For Release: Immediate
Contact: Tessy Shirakawa
Phone: 970-529-4628

Mesa Verde Announces May 2007 Four Corners Lecture Series and Special Tour

As a cosponsor of The Four Corners Lecture Series, Mesa Verde National Park invites you to experience a variety of free and open lectures exploring recent research and exciting issues relevant to the Four Corners region. Seven lectures and programs will be held in May to celebrate Colorado Archeology and Historic Preservation month.

The sponsors for this year’s lecture series include the Anasazi Heritage Center , Cortez Cultural Center , Crow Canyon Archaeological Center , Fort Lewis College , and Mesa Verde National Park . In addition to the lectures, a special guided walking tour of Mesa Verde’s Historic District will be offered. This easy, one-hour walking tour highlights the architecture of the Historic District, including the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum , and the people who built them.

Additional lectures will be held throughout the year. For the full list of lectures, visit the Mesa Verde National Park website, www.nps.gov/meve, or the Mesa Verde Institute website, www.mesaverdeinstitute.org.

All events are free and open to the public.

May 6 Speaker: Dr. Elizabeth Morris, Southwestern archaeologist
Topic: "Among the Ancient Ruins," about Southwest excavations by Dr. Morris' father, Earl Morris in conjunction with a photo exhibit
Location: Cortez Recreation Center, Cortez, CO
Time: 1:00 pm .

May 6 Speaker: Greg Nunn, Southwestern flintknapper
Topic: Flintknapping demonstration and discussion
Location: Cortez Recreation Center, Cortez, CO
Time: 3:00 pm .

 May 11 Speaker: Sally Cole, Southwestern Rock Art Specialist
Title: Birds in Rock Art of the San Juan
Location: Cortez Cultural Center, Cortez, CO
Time: 1:00 pm .

 May 16 Speaker: Dan Puskar, historian and Park Ranger
Event: Historic District Walking Tour
Location : Chapin Mesa Museum , Mesa Verde National Park
Time: 1:00 pm .

May 17 Speaker: Arthur Gomez, Regional Historian, National Park Service, Santa Fe
Title: Northern Thrust: Hispanic Influence Along the Colorado-New Mexico Border, Past and Present
Location: Chapin Mesa Museum Auditorium, Mesa Verde National Park
Time: 7:00 pm .

May 23 Speaker: Dan Puskar, historian and Park Ranger
Event: Historic District Walking Tour
Location : Chapin Mesa Museum , Mesa Verde National Park
Time: 1:00 pm .

May 27 Speaker: Paul Reed, Preservation Archaeologist, Center for Desert Archaeology (Currently Chacoan Scholar at Salmon Ruins, New Mexico )
Title: Chaco Expansion or Chaco Emulation? The Emergence of Aztec, Salmon, and other Great House Communities
Location: Anasazi Heritage Center, Dolores, CO
Time: 2:00 pm .

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