separate cultural entity which possibly developed from the eastern branch of the ancient Cochise Culture. During the earliest periods it had certain traits which, in the opinion of many archaeologists, make it necessary to consider it a separate basic culture. Houses were of the pit house type with long sloping entrances. Agriculture was practiced, but there was a great dependence on the gathering of wild foods and on hunting. The atlatl was used, as well as the bow. Pottery was made by a coiling and scraping technique, was fired in an oxidizing atmosphere, and was usually well polished. A painted ware with red designs on a brown background and a red-on-white ware were later added and textured pottery increased in importance. Pipes were made of clay and of stone. Bone awls were often notched on one side. The dead were usually buried outside the houses. There were some cremations. From about 700 or 800 A.D. on, there is evidence of more and more outside influences. By around 950 or 1000 A.D. there were so many changes in the Mimbres Valley that the resulting blend is often referred to as a separate culture. Single pit houses were replaced by multi-roomed pueblolike structures built above the ground. Black-on-white pottery was the dominant ware and reached a high degree of excellence. The dead were usually buried under house floors. Cranial deformation was widely practiced. The Mimbres Valley was deserted in the middle of the twelfth century and we can only conjecture where the people who had inhabited it went. As may readily be seen, the whole Mogollon problem appears to be very complex. This is always the case when a culture or an area is first investigated and the long job of studying it is in its initial stages. Apparently the Mogollon people influenced their neighbors to the north and to the west, and were influenced by them, but we are not yet in a position to evaluate these trends. CHAPTER VI THE SINAGUA PEOPLE[18]