The Honanki Heritage Site is a

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- ...

and

rock art In archaeology, rock arts are human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type al ...

site located in the

Coconino National Forest The Coconino National Forest is a 1.856-million acre (751,000 ha) United States National Forest located in northern Arizona in the vicinity of Flagstaff, with elevations ranging from 2,600 feet to the highest point in Arizona at 12,633 feet (H ...

, about west of

Sedona, Arizona Sedona ( ) is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino County, Arizona, Coconino and Yavapai County, Arizona, Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2010 United States Census, ...

. The

Sinagua The Sinagua were a pre-Columbian culture that occupied a large area in central Arizona from the Little Colorado River, near Flagstaff, Arizona, Flagstaff, to the Verde River, near Sedona, Arizona, Sedona, including the Verde Valley, area around ...

people of the

Ancestral Puebloans The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as Ancestral Pueblo peoples or the Basketmaker-Pueblo culture, were an ancient Native American culture of Pueblo peoples spanning the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southe ...

, and ancestors of the

Hopi people The Hopi are Native Americans who primarily live in northeastern Arizona. The majority are enrolled in the Hopi Tribe of Arizona and live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona; however, some Hopi people are enrolled in the Colorado ...

, lived here from about . The Palatki Heritage Site is nearby, also in the Coconino National Forest.

History

;Ancient peoples The Honanki and Palatki

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...

s were first studied by

Jesse Walter Fewkes Jesse Walter Fewkes (November 14, 1850 – May 31, 1930) was an American anthropologist, archaeologist, writer, and naturalist. Early life and education Fewkes was born in Newton, Massachusetts on November 14, 1850, and initially trained as a ...

of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

. He conducted test excavations at both sites in 1895 and in 1911, during his study of Hopi migration traditions. Fewkes named the site "Honanki," which means "Bear House" in the

Hopi language Hopi (Hopi: ) is a Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Hopi people (a Puebloan group) of northeastern Arizona, United States. The use of Hopi has gradually declined over the course of the 20th century. In 1990, it was estimated that more than ...

. Honanki was one of the largest prehistoric pueblos in the

Verde Valley The Verde Valley (; ) is a valley in central Arizona in the United States. The Verde River runs through it. The Verde River is one of Arizona's last free-flowing river systems. It provides crucial habitat for fish and wildlife, fresh water fo ...

. This period in Southern Sinagua prehistory is called the "Honanki Phase." Many of the cliff dwellings in the area west of Sedona were occupied during the Honanki Phase. The Sinagua occupation of Honanki was probably between 1130 and 1280 CE, based on a tree-ring date of 1271 (from a wooden beam in the ruin) and other archaeological evidence.Palatki and Honanki Ruins
, handout by US Forest Service. This article incorporates

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...

text from this and other

US government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, execut ...

documents. The rooms at the east end of Honanki were all destroyed in a large fire. Fire-marked stones were then reused to build new rooms. There were at least three phases of construction in the Honanki alcove.Honanki Heritage Site
at Verde Valley Archaeology Center

Pictograph A pictogram (also pictogramme, pictograph, or simply picto) is a graphical symbol that conveys meaning through its visual resemblance to a physical object. Pictograms are used in systems of writing and visual communication. A pictography is a wri ...

s are a key feature of the site. Some of them were present before the caves were inhabited, dating to 2000 BCE. However, most of the pictographs are additions from the Sinagua peoples dating between 900 and 1300 CE. ;Historic peoples Honanki was later inhabited by both

Yavapai The Yavapai ( ) are a Native American tribe in Arizona. Their Yavapai language belongs to the Upland Yuman branch of the proposed Hokan language family. Today Yavapai people are enrolled in the following federally recognized tribes: * Fort ...

and

Apache people The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan homelands in the north into th ...

. Pictographs dating between 1400 and 1875 CE can be attributed to these two groups.

References

External links

Honanki Heritage Site
at

. Includes directions to the site.
Honanki Ruins photo gallery
by

Honanki Ruins
at Hike Arizona

photo gallery {{Protected Areas of Arizona Parks in Yavapai County, Arizona Archaeological sites in Arizona Petroglyphs in Arizona Ancient Puebloan archaeological sites in Arizona Buildings and structures in Yavapai County, Arizona 12th century in North America Native American history of Arizona Coconino National Forest Sinagua

History

See also

References

External links