Its ARTIST'S NIGHT at the Oregon Archaeological Society! Next Tuesday is a special meeting...OAS artists will exhibit and sell their works, we''ll get a fascinating presentation on Captain Jack's Modoc Stronghold, and we get to select officers and board members for next year...art, education, and elections...all on one night! Plus OAS Basic Training, Oregon Cultural Trust, lectures, 10,000 year-old bones and Machu Picchu artifacts being returned to Peru...all that and more below. (The very artistic carved fish in the photo is 25,000 years old and is located in the Abri du Poisson near Les Eyzies-de-Tayac, France).
OAS MEETING & PRESENTATION: TUESDAY, DEC. 7 - CAPTAIN JACK'S STRONGHOLDThe results of recent archaeological field work of Captain Jack’s Stronghold in Lava Beds National Monument in Southern Oregon is the topic of the December 7, 2010 Oregon Archaeological Society lecture. A wildfire in 2008 burned covering vegetation from the “stronghold” and afforded archaeologists access and opportunity to better survey and study the area. The extensive honeycomb of jagged rock outcroppings, caves, and caverns provided Captain Jack and his Modoc tribe with an impregnable fortress and defensive position from which to fight extradition to a reservation by the U.S. Army in 1872-1873. The battle is referred to as the Modoc Indian War in Oregon history.
Jacqueline Cheung and Eric Gleason, both archaeologists with the National Park Service will present findings from their extensive field work, including the fortification and residential features and associated artifacts in the Stronghold. Using projected stereoscopic photographs (in 3-D) from the period, they will illustrate the historic features, battle fortifications, and examine changes in the landscape.
The presentation is at Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) at 7:45 PM, and is free and open to the public. The talk is preceded at 7 PM by a general business meeting, which is also open to the public
See
www.oregonarchaeological.org or call 503-727-3507 for more information.
2011 ARCHAEOLOGY FOR THE CURIOUS BASIC TRAINING PROGRAM
Do you want to prepare yourself to work on volunteer projects across the U.S.? Are you looking to learn more about archaeology basics, or do you need a refresher on the history of the Pacific Northwest? The Oregon Archaeological Society offers an annual training program that can help you accomplish all these goals.
OAS Basic Training, also known as Archaeology for the Curious, is taught by experienced regional professionals and volunteers from organizations such as the National Forest Service, BLM, and the University of Oregon.
Classes are held on Saturdays and begin in January 2011.
For all the details check:
http://oregonarchaeological.org/training.htmOREGON CULTURAL TRUST SUPPORTS OAS AND OTHER NON-PROFITS! MAKE DONATIONS BEFORE YEAR-END!
This is an important time for the Oregon Cultural Trust.
In the next month, the Trust will be reaching out to Oregonians and asking them to
make a contribution to support our state's unique cultural life and heritage. As you may know, the Trust has a goal of raising $4 million and dramatically increasing the number of donors from across the state by December 31st.
In the coming weeks, as we all spend time with our families, enjoy seasonal
performances and visit our most cherished venues and historic locations, we are asking that you take the time to make a donation to the Oregon Cultural Trust.
And in most cases, your donation will ultimately cost you absolutely nothing.
How? Through a tax credit on your state income tax for contributions to the Trust (keep in mind a tax credit is different than a tax deduction. Your tax bill is literally reduced by the amount of the credit!). To earn the tax credit:
First, make a donation to your favorite Oregon cultural non-profit (like OAS!). A list of qualifying 501(c)(3) non-profits (including OAS) is available at
www.culturaltrust.org.
Second, make an equal or greater contribution to the Oregon Cultural Trust online at
www.culturaltrust.org.
Finally, claim your 100%, dollar for dollar tax credit for your gift to the Trust on your
Oregon state income tax (up to $500 for individuals, $1,000 for couples filing jointly and $2,500 for Oregon Corporations).
Supporting Oregon's culture couldn't be easier or more important. To learn more simply visit our website or contact the Trust via email at cultural.trust@state.or.us or by phoning 503 986 0088.
Thank you for taking the time to support Oregon's most valuable resource; our unique culture. Give the Gift That Grows. Donate today.
AIA LECTURES: JANUARY 21 & MARCH 11, 2011January 21st 2011 - Friday 7:30 pm- School of Business Auditorium PSU
Ulrike Krotscheck, The Evergreen State College
“Wine for Bread: trade between Greek colonists and Gauls”
March 11th, 2011 - Friday 7:30 pm - School of Business Auditorium PSU
Thomas Tartaron, University of Pennsylvania
"Korphos-Kalamianos: Investigations at a Recently Discovered Mycenaean Harbor Town in the Corinthia, Greece, 2007-2010" (Dorinda J. Oliver Lecture)
All lectures are preceded by a no-host dinner; for details, and for ADA accommodations at lectures, please email Karen Carr at carrk@pdx.edu. All AIA events are free and open to the public. Free parking is available in the PSU parking structures after 5 pm on Fridays.
Check out the AIA website at
http://www.history.pdx.edu/AIA.htm.
HISTORIC FILMS, CRAFTS SLATED FOR ASTORIAThe Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria will host a free
community day from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Dec. 4. Crafts will focus on a few
of the cultures that depended or worked on the Columbia River. Historic
films shown throughout the day in the Kern Room. For a schedule of
events, visit the museum's website at
www.crmm.org or join the museum on
its Facebook page.
MEXICAN ARCHAEOLOGISTS EXTRACT 10,000 YEAR-OLD SKELETON FROM FLOODED CAVEMEXICO CITY.- One of the earliest human skeletons of America, which belonged to a person that lived more than 10,000 years ago, in the Ice Age, was recovered by Mexican specialists from a flooded cave in Quintana Roo. The information it has lodged for centuries will reveal new data regarding the settlement of the Americas.
Read the whole story at:
http://goo.gl/MHI8LYALE WILL RETURN MACHU PICCHU ARTIFACTS
Alan Garcia, president of Peru, announced on Friday that Yale University has committed to return a collection of artifacts from Machu Picchu in early 2011 -- possibly ending years of negotiations and legal threats over the pieces, which were taken by a Yale team that excavated the area a century ago. Peru has long disputed Yale's assertions that the artifacts were taken legally.
Read the whole story at:
http://goo.gl/ZYOOR(Thanks to Oregon Heritage News, Russel Micnhimer, AIA, ArtDaily.org, and Inside Higher Ed for some of the content of this message.)
I was lucky enough to get to attend a Christmas party at Skamania Lodge in Stevenson, WA this weekend. 
I hope you enjoy the images below...and appreciate that they represent an important aspect of a living culture that has existed in the Pacific Northwest for thousands of years. 
