The Enduring Quest for a Clear Vision of the Past: Interpreting Aboriginal Stone Features on Two Archaeological Sites in South Park, Colorado

Two architectural sites in South Park, Colorado are of a type not previously believed to be present in the state. The sites are notable for the large number and variety of stone features and, importantly, the limited artifact assemblages. In addition to archaeological data, ethnographic and ethnohistoric information support the hypothesis that sites 5PA1300 and 5PA1804 have functioned in the past as important vision quest loci, like others that have been found in Montana and Wyoming. The sites are most likely of Arapaho origin, and future archaeologists will probably find more like them east of the Continental Divide.