Archaeology Cafe: Road Signs and Walking Shoes
Category: Event Calendar
Date and Time
- Tuesday, Mar 3, 2026 5:30pm - 7:30pm
Location
Archaeology Southwest
300 N Ash Ave
Details
Join us in-person downtown at the Archaeology Southwest Headquarters or online via Zoom Webinar on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, when Benjamin A. Bellorado (Assistant Curator of Archaeology at the Arizona State Museum) will discuss “Road Signs and Walking Shoes: Sandals and Sandal Imagery as Part and Parcel of the Chaco Road System.” For over a century, archaeologists have studied the ancient Chacoan roads, proposing functions such as resource transport, trade, and religious expression, though their exact purpose remains unclear. This presentation argues that these roads also served as performance spaces where people enacted movement, identity, and symbolism. Evidence from rock art and worn twined sandals suggests that travel along these routes was both a physical journey and a public expression of Chaco identity.
