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Above the wall, you may be able to make out two rock paintings (round on the left, squarish on the right). These may have been clan symbols, indicating which Sinagua clans lived here. |
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The Sinagua took advantage of the cliff-face as the fourth "wall" of their dwellings. For a sense of scale, you can take the height of the man at right as about 6 feet. |
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The local rock breaks into pieces with flat faces, creating the "bricks" that make up these dwellings. Mud and clay are the mortar that hold everything together. The openings provide light and ventilation for indoor cooking. |
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An interior view of one of the walls. Note the round holes; wood crossbeams were originally in place here. Tree-ring dating of some of the original beams has indicated that at least some of these dwellings were built after 1270 A.D.. |
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This ruin is closed to foot traffic because the walls are falling down. Given the simple nature of the building materials, not to mention the depredations of pothunters and vandals, it is amazing that this much of the dwellings has survived to the present day. |
