In The Kachina and the Cross, Carroll Riley weaves elements of archaeology, anthropology, and history to tell a dramatic story of conflict between the Pueblo Indians and Franciscan missionaries in the seventeenth-century Spanish colony of New Mexico.
Until now, histories of the early Southwest have tended to concentrate on the Spanish presence, with little mention of Indian resistance or the decade-long war that eventually erupted. In The Kachina and the Cross Riley completes the picture by utilizing archaeological and anthropological research from the past forty years, fleshing out the story of the first century of sustained Spanish-Pueblo relations.
From the Publisher
"An informative and readable account of the interaction of Spaniards and native peoples in New Mexico."—CHOICE"Riley has done a good job of pulling a diverse string of facts together and has woven them into a fine-textured story of early New Mexico."—Patrick Beckett, Center of Anthropological Studies, Las Cruces, NM
"This new book reads like a novel and contains some new and surprising information, making it a valuable contextual reference on 17th-century New Mexico history."—New Mexico Magazine
“With his usual clarity, sound research, and objectivity, Cal Riley interweaves the events and personalities into a chronological account.”—The Journal of American History
“A fascinating synthesis of recent scholarship.”—Utah Historical Quarterly
“[An] important study. Readers…will not be disappointed by the thorough presentation of works consulted, including a body of relatively obscure technical literature.”—The Journal of Arizona History
Booknews
Arraying archaeological, historical, and anthropological evidence, Riley (anthropology, Southern Illinois U.) offers new insights into the first century of sustained contact between the Spanish and the Pueblos. He describes the failure of the Spanish mines and the refocus on missionary work by the Franciscans, the resistance of Native Americans that finally led to way in 1680, the return of the Spanish after 12 years of time-out, and their more gingerly treatment of native religion after that. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
