Stephen Black
David Kilby
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Ancient Southwest Texas (ASWT) Project is an ongoing long-term research program launched in 2009 by Dr. Stephen Black with the broad aims of: (1) improving our understanding of the Indigenous record of southwestern Texas and adjacent parts of northern Mexico and New Mexico; (2) sharing what we learn with the scholarly community and the public; and (3) training the next generation of archaeologists. ASWT research efforts are concentrated on the Lower Pecos Canyonlands (LPC) on the northeast edge of the Chihuahuan Desert. This archaeological region is known for its dry rock shelters and caves which Indigenous peoples used for the sacred and mundane as witnessed by vivid pictographs dating back over 5,000 years ago as well as thick deposits formed over thirteen millennia, including Ice Age kill sites and well-preserved habitation debris ranging from basketry and sandals, to food remains and coprolites. Despite 80-years of research, the extraordinary archaeological record of hunter-gatherer life remains understudied. Since 2017, Dr. David Kilby (TxState University) has been co-director of the ASWT project. (text courtesy Texas State University)
I have been part of ASWT research since 2010, with an emphasis on understanding earth oven cooking in the LPC. Beginning in 2013, ASWT launched an intensive field project focused on a number of archaeological sites within Eagle Nest Canyon, including Eagle Cave. From 2014-2017 I served as Project Archaeologist, and directed excavations at several of the Eagle Nest Canyon sites. Additionally, I spearheaded the effort to establish the ASWT Project blog that contains a variety of posts detailing the Eagle Nest Canyon work. Although I left the ASWT Project in an official capacity in 2017, I have continued to collaborate with the ASWT project co-directors and numerous other collaborators, resulting in a series of publications with more in progress:
I anticipate continuing to collaborate with the ASWT Project into the future. Having access to a variety of different collections presents an excellent opportunity for undergraduate and graduate student projects ranging from lithics to perishable artifacts. |