Every time I tried to determine if an 11th century man with Eurasian ancestors had inhabited what would one day be the American Southwest, the same problem kept cropping up. I was thwarted by history books. “In 1492 Columbus discovered America!” School children in the U.S. have been taught this one-sided “fact” since the beginning of our nation’s founding.
Today, most of us understand people were in the Americas for thousands of years before Columbus led his three little ships toward what Europeans would call the New World. Note that archeological and genetic evidence currently put the date somewhere between 16,000 and 25,000 years. So the Americas had long since been discovered by humans when Columbus touched down in what is today the Bahamas.
Humans probably first approached the Americas during the last ice age, a time when low sea levels exposed a land bridge at what is now the Bering Strait between Russia and Alaska, perhaps pursuing big game across the isthmus. These hunter-gatherers would eventually populate the Americas from end-to-end, some establishing advanced civilizations which rivaled any cultures on Earth, ones that excelled in mathematics, astronomy, engineering, architecture, and the arts.
But history is rarely clear-cut. When I was researching The Magician—whose burial was discovered just east of Flagstaff, Arizona in 1939—I kept getting hung up on the fact that he didn’t look like the people who populated the high desert at the time. While I understand that ascribing features to mummified individuals is not an exact science, his height and facial structure seemed unlike the Hopi ancestors who so reverently placed him in a remarkable tomb bearing 600 funerary objects, one that’s been called the richest burial in the history of the American Southwest.
I wondered then if there might have been other outliers. Descendants of Eurasians who managed to make it to the Americas many millennia ago, perhaps in such such small numbers they were rarely if ever noticed. I would discover that possibility in two ways. One involved fabric and the other a rare burial practice.
It began with a discovery in the late 1980’s when strange, perfectly preserved mummies appeared in a remote desert area of China. Inordinately tall with reddish-brown hair, the Tarim mummies bore little resemblance to modern-day Chinese people and gave credence to stories of what many supposed were just myths about towering people with blue or green eyes, full beards, long noses and red or blond hair. Some wore tartan or plaid created on sophisticated looms, a textile type that was similar to ancient fragments located in present-day Austria. And there was another curious thing. These desert dwellers buried their dead in boats, an exceedingly rare custom, one mostly associated with Vikings. DNA studies showed the mummies were in fact Ancient North Eurasians—a genetic mix of Asian and European peoples—a group of hunter-gathers once wide-spread, but who mostly disappeared 10,000 years ago. Today, the only remaining traces of Ancient North Eurasians are in Indigenous people in Siberia and the Americas.
So, might The Magician’s ancestors have come from these people? Of course, it is impossible to know. However, the genetic mixing of our ancient ancestors is undeniable. Certainly, inherited traits could have trickled down through the generations, periodically producing people who looked different than those around them. A case in point is the scientific research into blue-eyed humans. Studies now indicate that all people with this trait are descended from a single ancestor, one with a genetic mutation which occurred between 6,000-10,000 years ago. Today between 8-10% of people world-wide have blue eyes.
While we will never know why The Magician was different from his peers, we do know he was a highly revered individual, one whose interment was extraordinary and which in hindsight should have been left undisturbed. Today, archeologists do not dig up remains and funerary objects and put them on display, since it’s morally reprehensible. And according to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, it’s a crime.
Though back in 1939 The Magician was unearthed and placed in a museum, today he and his funerary objects have been returned to the ground, reburied in a secret place, with the same honor and reverence the Hopi ancestors afforded him all those years ago.
If you’d like to learn more about the man they called The Magician, I encourage you to read my book Wolf Catcher, which not only delves into the hunt for who he might have been, but also shines a light on life in the high desert almost a millennia ago.
Wolf Catcher
Anne Montgomery
Historical Fiction
Released August 4, 2025
The past and present collide when a tenacious reporter seeks information on an eleventh century magician…and uncovers more than she bargained for.
In 1939, archaeologists uncovered a 900-year-old tomb at the Northern Arizona site called Ridge Ruin. The man, bedecked in fine turquoise jewelry and intricate bead work, was surrounded by hundreds of extraordinary funerary objects, including wooden swords with handles carved into animal hooves and human hands. The Hopi workers stepped back from the grave, knowing what the Moochiwimi sticks meant. This man was a magician.
Sixty-five years later, investigative reporter Kate Butler discovers evidence that The Magician looked notably different from those who buried him. Her quest to discover The Magician’s origin carries her back to a time when the high desert world was shattered by the birth of a volcano and into the present-day dangers of archaeological looting where black market sales of antiquities can lead to murder.
Bookstores, libraries, and other booksellers can order copies directly from the Ingram Catalog.
Praise for Wolf Catcher
“Blending archaeology and Native American mythology, “Wolf Catcher” by novelist Anne Montgomery is an original, exceptionally well written, and compelling work of historical fiction…” – Midwest Book Review
“The author’s ability to interweave the past and the present was masterful. The characters were complex and interesting, especially with the underlying theme of rethinking the history of worldly human migration … A real page turner and I am wondering when the movie is going to be made!” – Alicia Williams Goodreads
“The story is very well-paced, reaching a page-turning, action-packed climax to the end. This story has all the elements of a great suspense drama centered around a historical mystery.” – Heidi Slowinski Author
“I was deeply and thoroughly embroiled in this imaginative novel… (that) melds seamlessly much of fact with fiction. Totally recommended! “ – V. Williams Vine Voice
“What a journey! What a story! A truly epic tale that grabs you by a throat and moves your soul. Highly recommend for the readers of all age groups.” – Marina Sardarova Author
“Boy, didn’t this one grip me quickly and keep me glued to the pages! Loved the cliff-hanging chapter endings. Well researched, well-plotted and paced…Trust me, you’ll love it. Totally recommended and out now!” – Rosepoint Publishing
“Once again the author has created a beautiful story with a powerful message. She took a piece of history and brought it to life. I just can’t say enough good things about Wolf Catcher.” – Megan Salcido Wildwood Reads
Anne Montgomery’s novels can be found wherever books are sold.
Author Anne Montgomery 
Yup. The whole school system needs an overhaul, Anne. Especially with the way a lot of disclosure is coming to light about our history. Great post, and all the best with your new release, my friend! Cheers!
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I agree, Sharon. And yet I’m not holding my breath.Thanks for sharing. 😉
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