Circumpolar populations negotiated an “Arctic filter” that must have involved sophisticated leather footwear capable of dealing with severe northeast Asian and Beringian environments through which Indigenous Ancestors would travel entering the western hemisphere. Yet, apart from glimpses afforded at sites such as Spirit Cave or the mid-Holocene moccasin from a Mount Edziza ice patch, ancient leather footwear is exceedingly rare. While leather footwear remained critical in the north, early populations in the Great Basin and American Southwest soon employed fibre perishable sandals that largely dominated the archaeological record until the late fourteenth century. Then, leather footwear quickly succeeded sandals amongst many Southwestern populations. This has at times been attributed to the appearance of Apachean ancestors in the Southwest and southern Plains. We explore this adoption of leather moccasins in light of the hundreds of Promontory Cave moccasins in Utah, a scattering of similar moccasins in Wyoming and Colorado, and at prominent Southwestern sites including Mesa Verde, Aztec, Montezuma’s Castle, Chaco Canyon and Walpi. Apachean ancestors entered a turbulent thirteenth century world—where Puebloan peoples were retracting into fewer, larger communities—and brought with them a Subarctic moccasin style that became the basis from which leather footwear came to dominate.

The Archaeological Conservation Laboratory at the Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) is a resource for the heritage community, and treats archaeological artifacts from across Canada, particularly waterlogged perishable materials. Fibrous and perishable materials rarely survive in the archaeological record, making such finds even more significant. When perishable materials such as textiles, rope, cordage, basketry, leather, and wood do survive, more frequently they are found in a wet or waterlogged context. Waterlogged perishable materials are some of the most fragile types of artifacts that can be recovered during an archaeological excavation. To ensure the best possible long-term preservation consideration for the care of these artifacts needs to begin upon discovery. As a part of our mandate, CCI archaeological conservators also respond to general information requests related to the conservation of this type of material. From these conversations, we have identified common themes and questions about the care of perishable materials. Based upon these themes and questions, this talk will cover tips and techniques for handling, suggestions for packaging materials, and options for long- and short-term storage of perishable archaeological artifacts.