Art, Ritual and Southern Idaho Archaeology
Today’s archaeological researcher often combines scientific methodology with humanities, life and earth sciences, and social science. This slide presentation emphasizes the interplay of archaeology and humanities focusing on ancient ritual, artifact meaning, rock art interpretation and the understanding of mythic landscape. Drawing from archaeological findings across southern Idaho, the presentation introduces a unique prehistoric mortuary complex from western Idaho, discusses pictographs from the Lost River country, petroglyphs of the western Snake River Canyon, and a variety of three-dimensional artifacts ranging from figurines to stone bowls. This overview of southern Idaho archaeology requires archaeological explanation beyond everyday technological or economic function. Therefore, such issues as sacred landscape and prehistoric ritual are addressed.

Ancient Monuments of Western Europe
It has often been stated that more words have been written about Stonehenge than any other archaeological site in the world. Stonehenge is not alone, however, as large-scale stone monuments dot the western European landscape in a variety of locales, built by a diversity of cultures over thousands of years and reflect a variety of meanings. This slide presentation reviews some of the most famous French and English prehistoric monuments, including, Barnenez, Carnac, Gavrinis, Stonehenge, Avebury, West Kennet Long Barrow and Silbury Hill, Europe’s largest pyramid. These monuments were built by people long before Roman occupation of western Europe and remain as an integral part of the continent’s cultural legacy. Topics to be discussed vary from current archaeological explanation to folklore and fancy as these structures continue to stir the human imagination.