Hueyatlaco

Hueyatlaco is an archeological site in Valsequillo, Mexico.

After excavations in the 1960s, the site became notorious due to archaeologists' claims that human habitation at Hueyatlaco could be dated to about 250,000 years B.C.E. The Hueyatlaco claim was largely rejected amongst mainstream archaeologists and anthropologists, who typically date the earliest human habitation of the New World to roughly 15,000 to 20,000 years B.C.E.

Discovery

Cynthia Irwin-Williams first excavated the site in the 1960s. They dug four strata to excavate the artifacts. Virginia Steen-McIntyre later wrote and published a paper concerning the dating of the artifacts found. They employed four sophisticated, independent tests: uranium-thorium dating, fission track dating, tephra hydration dating and the studying of mineral weathering to determine the date of the artifacts. Their 1981 paper (Quaternary Research (1981) v. 16, pp. 1-17) suggested that these tests, among others, validated a date of 250,000 years ago for the Hueyatlaco artifacts.

The article categorizing the findings at Hueyatlaco was delayed for years. When it was finally published in 1981 it met widespread criticism. The team was accused of being publicity seekers and opportunists. Steen-McIntyre argues that her findings were rejected not on their failings or merits, but because her critics engaged in circular reasoning. According to sympathizers of Steen-McIntyre, evidence and findings that do not support prevailing theories are often suppressed.

The center of the debate is whether the Clovis people were the earliest human inhabitants of the Americas or whether there was a Pre-Clovis human presence in the Americas. The archeologists studying such sites as Clovis and Hueyatlaco are able to identify the time period through a series of testing techniques. A very simplified version of determining Clovis or Pre-Clovis is the existence of Clovis tool kits with distinctive points on the tools.

Hueyatlaco is a site that portrays the academic debate between Clovis or Pre- Clovis inhabitation of the Americas. According to most reports, there cannot be any artifacts in the Americas before 15,000 years ago. The reason for this dating is that human ancestors are thought to have crossed the Bering Strait around that time. Hueyatlaco is famous because there are sophisticated Clovis tools there that are dated to around 250,000 years ago.

Controversy

Dating

This dating causes two very significant problems for archeologists and specialists around the globe. First of all this is a problem because, as mentioned above, people are thought not to have ventured into the Americas until about 15,000 years ago. Second, people with the intellect to make stone tools of the caliber seen at Hueyatlaco are thought not to have come into existence until around 100,000 years ago, with supporting evidence from African excavations.

Explanations for the dating at Hueyatlaco are either there was an error in the geological dating or that modern humans did in fact live 250,000 years ago in America. There has also been some disagreement concerning the manner of the dig and the effects which it may have had on the accuracy of the results obtained. Apparently, the site is near a lake that has flooded for thousands of years. This causes the silt, sand, ash, and other geological implements to shift and change pattern. This shifting makes it difficult to accurately date the strata at the sampling location. Steen-McIntyre' colleagues, as well as other academics, expressed disagreement and argued that there might be problems with the dating obtained, due to the shifting at the sampling site.

Excavation

There is also some controversy over who originally found the artifacts and began the excavation. The dig is associated with Steen-McIntyre's name in most cases because of her continuing attempts to bring the information to the public. It actually was discovered by Cynthia Irwin-Williams and Juan Armenta Camacho in 1962 and excavated in the mid-60s. Steen-McIntyre joined the dating team at the request of the project geologist, Hal Malde in 1966, shortly after excavations were completed. However, Steen-McIntyre is indisputably recognized as the lead author of the controversial paper. Irwin-Williams did share her findings, but did not face the widespread criticism that confronted Steen-McIntyre. While Irwin-Williams continued to have a successful career after Hueyatlaco, Steen-McIntyre’s career as a geologist was effectively finished.

Sources

* [http://www.fsteiger.com/nbcprog.html NBC Program: The Mysterious Origins of Man]
* [http://www.earlyworld.de/forbidden_archeology.htm Hidden History of the Human Race]
* [http://www.valsequilloclassic.net/ Valsequillo Classic]