Mogollon culture

Mogollon culture

Prehistoric North American Indian culture found in what is now southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico, U.S., and dating to approximately AD 200–1450. The first pottery in the Southwest was made by the Mogollon; its high quality from the beginning suggests that the craft may have been imported from Mexico. The early economy was based on gathering wild plant foods and hunting small game. Corn (maize) cultivation emerged c. AD 500. At this time houses also became more elaborate, being constructed of stone masonry. At its peak, during the Mimbres phase (1050–1200), new patterns of house design (multilevel pueblos centred on a plaza) and pottery (crisp black-on-white designs of animals or geometric lines) emerged. Mogollon cultural developments such as the adoption of the kiva and pueblo architecture suggest ongoing contact with the Anasazi peoples to the north.