Mesa Verde in brief
Mesa Verde (“green table” in Spanish) is a high plateau in southwestern Colorado, cut by deep canyons. Ancestral Pueblo people lived on and around it from about 550 to 1300 AD. In the 1190s they began to build in the alcoves under the cliffs. There are about 600 cliff dwellings in the park, and thousands of other sites. It became a national park in 1906, and a World Heritage Site in 1978, one of the first in the world.
The Ancestral Pueblo people
For about 600 years, people farmed corn, beans and squash on the mesa tops, and lived at first in pit houses and later in villages above ground. Around 1190 they began to build compact settlements of stone, mortar and wooden beams in the large natural alcoves of the canyon walls. There are several reasons suggested for the move, such as defence, the need for farmland, and the shelter provided. These cliff dwellings were occupied for only about a century, until the 1270s to 1280s.
The dwellings
- Cliff Palace. The largest, with about 150 rooms and 23 kivas, round underground chambers used for ceremonies and family gatherings.
- Spruce Tree House. One of the best preserved, with about 130 rooms.
- Balcony House. Reached by ladders and a tunnel, with a view over the canyon.
- Long House. The second largest, on Wetherill Mesa.
Why did they leave?
By about 1300 the area was empty. A long drought from 1276 to 1299, shown by tree rings, probably contributed, together with a lack of wood and soil, social stress and possibly conflict. The people moved south, to areas along the Rio Grande and in Arizona and New Mexico. They are the ancestors of present-day Pueblo peoples such as the Hopi, Zuni and the Pueblos of the Rio Grande, who consider Mesa Verde as part of their heritage. The older word “Anasazi” is a Navajo term and is no longer used by many.
Rediscovery
In December 1888 two cowboys, Richard Wetherill and Charlie Mason, searching for lost cattle in snow, saw Cliff Palace across the canyon. The Wetherill family later dug in many sites and sold the objects, and the damage was one reason for the creation of the national park.
Why it matters
Mesa Verde is one of the best places to see how people built homes in the rock, and shows the adaptability of the Ancestral Pueblo people. It also introduced Americans to the idea of protecting archaeological sites.
Visiting
The park is near Cortez, Colorado. Ranger-led tours go to Cliff Palace, Balcony House and Long House, and need tickets. Winters bring snow, and some areas are closed. See also Chaco Canyon.
Sources
- National Park Service. Mesa Verde National Park.
- Cattanach, G. S. (1980). Long House, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado. National Park Service.
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Mesa Verde National Park.