For decades, archaeologists debated the primary function of the massive 'Great Houses' of Chaco Canyon, built by the Ancestral Puebloans between 900 and 1150 CE. Early theories posited that these structures, which contain hundreds of rooms, served as densely populated urban centers or residential hubs. However, recent architectural and taphonomic analyses have cast doubt on this domestic hypothesis. Critics point out that Chacoan Great Houses show surprisingly little evidence of daily habitation; excavation sites reveal a notable dearth of domestic hearths, cooking vessels, and organic refuse heaps compared to contemporary residential villages nearby. Furthermore, the rooms within the Great Houses are exceptionally large and organized in formal, highly planned layouts with restricted access points, suggesting administrative or ritual usage rather than flexible family quarters. Instead, many researchers now argue that the Great Houses functioned primarily as ceremonial centers and regional storehouses, designed to host periodic gatherings and manage agricultural surpluses. Under this view, Chaco Canyon was a pilgrimage site, occupied intensively only during ritual cycles.
According to the passage, the claim that the Great Houses did not serve as densely populated residential hubs is supported by which of the following pieces of evidence?
- AThe flexible design of the exceptionally large rooms, which allowed them to be easily partitioned into family quarters.
- The lack of common domestic features, such as hearths and refuse piles, compared to surrounding residential villages.Answer
- CThe construction timeline indicating that the Great Houses were built between 900 and 1150 CE.
- DThe finding that agricultural surpluses were stored there to prevent starvation during times of regional conflict.