A Study Of Fremont Snake Valley Black On Gray Ceramics From Sites In Northern Utah And The Parowan Valley

Archaeologists widely argue that Fremont potters from the Parowan Valley, in southwestern Utah, manufactured Snake Valley pottery. For my thesis, I examined Snake Valley Black-on-gray rim sherds using neutron activation analysis, oxidation analysis, metric data, and statistical methods. I compared my results on Snake Valley Black-on-gray sherds from three archaeological sites within the Parowan Valley (Paragonah, Parowan, and Evans Mound) to my results on Snake Valley Black-on-gray sherds recovered from three archaeological sites over 250 kilometers to the north (South Temple, Block 49, and Wolf Village). I argue that the Snake Valley Black-on-gray ceramics from the northern sites are tradewares selected from the Parowan Valley sites. My research expands on the limited knowledge of the painted variety of Snake Valley pottery; as well as provides insight into the overall understanding of Snake Valley Black-on-gray distribution among different geographical regions within the Fremont culture.