The broad-interest volumes in archaeology, anthropology, history, and ethnography published under SRI Press use the results of our work to open the past to wider audiences. A broad selection of SRI publications is distributed by the University of Arizona Press and can also be ordered directly from our SRI Press Web site.

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Fragile Patterns: The Archaeology of the Western Papaguería
Edited by Jeffrey H. Altschul and Adrianne G. Rankin (2007)
The Western Papaguería is characterized by a natural environment of stark, unparallelled beauty and a cultural history that is thus surprisingly rich and complex. Situated within the hottest and driest portion of the Sonoran Desert in southwest Arizona and northwest Sonora, it has been viewed by many as a barren and formidable place, best avoided and unfit for exploration. The opening chapters of Fragile Patterns profile the pioneers of Southwest archaeology, professional and amateur, who braved this harsh environment and toiled for decades in near obscurity to document the region’s archaeology. Their personal and professional challenges and their sometimes idiosyncratic approaches and personalities are richly described by fellow archaeologists. In subsequent chapters, this land of fragile patterns—in which each step can leave its mark for millennia—is explored by a cadre of archaeologists, geoscientists, historians, land managers, and Native Americans, who convey their findings, their hopes, and their concerns about the Western Papaguería and its people. A new generation of archaeologists and geoscientists presents findings on farming in the desert; native plant use; reservoirs, pottery; regional cultures; rock art, geoglyphs, and rock cairns; and trade and travel. Fragile Patterns concludes by interweaving Tohono O’odham and Hia C-ed O’odham perspectives with those of archaeologists and land managers, providing a rare forum for the voice and passion of the people of the Papaguería.
$49.95 • 760 pp. • perfect bound • ISBN 978-1-87944298-6

Fragile Patterns was reviewed by the Pueblo Grande Museum in their quarterly newsletter, The Hohokam. Click here to read the review.

Fragile Patterns was also profiled on Arizona Illustrated on January 22, 2009. Watch editors Jeffrey Altschul and Adrianne Rankin discuss their book here.

Read a review of Fragile Patterns from the Journal of Archaeological Science here.

Read the review of Fragile Patterns by Jon S. Czaplicki from the Spring 2010 edition of Heritage Management (Volume 3, Issue 1) here.

Read the latest review of Fragile Patterns from the Journal of Anthropological Research (Volume 65) here.

Vanishing River: Landscapes and Lives of the Lower Verde Valley: The Lower Verde Archaeological Project: Overview, Synthesis, and Conclusions
Edited by Stephanie M. Whittlesey, Richard Ciolek-Torrello, and Jeffrey H. Altschul (1998)
Synopsis: A reconstruction of the lower Verde River, the land surrounding it, and the people who once lived there, based on more than 6 years of research. This publication consists of an 858-page cloth-bound book and a CD-ROM containing three additional volumes and more.
$85.00 + $4.50 s&h book rate or $8.75 priority mail
Includes CD-ROM • 858 pp. • case bound • ISBN 1-879442-90-6

The accompanying CD-ROM contains:

• Introduction, by Jeffrey H. Altschul, Stephanie M. Whittlesey, and Richard Ciolek-Torrello.
  12 text pp., 7 figures, 2 tables
• Volume 1: Descriptions of Habitation and Nonagricultural Sites, edited by Richard Ciolek-Torrello.
  200 text pp., 143 figures, 111 plates, 20 tables
• Volume 2: Agricultural, Subsistence, and Environmental Studies, edited by Jeffrey A. Homburg and Richard Ciolek-Torrello.
  248 text pp., 125 figures, 117 plates, 70 tables
• Volume 3: Material Culture and Physical Anthropology, edited by Stephanie M. Whittlesey and Barbara K. Montgomery.
  200 text pp., 73 figures, 28 plates, 69 vessel illustrations, 217 tables.
• Plus the bibliography, 17 appendixes, 3 supplemental reports, photographic catalog of artifacts associated with human remains, and QuickTime movie.