Site Testing Program

The Site Testing Program was conducted by Crow Canyon from 1988 to 1991 as part of the larger Sand Canyon Archaeological Project. It involved test excavations at 13 sites in the Sand Canyon Locality, sites whose primary occupations date from about A.D. 1180 to 1280. The project contributed significantly to our understanding of community development in the central Mesa Verde region during the Pueblo III period.

Archaeological Site Report

Included in The Sand Canyon Archaeological Project: Site Testing are summaries of the test excavations at all 13 sites, as well as chapters that discuss chronology, artifacts, plant and animal remains, and regional context. Approximately 1,450 pages, 324 illustrations, 195 tables. Edited by Mark D. Varien, 1999.

Archaeological Database

A separate database for the Site Testing Program has not been published online; however, selected field and laboratory data for the tested sites are available in the multisite research database.

Other Publications

Numerous printed publications draw on Site Testing Program data, including Sedentism and Mobility in a Social Landscape: Mesa Verde and Beyond, written by Mark D. Varien and published in 1999 by the University of Arizona Press. Also see the Research Bibliography.