Navajo National Monument
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Navajo National Monument is a
National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...
located within the northwest portion of the
Navajo Nation The Navajo Nation ( nv, Naabeehó Bináhásdzo), also known as Navajoland, is a Native American reservation in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah; at roughly , the ...
territory in northern
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
, which was established to preserve three well-preserved
cliff dwelling In archaeology, cliff dwellings are dwellings formed by using niches or caves in high cliffs, and sometimes with excavation or additions in the way of masonry. Two special types of cliff dwelling are distinguished by archaeologists: the cliff ...
s of the
Ancestral Puebloan The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as the Anasazi, were an ancient Native American culture that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, an ...
people: Keet Seel (Broken Pottery) (), Betatakin (Ledge House) (), and Inscription House (). The monument is high on the Shonto plateau, overlooking the Tsegi Canyon system, west of
Kayenta, Arizona Kayenta ( nv, ) is a U.S. town which is part of the Navajo Nation and is in Navajo County, Arizona, United States. Established November 13, 1986, the Kayenta Township is the only "township" existing under the laws of the Navajo Nation, making it ...
. It features a visitor center with a museum, three short self-guided trails, two small campgrounds, and a picnic area. The Sandal Trail is an accessible self-guided roundtrip trail that ends at an overlook of the Betatakin ruins across the 560-foot-deep (170 m) Betatakin Canyon. The overlook is the only point in the monument where visitors can view the cliff dwelling other than on the guided tours. Rangers guide visitors on free (3-5 hour long) tours of the Betatakin cliff dwellings and on roundtrip back-country hikes to the Keet Seel. The Inscription House site, further west, has been closed to public access for many years. The National Monument was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
on October 15, 1966.


Keet Seel

Keet Seel or Kiet Siel (), which stands for "broken pottery scattered around" in Navajo, is a well preserved cliff dwelling of the ancient
Ancestral Pueblo The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as the Anasazi, were an ancient Native American culture that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, a ...
people located in a branch of the Tsegi Canyon in the Kayenta region. The site was first occupied at around 1250, during a time in which a large number of people were believed to be aggregating in sites such as this in this part of the American Southwest. There was a construction boom at Keet Seel between 1272 and 1275, with construction then slowly tapering off and halting completely at 1286. Once construction halted in 1286, there was no evidence of structures being built until its subsequent abandonment some 20 years later. It is believed that, at its peak, up to 150 people inhabited this site at one time. Due to the extremely dry climate and natural overhanging cliff the site's dwellings and artifacts are well preserved. Keet Seel is considered by many archaeological experts to be one of the best preserved larger ruins in the American Southwest.Roberts, David. 1996. In Search of the Old Ones: Exploring the Anasazi World of the Southwest. Touchstone Press. pp. 271


Betatakin

Betatakin means "House Built on a Ledge" in Navajo. In Hopi, the name of the place is ''Talastima'', or "Place of the Corn Tassel". Betatakin is smaller than nearby Keet Seel, with about 120 rooms at the time of abandonment. However, like Keet Seel, Betatakin was constructed of sandstone, mud mortar, and wood. Today only about 80 rooms remain, due to rock falls inside the alcove. Betatakin only has one kiva, whereas Kiet Siel has several. Betatakin was built in an enormous alcove, measuring 452 feet high and 370 feet across, between 1267 and 1286Dean, Jeffrey. 1969. Chronological analysis of Tsegi Phase sites in Northeastern Arizona. Tucson. The first excavations occurred in 1909 under Byron Cummings, University of Utah, and continued into the 1950s and 1960s under archaeologists like Jeffery Dean. During its two-decade heyday Dean estimated a maximum population of about 125 people.


Discovery

The site of Keet Seel was known to resident Navajos in the area for decades or longer prior to the first Anglos arriving in 1895 (the Wetherill brothers). Originally part of a ranching family from Colorado, the Wetherills' keen interest in the Ancestral Puebloans led them to pursue numerous expeditions into the heart of the Kayenta region, largely uncovering a number of sites that had remained undiscovered to Anglos until then. The Wetherills took many artifacts from the ruins which the Navajos had left untouched for centuries.
Richard Wetherill Richard Wetherill (1858–1910), a member of a Colorado ranching family, was an amateur archaeologist who discovered, researched and excavated sites associated with the Ancient Pueblo People. He is credited with the rediscovery of Cliff Palac ...
is credited for selecting the term Anasazi, which refers to the ancient people (ancestral puebloans) that inhabited this region and means "Ancient Enemy Ancestors" in Navajo. It was not until 1909, after Navajo National Monument was created, that John Wetherill, Byron Cummings, and Navajo guide Clatsozen Benully first recorded Betatakin.Judd, Neil M. “Byron Cummings 1860-1954.” American Antiquity, vol. 20, no. 2, 1954, pp. 154–157. The Wetherill Brothers made a living from giving guided tours of sites in and around the Tsegi Canyon and Utah. Later in their careers, the Wetherill brothers were largely involved in efforts for the preservation and protection of the sites that made up Navajo National Monument. The artifacts which the Wetherills had removed from the Ancestral Pueblo sites were sold or shipped to far-flung locations so that today little is known of the artifacts' whereabouts.


Subsistence

The Ancestral Pueblo people of this area were a sedentary group that largely based their subsistence on agriculture. Their primary crop at the sites within Navajo National Monument was
maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
, with beans and
cucurbits The Cucurbitaceae, also called cucurbits or the gourd family, are a plant family consisting of about 965 species in around 95 genera, of which the most important to humans are: *''Cucurbita'' – squash, pumpkin, zucchini, some gourds *''Lagena ...
also being incorporated into their diet. While the people of the Tsegi Canyon system relied heavily on agriculture for their food, they also hunted wild game that was indigenous to the area. It is thought that these Ancestral Pueblo people lived in these cave dwellings to optimize the amount of sustainable land to produce crops. By living in these caves, and not on the mesas or the canyon floors, they were able to use this land towards agricultural production to ensure their success in this high elevation, desert environment. The ruins that make up Navajo National Monument were a large number of rooms used for storage, suggesting that at some point their crop production was successful enough to dedicate a significant amount of their living area towards storage purposes.


Dwellings/Architecture

The structures contained within this cave site were constructed mainly of sandstone blocks plastered together with mud and mortar. In marked contrast to earlier constructions and villages on top of the mesas, the cliff dwelling of Navajo National Monument reflected a region-wide trend towards the aggregation of growing regional populations into close, highly defensible quarters during the mid to late 13th century. While much of the construction in this site remains similar to common ancestral Pueblo architectural forms, including such features as
Kivas A kiva is a space used by Puebloans for rites and political meetings, many of them associated with the kachina belief system. Among the modern Hopi and most other Pueblo peoples, "kiva" means a large room that is circular and underground ...
, a circular tower (at Keet Seel), and pit-houses, the limited space that this site presented created a much more densely populated living area. At its peak, Keet Seel had more than 150 rooms and 6 kivas, while Betatakin had about 120 rooms and only one kiva.
Jacal The jacal (həˈkɑːl; Mexican Spanish from Nahuatl ''xacalli'' contraction of ''xamitl calli''; literally "hut") is an adobe-style housing structure historically found throughout parts of the Southwestern United States and Mexico. This type o ...
walls were also found to be used at this site. Jacal walls were made from a screen of upright wooden poles plastered together with mud. The dry conditions and protection from the elements at Keet Seel allowed for preservation of these architectural characteristics. There were also a number of structures believed to be built at the base of the cliff as well. But due to this area not being protected by the over-hanging cliff wall, its exposure to the elements led to its destruction by erosion. At Keet Seel, archaeological excavations have revealed that there were 25 room clusters beneath the overhanging wall, each that included one common living room, with anywhere from one to four storage rooms surrounding a small courtyard. The layout of these dwellings greatly mirrored that of the Pueblo III structures at
Mesa Verde Mesa Verde National Park is an American national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado. The park protects some of the best-preserved Ancestral Puebloan archaeological sites in the United States. Established ...
, whereas Betatakin had about 20 room clusters.


Abandonment

Although many archaeologists agree that there is a definitive and sharp exodus from this region in the Southwest, there has been considerable debate on the determining factors that forced people to migrate out of this area. Archaeologists have determined that there was a distinct decrease in the amount of annual precipitation between AD 1276 and 1299, a period of time that is now referred to as the "Great Drought". With the limited amount of rainfall in an already arid environment, there is no doubt that there was a considerable amount of increased stress put on the agricultural systems that these people depended on. There is evidence later in the record to suggest the beginning of an episode of deep arroyo cutting, that would have damaged what was left of the usable agricultural land. Increased deposition of sediment onto agricultural lands caused the lowering of the water table, thus making the land inadequate for farming. Regardless of their reasoning, near the end of the thirteenth century it's evident that the Ancestral Pueblo people migrated towards places with more stable and abundant water sources, suggesting that the agricultural land in this area had become unsuitable to sustain the population levels that once inhabited this spectacular cave site.
Hopi The Hopi are a Native American ethnic group who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, United States. As of the 2010 census, there are 19,338 Hopi in the country. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation within the Unite ...
legends tell a different tale. According to oral tradition, the area known as Wunuqa (modern day Tsegi Canyon) was abandoned as part of a spiritual quest.Courlander, Harold. 1971. The Fourth World of the Hopis: the epic story of the Hopi Indians as preserved in their legends and traditions.pp. 239. University of New Mexico Press. In particular, the Snake Clan inhabited the Navajo National Monument ruins, along with the Horn Clan. The Horn Clan forced the Snake Clan out, due to the children of the Snake Clan biting other children and causing death. This may be an allegory for some historical occurrence, in which one group forced another out for a perceived fault or slight.


Climate

Navajo National Monument has a cold
semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
: ''BSk'') with cold winters and hot summers.


See also

*
Canyon de Chelly National Monument Canyon de Chelly National Monument ( ) was established on April 1, 1931, as a unit of the National Park Service. Located in northeastern Arizona, it is within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation and lies in the Four Corners region. Reflecting on ...
*
Mesa Verde National Park Mesa Verde National Park is an American national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado. The park protects some of the best-preserved Ancestral Puebloan archaeological sites in the United States. Established ...
*
Oasisamerica cultures Oasisamerica is a term that was coined by Paul Kirchhoff (who also coined "Mesoamerica") and published in a 1954 article, and is used by some scholars, primarily Mexican anthropologists, for the broad cultural area defining pre-Columbian so ...


References


Related Readings

#Doyel, David E. & Dean, Jeffrey S. "Environmental Change and Human Adaptation in the Ancient American Southwest". The University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City. 1996 #Ferguson W.M. & Rohn A.H. "Anasazi Ruins of the Southwest in Color". The University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. 1999 #Noble, David Grant. "Houses Beneath the Rock: The Anasazi of Canyon de Chelly and Navajo National Monument". Ancient City Press, Santa Fe, New Mexico. 1986 #Plog, Stephen. "Ancient Peoples of the American Southwest". Thames & Hudson Inc., 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10110. 1997 #Rothman, Hal. "Navajo National Monument: A Place and Its People". Southwest Cultural Resources Center. Santa Fe, New Mexico. Professional Papers No. 40, 1991


External links


NPS: official Navajo National Monument website


*
Inscription House Ruin, Nitsie Canyon Arizona
includes a color photo of the ruins.


American Southwest, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary


by
Ned Scott Ned Scott (April 16, 1907 – November 24, 1964) was an American photographer who worked in the Hollywood film industry as a still photographer from 1935–1948. As a member of the Camera Club of New York from 1930–34, he was heavily influ ...
{{authority control National Park Service National Monuments in Arizona Cliff dwellings Ancient Puebloan archaeological sites in Arizona Museums in Navajo County, Arizona Native American museums in Arizona Archaeological museums in Arizona Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona National Register of Historic Places in Coconino County, Arizona Geography of the Navajo Nation Native American history of Arizona Oasisamerica cultures Pre-Columbian cultural areas 1909 establishments in Arizona Territory Protected areas established in 1909 Protected areas of Coconino County, Arizona Protected areas of Navajo County, Arizona Ruins in the United States Historic American Buildings Survey in Arizona 13th century in North America 13th-century architecture