Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1910-11-05
EXPLORED EGYPT
AND LABRADOR
A VKidder, Harvard Archae-
ologist Now Visits
Santa Fe
WILL STUDY POTTERY HERE
This Interests Him as Much as
Tombs of Kings and Esquimo
Remains.

! Having studied the tombs Of
Egypt's kings and found Esquimo re-
mains in icy Labrador, A. V. Kidder,
| explorer, archaeologist. writer, in
'tructor of anthropology at Harvard
I University, club man and now a stud
ent again, comes to Santa Fe to spend
! the winter pondering over Pajaritan
pottery which he expects to find as in
teresting as any of his pursuits in
the Nile land of romance or in the
| frozen north of he American CONT
nent.
Tall, of powerful frame, handsome,
young and ambitious, Mr.. Kidder is a
/ refreshing example of the American,
born with a silver spoon in his mouth,
yet willing to WELD the pick and
shovel in the interests of science.
Accompanied by Mrs. Kidder, who
| is of a prominent Massachusetts fam
| lily, he has already begun work here
to get his doctors degree from Har-
ward and although in no way connect
/ ed with the Archaeological school
here he has been given permission by
| Director Hewett to pursue his studies
of the pottery of the Pajaritan region
Four years ago Mr.. Kidder visited
the Mesa Verde, in Colorado, and the
Puye cliffs, and in 1907 and 1903 he
worked on the distribution of the
southwest pottery.
Goes to Egypt.
! Mr.. Kidder spent the winter of 1908
and 1909 along the Nile, IN Egypt.
studying the field methods of the ex-
cavators. He was accompanied by
| his father, A. A. Kidder the Boston
banker and his mother, Mrs. Kidder.
He spent some time studying the
tombs of the kings at Luxor, opposite
Thebes, in 26 degrees n latitude.
While the glory of Thebes today is it's
ancient temples, Luxor also enjoys
the presence of very famous temple
where interesting excavations have
been made by scientists from all over
the world.
'It is easier to excayate in Egypt
than in this country said Mr.. Kidder
in discussing his Nile trip, for in
Egypt one can get good and husky
worllmen for to Z cents day and
they board themselves. Their diet is
dry brown bread and onions. Where
as in this country, Indians are paid 81
to S1.5O a day and given their board
besides"
Visits Labrador,
Mr.. Kidder returned to this country
and taught anthropology last winter
at Harvard. This spring he visited
Newfoundland and Labrador, in COM
pany with Professor Fernald, the dis
tinguished botanist. The object of the
expedition was to try to locate the
settlement of Lief Ericsson the Morse
discoverer who went from Greenland
in the year 1000 to search for new
land to the west which Bjarni Her
julson had sighted in 9S6 and reach
ing land went ashore az several
places. At one of these Ericsson win
tered naming the new country Vim
land and soon returned to Greenland.
The site of his landfall and of his
winter quarters have been variously
identified by antiquarians as the
Labrador. the Newfoundland and the
New England coasts. The facts as re-
CARDS the voyage are recorded in the
,hcfn ny1ft a
trustworthiness of which is now gen.
orally accepted.
Mr.. Kidder and Professor Fernald
we're not successful in finding the re-
mains of Ericson's site but found ratn-
er an old fishingtown dating back to
back to the year 1900, yet
the botanical conditions as de-
scribed in the sagas were identi-
cal. Mr.. Kidder also found Esquimo
remains 500 miles south of any that
have heretofore been found-an i'm
portant discovery, showing that the
Esquimos have been gradually pushed
northward by hostile tribes.
Discussing his work here this wint-
er, Mr.. Kidder said that the history
of the prehistoric people of this region
now is being studied from its linguis
tic side and the study of their pottery
will perhaps throw another light OF
these mysterious people. "In other
countries the pottery is the chron
/ illogical order of civilization for the
artistic development of people is re
f1ected in the cooking and eating uten
sils. Hence it is of the greatest I'M
portance in the study or people"
Discussing the museum in the Old
: Palace, Mr.. Kidder said 1t Is 30 prac-
: tically arranged that it must appeal to
both scientist and tourist. 81 was par
ticularly struck with the clever arch1-
= tectural arrangement of the rooms for
the display of the pictures of Mr.,
. Lotave, who has used every inch OF
space to advantage These pictures,
: think, are admirably suited to awak-
q en- an interest in the Rito de los FRI
joles canon and the Cliffs of the
Puye and certain it is the beau
/, ty of sky and landscape, the wonder
3 full coloring of the rocks un0er moon
. light, and the delights that greet the
/ eye at sunrise and sunset in the form.
+ er canon have to be seen and studied
a. l.