Pilgrimage and Periodic Festivals as Processes of Social Integration in Chaco Canyon

Abstract

This article examines the possibility that pilgrimage and periodic festivals were major processes leading to the spatial cohesion of Chaco Canyon and its outlying communities. Aspects of pilgrimage traditions around the world, such as periodic ritual processions, way stations and shrines along roads and trails, public architecture for performance and feasting, and facilities for accommodating pilgrims and visitors, are implied in the archaeological record of Chaco. Because pilgrimages and festivals are usually self motivated and spontaneous, there is no need to invoke political power, administrative control, or military coercion to explain social integration across an extended culture area. The article provides examples of contemporary pilgrimage festivals in India and the Himalayas that may relate to the Chaco landscape.