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Wingfield Collection
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Ralph Wingfield and ruins of Guevavi Mission
Ralph Wingfield was a third generation Arizona farmer / rancher who owned six or seven ranches in Arizona and Mexico. His home base, however, was at the Guevavi Ranch west of Nogales, site of the Guevavi Mission founded by Father Eusebio Francisco Kino more than 300 years before.
Geoffrey Wingfield
Over the next 40+ years, Ralph's son, Geoffrey Wingfield collected artifacts on the ranch which included Native American pottery, stone tools and ironwork from the Spanish Colonial period.
Geoffrey Wingfield at Tubac Townsite archaelogical dig
Geoffrey displayed his private collection of artifacts at the home he built near Elephant Head just north of Tubac, near Amado. The artifacts were transported to his Elephant Head home from their original settings at the ranch and at Guevavi.
Unfortunately, the extensive records that Geoffrey kept on his collection were lost in a fire; however, consulting archaeologists Jeremy Moss of of the National Parks and Dr. Lyle Stone of Tubac confirmed the artifacts are from the Guevavi area.
Unfortunately, the extensive records that Geoffrey kept on his collection were lost in a fire; however, consulting archaeologists Jeremy Moss of of the National Parks and Dr. Lyle Stone of Tubac confirmed the artifacts are from the Guevavi area.
Sketch of Guevavi Mission ruins
Mission Los Santos Ángeles de Guevavi (O'odham: Ge'e Wawhia) was founded by Jesuit missionary Fathers Kino and Salvatierra in 1691 as La Misión de San Gabriel de Guevavi, a district headquarters in what is now Arizona, near Tumacácori.
The convento and church have been excavated by the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society and the National Park Service. Historian John Kessell has written a comprehensive history of Guevavi. Archaeologist Deni Seymour has excavated a portion of the indigenous Sobaipuri-O'odham settlement of Guevavi and Father Kino's "neat little house and church."
The Mission's ruins were incorporated into Tumacácori National Historical Park in 1990. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1990.
The Mission Los Santos Ángeles de Guevavi is one of the designated tour sights of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail.
The convento and church have been excavated by the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society and the National Park Service. Historian John Kessell has written a comprehensive history of Guevavi. Archaeologist Deni Seymour has excavated a portion of the indigenous Sobaipuri-O'odham settlement of Guevavi and Father Kino's "neat little house and church."
The Mission's ruins were incorporated into Tumacácori National Historical Park in 1990. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1990.
The Mission Los Santos Ángeles de Guevavi is one of the designated tour sights of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail.
Guevavi Ruins today
Map of Guevavi Ranch and Mission Ruins
Projectile Points
Projectile point on left: grey on one side, pink on the other; unbroken; finely made; three points, notches.
Archaeologist Jeremy Moss: Grey chert; concave base and two side notches; similar to Pueblo, NM projectile points (1100-1200 AD). Northern Side-Notched Cluster (general type). Specific type probably Ventana Side-Notched. This is the most widely recognized type of side-notched point. It occurs from the Great Basin to the SW. Date range: 3500-1800 B.C. (Late Archaic). "Good point". Dr. Lyle Stone: Basal notched.
Projectile point on right: one tip broken; opaque white on one side, the other side is more tan; finely worked.
Archaeologist Jeremy Moss: Chert projectile point; "Cienega Point" (Cienega Valley drainage of the Santa Cruz River). Date range: 100 B.C. to 800 A.D. (Agricultural Period) "Good point". Made from a flake; we can see the ventral surface (inside) of the flake. One side was flaked; the other not.
Material: Chert
Archaeologist Jeremy Moss: Grey chert; concave base and two side notches; similar to Pueblo, NM projectile points (1100-1200 AD). Northern Side-Notched Cluster (general type). Specific type probably Ventana Side-Notched. This is the most widely recognized type of side-notched point. It occurs from the Great Basin to the SW. Date range: 3500-1800 B.C. (Late Archaic). "Good point". Dr. Lyle Stone: Basal notched.
Projectile point on right: one tip broken; opaque white on one side, the other side is more tan; finely worked.
Archaeologist Jeremy Moss: Chert projectile point; "Cienega Point" (Cienega Valley drainage of the Santa Cruz River). Date range: 100 B.C. to 800 A.D. (Agricultural Period) "Good point". Made from a flake; we can see the ventral surface (inside) of the flake. One side was flaked; the other not.
Material: Chert
Court Sword blade found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Spanish Colonial blade with many stamp marks in the indentation.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital Image.
Court sword authenticated by Alan Ferg of the Arizona State Museum and date-tested to 1690-1705.
Similar to an image of Spanish court swords and scabbards, ca 1790 from the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History as published in "The Leather Jacket Soldier: Spanish Military Equipment and Institutions of the late 18th" Century by Odie B. Faulk, Socio-Technical Publications, Pasadena, CA 1971, image 8.
Material: Metal
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital Image.
Court sword authenticated by Alan Ferg of the Arizona State Museum and date-tested to 1690-1705.
Similar to an image of Spanish court swords and scabbards, ca 1790 from the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History as published in "The Leather Jacket Soldier: Spanish Military Equipment and Institutions of the late 18th" Century by Odie B. Faulk, Socio-Technical Publications, Pasadena, CA 1971, image 8.
Material: Metal
Examples of Spanish Colonial Period court swords
Detail of blade found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Plainware bowl found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Plainware bowl.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Ceramic
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Ceramic
Hohokam small bowl decorated on outside
Hohokam small bowl. Decorated on inside and out.
Digital image.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Material: Ceramic
Digital image.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Material: Ceramic
Interior of Hohokam bowl
Exterior of Hohokam bowl with crack
Petroglyph is on display at Tubac Presidio State Park
Large stone with symbols etched by prehistoric peoples. Images include several people and a large zig-zag snake.
Digital image.
Petroglyph is on display at the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park & Griffin Museum.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image retained by THS.
Material: Stone
Digital image.
Petroglyph is on display at the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park & Griffin Museum.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image retained by THS.
Material: Stone
Petroglyph is on display at Tubac Presidio State Park
Stone with symbols etched by prehistoric peoples. One symbol is of a human; the second a cricle. This petroglyph is on display at the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park and Griffin Museum.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image retained by THS.
Material: Stone
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image retained by THS.
Material: Stone
Heavy stone bowl found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Heavy based stone bowl.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Stone
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Stone
Fragments of human figures found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Two fragments of human figures, a face and female torso. The two pieced do not fit together and probably do not come from the same figure.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Stone
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Stone
Turquoise beads and shells found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Turquoise beads and small turquoise pendant; shell ornaments made from shell from the Gulf of Mexico.
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Turquoise & shell
Collected by Geoffrey Wingfield.
Digital image.
Material: Turquoise & shell
Ornaments found by Geoffrey Wingfield
Photo of some of the artifacts belonging to Geoffrey Wingfield including an anthropomorphic object of stone, an elaborately carved piece of shell, and a worked bone.
Hohokam Clay Jar
Jar, clay, large; broken in two pieces and reassembled; single handle broken off and section of rim where handle would have attached is missing; thicker walled vessel; rounded base, bulbous shape, tapered inward with flared rim; darker brown clay with blackened areas.
Archaeologist Jeremy Moss: Prehistoric; Hohokam. One handle, broken at rim. Micaceous. Not as polished as the other jars. Flared with more angle. Rim polished. Thicker than the others. Exterior fire clouds; bottom more soil stained than the top; root pattern suggests long burial. Thickness suggests Post Hohokam. Similar to repatriated jar D which was used for cremation.
Single coil rim is bulbuar. Taken to Desert Archaeologists of Tucson.
Dr. Lyle Stone: Plainware
Material: Ceramic
Archaeologist Jeremy Moss: Prehistoric; Hohokam. One handle, broken at rim. Micaceous. Not as polished as the other jars. Flared with more angle. Rim polished. Thicker than the others. Exterior fire clouds; bottom more soil stained than the top; root pattern suggests long burial. Thickness suggests Post Hohokam. Similar to repatriated jar D which was used for cremation.
Single coil rim is bulbuar. Taken to Desert Archaeologists of Tucson.
Dr. Lyle Stone: Plainware
Material: Ceramic
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