Hunts for Indian relics date to 19th century

The "pot-hunting" culture of the Southwest dates back to the 1800s, when a Colorado ranching family began exploring and excavating the ruined cliff dwellings of the Anasazi, an ancient civilization that flourished centuries ago.

Richard Wetherill and his brothers discovered entire homes filled with decorated pottery, jewelry, tools, sandals and finely woven baskets dating from about 600 to 1300 A.D. Thousands of grave sites, where the dead were wrapped in blankets and buried with their most valuable possessions, also were discovered.

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There was a segment on this area on PBS The National Parks this past week on PBS, the Wetherill took and damaged much of their find before it was rediscovered and protected, eventually became part of the National Park system.