Mystery skull found in Wenatchee garage is likely remains from ancient Anasazi

Mystery skull found in Wenatchee garage is likely remains from ancient Anasazi

By Jay Patrick
World staff writer
Posted August 20, 2008

WENATCHEE — Experts say part of a skull found in a Wenatchee home is likely a 700- to 1,110-year-old specimen from the American Southwest.

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STORY: Skull found in garage appears to be remains of American Indian


A portion of a skull and part of a palate were discovered May 27 in a paper bag in a garage by relatives who were cleaning an elderly woman's home in the 1100 block of Pershing Street. Also found were seven pottery shards. The woman who lived at the house had moved to an assisted-living facility and was unable to provide information about the origin of the items.

Chelan County Coroner Wayne Harris first sent pictures of the skull and pottery shards to the state anthropologist, who in turn sent them to Guy Tasa, the state physical anthropologist — a newly created position dealing specifically with the identification, preservation, excavation and repatriation of Native American remains.

Tasa consulted with American Indian experts at the University of Oregon and Brigham Young University, who both surmised that the pottery came from the Anasazi people, once located in the Four Corners region of southeastern Utah, southwestern Colorado, northeastern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico. Designs etched on the pottery shards led to the conclusions. The wear on the remaining teeth in the skull — indicating a person who ate primarily grains — helped experts decide that the skull was that of a Native American from the Southwest.

Tasa picked up the remains and pottery in Wenatchee on Tuesday and took them to the King County Medical Examiner's Office for further analysis. Upon an initial examination, he said the flattened top of the skull is indicative of Southwestern Indians.

Tasa said he will notify local tribes of the find as required by state law. If further study confirms that the objects are Anasazi, they could be returned to descendants of that culture, which disappeared by the year 1300, possibly due to changing environmental conditions that spurred an exodus to other regions.

The culture dates as far back as 1500 B.C., according to a synopsis on the Colorado Bureau of Land Management Web site at www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc/who_were_the_anasazi.html#who. Today's Pueblo people, located in about 20 communities in New Mexico and Arizona, are considered descendants of the Anasazi.

Jay Patrick: 664-7155

patrick@wenworld.com

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