Evidence of Late Archaic Maize Use in the Big Bend Region of West Texas

Abstract

The identification of Late Archaic maize from the Big Bend portion of the Trans-Pecos region of West Texas places it among the earliest use of cultigens reported throughout the American Southwest. The previous interpretation of maize use was restricted to Formative period sites, but newly acquired AMS dates extend the known duration of use over a millennium. The region, however, lacks clear demographic and settlement patterns diagnostic of this early period of use present in adjacent areas. Lacking key behavioral and settlement similarities, local researchers argued the early use of cultigens was superficial. It now seems the initial maize use in the Trans-Pecos, like the larger US Southwest region, was both early and extensive, and the effects on settlement and subsistence patterns are unknown. This paper situates maize's role and the initial introduction and intensity of use in the Trans-Pecos region in a larger context with known examples.