The breathtaking granite and sandstone panorama, bright azure sky and endless days of sunshine are all signs that the Phoenix area is a magical place.
The area's ethereal feel stems not only from its cactus-filled Sonoran Desert landscape but also its American Indian roots. Arizona is home to more than 20 tribes, the largest of which are the Hopi, Navajo, Pima and Apache.
For a first-hand look at the culture, visit the Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park in Phoenix, where you can explore 1,500-year-old ruins of the Hohokam Indian tribe. You'll be able to walk though reconstructed homes and view a re-creation of the tribe's canals, which served as the original groundwork for the current canal system in the Phoenix area.
The world-famous Heard Museum has been a landmark in Phoenix for 80 years. The museum was originally opened by Dwight and Maie Heard to showcase their collection of American Indian artifacts and art. Today, the Heard has more than 38,700 artifacts in its permanent collection.
The easy-to-navigate museum houses the exhibit "HOME: Native People in the Southwest," which focuses on the importance of family, community, land and language in Native American culture and includes the late Arizona Sen. Barry M. Goldwater's collection of katsina dolls. These figures, intricately carved from the roots of cottonwood trees, are used as teaching tools for Hopi children. They are the carved representations of the Katsinam, the spirit messengers of the universe.
The much-collected dolls also can be found at the Heard Museum North Scottsdale, a smaller satellite location in neighboring Scottsdale offering two exhibition galleries. The main museum and the North Scottsdale location feature large museum shops with everything from native jewelry and weavings to art and katsinas. In the café, you'll find a menu that includes native foods such as fry bread and Tepary Bean Hummus. The beans are indigenous to Arizona and have been used by American Indians for centuries.
The area around Scottsdale was originally inhabited by the ancient Hohokam Indians, a tribe that faded away 600 years ago. Scottsdale has embraced its native roots ever since its founding in the late 1800s. Influences from the culture are woven throughout the city, from American Indian art and artifacts to native reservations and museums.
Scottsdale is home to two tribes, the Pima and Maricopa, which comprise the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. The Pimas are well-known for their intricate basket-weaving techniques; the Maricopa for their red-clay pottery work. The American Indian community houses the new Talking Stick Resort, which features Native American performances as well as a casino and live entertainment.
Many of the resorts in Scottsdale celebrate the native legacy of the land. The Phoenician, located at the base of Camelback Mountain in the Sonoran Desert, pays homage to the culture through its $25 million art collection, which features works by some of the best American Indian artists. The resort offers an audio self-guided tour of the collection, which includes 11 bronze sculptures by Allan Houser, often referred to as the "father" of American Indian sculpture.
One way to trace the tracks of American Indians is the Walk the Rock guided walk-about through the prehistoric Sonoran Desert at The Boulders Resort in nearby Carefree. The 12 million-year-old boulders on the trail often served as shelter for the Hohokam Indians. As you walk along the trail, you'll see in-ground formations where Indians prepared their meals.
You can learn more about various tribes and the culture at the Native American and Environmental Learning Center at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Gainey Ranch. The center is staffed with Native American cultural interpreters and artists who work on site, and includes displays of native art and information on Arizona tribes.
Forrest Chimerica, who oversees the center, speaks fluent Hopi and is teaching children in his tribe the years-old language. "I'm seeing resurgence in kids wanting to learn the language," he said. "It's the language that holds our culture together."
Author: Joan Tupponce | Source: Richmond Times Dispatch [August 15, 2010]
