Chapter I: Part 1

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SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY
BULLETIN 50

PRELIMINARY REPORT ON A VISIT TO THE
NAVAHO NATIONAL MONUMENT
ARIZONA

BY

JESSE WALTER FEWKES

WASHINGTON
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
1911

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY,
_Washington, D. C., March 16, 1910_.

SIR: I have the honor to submit herewith, for publication, with your approval, as Bulletin 50 of this Bureau, the manuscript of a paper by Dr. Jesse Walter Fewkes, entitled “Preliminary Report on a Visit to the Navaho National Monument, Arizona.”

Yours, respectfully,

F. W. HODGE,
_Ethnologist in Charge_.

DR. CHARLES D. WALCOTT,
_Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution,
Washington, D. C._

CONTENTS

Page

Introduction 1

Routes to the Navaho National Monument 6

Route from Flagstaff to Marsh pass 6

Major antiquities 10

Ruin A 10

Cliff-house B 10

Swallows Nest 12

Betatakin 12

Kitsiel (Keet Seel) 16

Scaffold House 18

Cradle House 20

Ladder House 20

Forest-glen House 21

Pine-tree House 21

Trickling-spring House 21

Characteristic features of ruins 22

Minor antiquities 26

Pottery 27

Cliff-dwellers cradle 29

Miscellaneous objects 30

Summary and conclusions 30

Recommendations 35

ILLUSTRATIONS

PLATE 1. Kitsiel Frontispiece

2. Inscription House 1

3. Wukóki ruin at Black Falls 2

4. Ruin A, southwest of Marsh pass 4

5. Ruin B, at Marsh pass 7

6. View into Laguna canyon from Marsh pass 9

7. Swallows Nest 10

8. Betatakin—general view 13

9. Betatakin—western end 14

10. Ground plan of Betatakin 14

11. Betatakin—central part 17

12. Pictographs at Betatakin 18

13. Ground plan of Kitsiel (Keet Seel) ruin 21

14. Diagrams showing kiva roof construction 23

15. Pottery from Navaho National Monument 24

16. Pottery from Navaho National Monument 26

17. Pottery and stone implements from Navaho National
Monument 28

18. Pottery from Navaho National Monument 30

19. Cliff-dwellers cradle—front 32

20. Cliff-dwellers cradle—rear 32

21. Cliff-dwellers cradle—side 32

22. Sketch map of the Navaho National Monument 34

FIGURE 1. Scaffold of Scaffold House 18

2. Ground plan of Trickling-spring House 22

3. Design on cliff-dwellers cradle 29

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 2

INSCRIPTION HOUSE

(From a photograph by William B. Douglass.)]

PRELIMINARY REPORT ON A VISIT TO THE NAVAHO NATIONAL MONUMENT, ARIZONA

By JESSE WALTER FEWKES

INTRODUCTION

On the completion of the work of excavation and repair of Cliff Palace, in the Mesa Verde National Park, in southern Colorado, in charge of the writer, under the Secretary of the Interior, he was instructed by Mr. W. H. Holmes, then Chief of the Bureau of American Ethnology, to make an archeologic reconnaissance of the northern part of Arizona, where a tract of land containing important prehistoric ruins had been reserved by the President under the name Navaho National Monument. In the following pages are considered some of the results of that trip, a more detailed account of the ruins being deferred to a future report, after a more extended examination shall have been made.[1] Mention is made of a few objects collected, and recommendations are submitted for future excavation and repair work on these remarkable ruins to preserve them for examination by students and tourists. As will appear later, a scientific study of them is important, for they are connected with Hopi pueblos still inhabited, in which are preserved traditions concerning the ruins and their ancient inhabitants.

The present population of Walpi, a Hopi pueblo, is made up of descendants of various clans, whose ancestors once lived in distant villages, now ruins, situated in various directions from its site on the East mesa. One of the problems before the student of the Pueblos is to locate accurately the ancestral villages where these clans lived in prehistoric times. From an examination of the architecture of these villages and a study of the character of secular and cult objects found in them, the culture of the clans that inhabited these dwellings could be roughly determined. The culture at any epoch in the history of the clan being known, data are available that may make possible comparison and correlation with that which is still more ancient: in other words, that may add a chapter to our knowledge of the migrations of the Hopi Indians in prehistoric times.

The writer has already identified some of the ancient houses of those Hopi clans that claim to have dwelt formerly south of Walpi, on the Little Colorado near Winslow, but has not investigated the ruins to the north, in which once lived the Snake, Horn, and Flute clans. An investigation of the origin and migrations of this contingent is instructive because it is claimed that these clans were among the first to arrive at Walpi, or that they united with the previously existing Bear clan, forming the nucleus of the population of that pueblo.

A preliminary step in the investigation of the culture of the clans that played a most important part in founding Walpi and giving rise to the Hopi people would be the identification of the houses (now ruins) of the Snake, Horn, and Flute clans, the existence of which in the region north of Walpi is known with a greater or less degree of certainty from Hopi legends. An archeologic study of these ruins and of cult objects found in them would reveal some of the prehistoric features of the culture of the ancient Snake clans. “The ancient home of my ancestors,” said the old Snake chief to the writer, “was called Tokónabi,[2] which is situated not far from Navaho mountain. If you go there, you will find ruins of their former houses.” In previous years the writer had often looked with longing eyes to the mountains that formed the Hopi horizon on the north where these mysterious homes of the Snake and Flute clans were said to be situated, but had never been able to explore them. In 1909 the opportunity came to visit this region, and while some of the ruins found may not be identifiable with Tokónabi, they were abodes of people almost identical in culture with the ancient Snake, Horn, and Flute clans of the Hopi.

References to the northern ruins occur frequently in Hopi legends of the Snake and Flute clans, and even accounts of the great natural bridges lately seen for the first time by white people were given years ago by Hopi familiar with legends of these families. The writer heard the Hopi tell of their former homes among the “high rocks” in the north and at Navaho mountain, fifteen years ago, at which time they offered to guide him to them. The stories of the great cave ruins to the north were heard even earlier from the lips of the Hopi priests by another observer. Mr. A. M. Stephen, the pioneer in Hopi studies, informed the writer that he had learned of great ruins in the north as far back as 1885, and Mr. Cosmos Mindeleff, aided by Mr. Stephen, published the names of the clans which, according to the Hopi, inhabited them.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 3

_a._ FROM THE SOUTH

_b._ FROM THE NORTH

WUKÓKI RUIN AT BLACK FALLS]

Victor Mindeleff[3] summarizes the Hopi traditions concerning Tokónabi still preserved by the Horn and Flute clans of Walpi:

The Horn people, to which the Lenbaki [Flute] belonged, have a legend of coming from a mountain range in the east.

Its peaks were always snow covered, and the trees were always green. From the hillside the plains were seen, over which roamed the deer, the antelope, and the bison, feeding on never-failing grasses. [Possibly the Horn people were so called from an ancient home where horned animals abounded.] Twining through these plains were streams of bright water, beautiful to look upon. A place where none but those who were of our people ever gained access.

This description suggests some region of the headwaters of the Rio Grande. Like the Snake people, they tell of a protracted migration, not of continuous travel, for they remained for many seasons in one place, where they would plant and build permanent houses. One of these halting places is described as a canyon with high, steep walls, in which was a flowing stream; this, it is said, was the Tségi (the Navajo name for Canyon de Chelly).[4] Here they built a large house in a cavernous recess, high up in the canyon wall. They tell of devoting two years to ladder making and cutting and pecking shallow holes up the steep rocky side by which to mount to the cavern, and three years more were employed in building the house....

The legend goes on to tell that after they had lived there for a long time a stranger happened to stray in their vicinity, who proved to be a Hopituh [Hopi], and said that he lived in the south. After some stay he left and was accompanied by a party of the “Horn” [clan], who were to visit the land occupied by their kindred Hopituh and return with an account of them; but they never came back. After waiting a long time another band was sent, who returned and said that the first emissaries had found wives and had built houses on the brink of a beautiful canyon, not far from the other Hopituh dwellings. After this many of the Horns grew dissatisfied with their cavern home, dissensions arose, they left their home and finally they reached Tusayan.

The early legends of the Snake clans tell how bags containing their ancestors were dropped from a rainbow in the neighborhood of Navaho mountain. They recount how they built a pentagonal home and how one of their young men married a Snake girl who gave birth to reptiles, which bit the children and compelled the people to migrate. They left their canyon homes and went southward, building houses at the stopping-places all the way from Navaho mountain to Walpi. Some of these houses, probably referring to their _kivas_ and _kihus_, legends declare, were round[5] and others square.

Some of the ruins here mentioned have been known to white men for many years. There is evidence that they have been repeatedly visited by soldiers, prospectors, and relic hunters. The earliest white visitor of whom there is any record was Lieutenant Bell, of the 2d (?) Infantry, U. S. A.,[6] whose name, with the date 1859, is still to be seen cut on a stone in a wall of ruin A.

A few years ago information was obtained from Navaho by Richard and John Wetherill of the existence of some of the large cliff-houses on Laguna creek and its branches; the latter has guided several parties to them. Among other visitors in 1909 may be mentioned Dr. Edgar L. Hewett, director of the School of American Archæology of the Archæological Institute of America. A party[7] from the University of Utah, under direction of Prof. Byron Cummings, has dug extensively in the ruins and obtained a considerable collection.

The sites of several ruins in the Navaho National Monument,[8] which was created on his recommendation, have been indicated by Mr. William B. Douglass, United States Examiner of Surveys, General Land Office, on a map accompanying the President’s proclamation, and also on a recent map issued by the General Land Office. Although his report has not yet been published, he has collected considerable data, including photographs of Betatakin, Kitsiel (Keetseel), and the ruin called Inscription House, situated in the Nitsi (Neetsee) canyon. While Mr. Douglass does not claim to be the discoverer of these ruins, credit is due him for directing the attention of the Interior Department to the antiquities of this region and the desirability of preserving them.

The two ruins[9] in Nitsi (Neetsee),[10] West canyon, are not yet included in the Navaho Monument, but according to Mr. Douglass these are large ones, being 300 and 350 feet long, respectively,[11] and promise a rich field for investigation. That these ruins will yield large collections is indicated by the fact that the several specimens of minor antiquities in a collection presented to the Smithsonian Institution by Mr. Janus, the best of which are here figured (pls. 15-18), came from this neighborhood, possibly from one of these ruins.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 4

_a._ INTERIOR

_b._ EXTERIOR

RUIN A, SOUTHWEST OF MARSH PASS]

The ruins in West canyon (pl. 2) are particularly interesting from the fact that the walls of some of the rooms are built of elongated cylinders of clay shaped like a Vienna loaf of bread. These “bricks” consist of a bundle of twigs enveloped in red clay, which forms a superficial covering, the “brick” being flattened on two faces. These unusual adobes were laid like bricks, and so tenaciously were they held together by clay mortar that in one instance the corner of a room, on account of undermining, had fallen as a single mass. The use of straw-strengthened adobe blocks is unknown in the construction of other cliff-houses, although the author’s investigations at Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde National Park revealed the use of cubical clay blocks not having the central core of twigs or sticks, and true adobes are found in the Chelly canyon and at Awatobi. The ruins in West canyon can be visited from either Bekishibito or Shanto, the approach from both of these places being not difficult. There is good drinking water in West canyon, where may be found also small areas of pasturage owned by a few Navaho who inhabit this region. The trail by which one descends from the rim of West canyon to the valley is steep and difficult.

One of the most interesting discoveries in West canyon is the grove of peach trees in the valley a short distance from the canyon wall. The existence of these trees indicates Spanish influence. Peach trees were introduced into the Hopi country and the Canyon de Chelly in historic times either by Spanish priests or by refugees from the Rio Grande pueblos. They were observed in the Chelly canyon by Simpson in 1850.

The geographical position of these ruins in relation to Navaho mountain[12] leads the writer to believe that they might have been built by the Snake clans in their migration south and west from Tokónabi to Wukóki, but he has not yet been able to identify them by Hopi traditions.

But little has appeared in print on the ruins near Marsh pass. In former times an old government road, now seldom used, ran through Marsh pass, and those who traveled over it had a good view of some of these ruins. Situated far from civilization, this region has attracted but slight attention, although it is one of the most important, archeologically speaking, in our Southwest. Much of this part of Arizona is covered with ruins, some of which, as “Tecolote,”[13] are indicated on the United States Engineers’ map of 1877. In his excellent article[14] on this region Dr. T. Mitchell Prudden gives us no description of the interesting cliff-dwellings in or near Marsh pass, though he writes of the ruins in the neighboring canyon: “There are numerous small valley sites, several cliff houses, and a few pictographs in the canyon of the Towanache,[15] which enters Marsh pass from the northwest.” As indicated on his map, Doctor Prudden’s route did not pass the large ruins west and south of this canyon or those on the road to Red Lake and Tuba.

Manifestly, the purpose of a national monument is the preservation of important objects contained therein, and a primary object of archeological work should be to attract to it as many visitors and students as possible. As the country in which the Navaho National Monument is situated is one of the least known parts of Arizona, first place will be given to a brief account of one of the routes by which the important ruins included in the reserve may be reached.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] The author’s first visit to these ruins was made in September, 1909, and he returned to the work in the following May. A few notes made on the latter trip on ruins not observed during the former are incorporated in this report.

[2] The exact situation of Tokónabi has never been identified by archeologists. Ruins are called by the Navaho _nasazi bogondi_, “houses of the _nasazi_.” The name Tokónabi may be derived from Navaho _to_, “water;” _ko_, contraction of _bokho_, “canyon;” and the Hopi locative _obi_, “place of.” The derivation from Navaho _boko_, “coal oil,” is rejected, since it is very modern.

[3] See A Study of Pueblo Architecture, Tusayan and Cibola, in _Eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology_. The legend was obtained by Mr. A. M. Stephen.

[4] Evidently a mistake in identification of localities. Although the Navaho name _Tségi_ has persisted as the designation of Canyon de Chelly, Arizona, there is little doubt that when the Hopi gave to Stephen the tradition of their former life in “Tségi,” they did not refer, as he interpreted the narration, to what is now called Canyon de Chelly, but to Laguna canyon, likewise bordered by high cliffs, which the Navaho also designate _Tségi_. The designation Canyon de Chelly was used by Simpson in 1850 (Sen. Ex. Doc. no. 64, 31st Cong., 1st sess.), who wrote (p. 69, footnote): “The orthography of this word I got from Señor Donaciano Vigil, secretary of the province, who informs me that it is of Indian origin. Its pronunciation is chay-e.”—J. W. F.

[5] The circular type disappeared before they arrived in the valley below Walpi. Legends declare that the original Snake kivas were circular, and there are references, in legends of clans other than those that formerly lived in the north, to circular kivas formerly used by the Hopi.

[6] Probably Lieut. William Hemphill Bell, of the Third Infantry, United States Army.

[7] Since the writer’s return to Washington this party has spent several months at Betatakin.

[8] Mr. Douglass has furnished the writer the following data from his report regarding the positions of the most important ruins in the Navaho National Monument:

LATITUDE LONGITUDE
Kitsiel, 36° 45’ 33” north. 110° 31’ 40” west.
Betatakin, 36° 40’ 57” north. 110° 34’ 01” west.
Inscription House, 36° 40’ 14” north. 110° 51’ 32” west.

[9] One of these is designated Inscription House on Mr. Douglass’s map (pl. 22).

[10] According to one Navaho the meaning of this word is “antelope drive,” referring to the resemblance of the canyon to such a structure.

[11] For photographs of Kitsiel (pl. 1) and of Inscription House (here pl. 2), published by courtesy in advance of Mr. Douglass’s report, the writer is indebted to the General Land Office. Acknowledgment is made to the same office for ground plans of Kitsiel and Betatakin, which were taken from Mr. Douglass’s report.

[12] Hopi legends ascribe the former home of the Snake clan to the vicinity of this mountain.

[13] The Mexican Spanish name for the ground-owl, from Nahuatl _tecolotl_.

[14] In _American Anthropologist_, N. S., V, no. 2, 1903.

[15] The word _bokho_ (“canyon”) is applied by the Navaho to this canyon; _tségi_ (“high rocks”) is used to designate the cliffs that hem it in.

ROUTES TO THE NAVAHO NATIONAL MONUMENT

Three routes to the Monument have been used by visitors, namely: (1) that from Bluff, Utah, by way of Oljato or Moonwater canyon; (2) that from Gallup, New Mexico, via the Chin Lee valley, and (3) that from Flagstaff, via Tuba and the Moenkopi wash. The disadvantages of the first route, that used by most visitors, are the isolation of Bluff from railroads, the treacherous character of the San Juan river, which must be crossed, and the rugged country near Marsh pass. From the Gallup road it would be possible to go through the Canyon de Chelly in full view of many of its greatest cliff-dwellings, and while facilities for outfitting and purchasing supplies along the route are not of the best, this route has its advantages.

ROUTE FROM FLAGSTAFF TO MARSH PASS

The writer outfitted at Flagstaff, Arizona, and, following the “Tuba road,” forded the Little Colorado at Tanners crossing, and continued on to Tuba, a Navaho Indian agency situated near the Moenkopi wash, where there is a trading place at which provisions can be had. The road from Flagstaff to Tuba is well traveled, its sole drawback being the ford of the river, the bottom of which at times is treacherous. Immediately after leaving Flagstaff this route passes through a pine forest, which offers many attractive camping places and where water can always be obtained. For the greater part of the distance Sunset and O’Leary peaks are in full view and the beautiful San Francisco mountains are likewise conspicuous. After crossing Deadmans flat the road descends to Indian Tanks, situated near the lower limit of the cedar trees; here is a fairly good camping place where water is generally available. From this camp to Halfway House[16] one crosses a semiarid desert, where wood and water are hard to find.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 5

RUIN B AT MARSH PASS]

One of the most interesting landmarks visible from the road, after leaving Indian Tanks, is called Superstition mountain, an elevation situated to the north. According to Navaho stories, phantom fires are sometimes seen on this mountain on dark nights, recalling an incident, mentioned in the Snake legend, which occurred when the Snake clans came south in their early migration from Tokónabi. This legend states that all this land once belonged to their Fire God, Masauû, who was likewise god of the surface of the earth. Lights moving around the mesas are said to have been seen by these ancient inhabitants much as they are now ascribed to Superstition mountain.

The traveler over the recent lava beds and cinder plains in the neighborhood of the San Francisco mountains can readily accept the statement that the early Hopi saw flames issuing from the earth or the glow of hot lava, which gave substance to the legend still preserved among this people. It was so natural for them to regard such a country as the property of their Fire God that their legends state they inherited the land from him.

The legends of the Snake clans recount also that when their ancestors migrated from Tokónabi they went south and west until they reached the Little Colorado river, where they built many houses of stone. They remained there several years, but later left these houses and continued in an easterly direction to Walpi. Where are the ruins of these ancient houses of the Snake clans on the Little Colorado? There are several Little Colorado ruins, as Homolobi near Winslow, but Hopi traditions affirm these were built by people who came from the south. Lower down the river at the Great Falls are other ruins, but these likewise are ascribed to southern clans. The cluster of stone buildings near the Black Falls conforms in position and direction from Walpi to Hopi legends of the site of Wukóki, the Great Houses built by Snake clans before they went to Walpi. In their migration from Tokónabi, probably the Snake people tarried here and built houses, and then went on to the Bear settlements or the Hopi pueblos, where their descendants now live. More extensive archeologic work on these ruins may shed additional light on this identification, and it is interesting to compare in point of architecture the buildings at Black Falls[17] with those of extreme northern Arizona.

An obscure trail branches from the Tuba road to the Black Falls ruins just beyond the cedars below Indian Tanks, and the black walls of the so-called “citadel” of this cluster are conspicuous for a considerable distance before one leaves the main road. The ruin here figured is some distance beyond the “citadel” and is hidden from view by intervening hills and mesas, but from the time the traveler crosses the valley of the Little Colorado and goes down into the Moenkopi wash he follows approximately the old trail the Snake people took in their southerly migration from Tokónabi.

Near Tanners crossing on the left bank, a short distance down the river, Mr. Janus[18] has cemented a small basin above the highest level of the flood, into which always flows pure water. The road from the river to Moenkopi wash passes through a region where there is very little wood for camping and no water. The distance from Flagstaff to Tuba, about 90 miles, may be traveled in two days by taking the midday meal of the first day at Indian Tanks and camping the first night at Halfway House, where there is water for horses.

The pueblo settlement of Moenkopi (“place of the running water”), which lies not far from Tuba, will give the visitor a fair idea of a small Hopi pueblo. This settlement is said to be comparatively modern and to have been made by colonists from Oraibi, but there are reasons to believe that it dates back to the middle of the eighteenth century. The pueblo is inhabited mainly by Pakab (Reed) clans, a people of late advent in the Hopi country, whose arrival therein was subsequent, at all events, to that of the Snake clans. The houses of Moenkopi are arranged in rows, and it has one ceremonial room, or kiva, not unlike the kivas of Walpi. None of the great nine-days ceremonies of the Hopi is performed at Moenkopi; such dances as exist, called _katcinas_, are conducted by masked participants. Possibly the presence of Pakab clans in this pueblo is accounted for by need of warriors in its exposed position, for the chief of the Hopi Warrior society (at Walpi) belongs to the Pakab clan. The ruins about Moenkopi are small and inconspicuous, but those between this pueblo and Oraibi are of considerable size.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 6

VIEW INTO LAGUNA CANYON FROM MARSH PASS]

Beyond Tuba the road is rough, running over upturned strata of rocks and extending along sandy stretches of plain and hills to Red Lake, where there is an Indian trading store owned by well-known merchants of Flagstaff.[19] Here also provisions may be obtained for the trip and abundant water for stock. The road now becomes more difficult. Just after leaving Red Lake there may be noticed to the left two great pinnacles of rock called Elephant Legs, not unlike those in Monument canyon, Utah, and far to the north the cliffs are fantastically eroded. The White Mesa natural bridge, visible from Red Lake, is one of the scenic features of this locality. There are prehistoric burials in the sands near Red Lake, from which have been obtained several beautiful specimens of pottery resembling in the main those from the Navaho National Monument and from the Black Falls ruins.

The road continues from Red Lake to Bekishibito (Cow Spring),[20] where the water issues from under a low cliff, spreading in the wet season over the adjacent plain and forming a shallow lake several miles long, whose bottom is somewhat dangerous on account of quicksands. When there is water a rich mantle of grass—a boon to travelers in this dusty land—covers the plain, making an attractive camping place. This stretch of the road, not more than 20 miles in length, is fairly good and easily traversed by wagons.

After leaving Bekishibito, the road to Marsh pass, although on the whole not bad, becomes more and more obscure. The traveler now enters the region of ruins, and passes several mounds indicating former habitations, some of which still have standing walls. Several pools of water, reduced to little more than mudholes, are found along the road, but a constant supply of potable water is found at the sand hills in the Black mesa opposite the butte called by the Navaho Saunee, 30 to 40 miles distant from Cow Spring. The distance from Red Lake to this camp is a good day’s journey with a heavily loaded buckboard, noon camp being made at Bekishibito. From Saunee one can easily reach Marsh pass in another day, making in all five “sleeps” from Flagstaff to Marsh pass. The only serious difficulties on the route are encountered as one ascends the pass, but a few weeks’ work here would make the whole road from Tuba to Marsh pass as good as that from Flagstaff to Tuba, which is considered one of the best in this part of Arizona.

A large ruin with high walls is visible on a promontory of the Sethlagini plateau westward from this camp. This ruin, as well as another near the road, about halfway from the sand hills to Bekishibito, was not studied; the latter, which lies only a short distance from the road, on a low rocky hill, was visited and found to be the remains of a small pueblo, more or less dilapidated but with standing walls. The fragments of pottery in this vicinity are not unlike those found at the Black Falls ruins, and the masonry of the ruin is almost identical in character. At the time of the writer’s visit there was a pool of water, not very inviting even to horses, a few hundred feet from this ancient habitation. Numerous sheep pasturing in the neighborhood befoul this pool, so that it can not be depended on to supply the needs of either men or horses. The road (plate 2) follows the valley west of the great Sethlagini mesa, over a hill and finally down again to a Navaho cornfield, the owner of which served as a guide to the large ruin A.

FOOTNOTES:

[16] A two-room stone house erected by the Indian Bureau for use of employes.

[17] For plates representing ruins at Black Falls, see _Twenty-second Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology_. Plate 3 (hitherto unpublished) of the present report represents one of the characteristic Black Falls ruins, which closely resembles several of the characteristic ruins standing on low hills near the road to Marsh pass, beyond Red Lake.

The architecture of the ruins on the Little Colorado near Black Falls resembles that of the open ruins, especially Ruin A, and those near the road from Bekishibito to Marsh pass. While great weight can not be given to this resemblance, since we find much uniformity in stone ruins everywhere in the Southwest, it is interesting to take in connection with this fact the close likeness in minor objects from the Laguna Creek ruins and the Black Falls cluster. The prevailing ware from both is the gray pottery with black geometrical ornamentation and red ware with black or brown decoration. The red ware and the yellow ware, so abundant higher up the river, are not the prevailing kinds. The pottery of the Black Falls ruins is essentially the same type as that of the San Juan and its tributaries.

[18] Mr. Stephen Janus, agent of the Northwestern Navaho, to whom the author is indebted for many kindnesses, joined him at Tuba and made the trip to Marsh pass and the neighboring ruins with his party.

[19] The presence of excellent traders’ stores at Tuba and Red Lake renders it unnecessary to carry groceries or fodder from Flagstaff.

[20] Spanish: _vaca_, “cow”; Navaho: _shi_, “her”; _to_, “water”.

MAJOR ANTIQUITIES

RUIN A

The first ruin of considerable size that was visited is situated to the left of and somewhat distant from the road, a few miles west and south of Marsh pass. As this ruin (pl. 4)[21] stands on an elevation, it is visible for a considerable distance across the valley, especially to one approaching it from the southwest. The standing walls rise in places to a height of 10 feet, showing indications of two stories, some of the rafters in places still projecting beyond the face of the wall. The two walls highest and most prominent are parallel, inclosing a long room or court; in one place a break has been made through these walls, as appears in the illustration. The remnants or foundations of other walls back of these show that ruin A was formerly very much larger than the walls now standing would indicate.

The walls are composed of roughly laid masonry, bearing evidences on the inside of adobe plastering. An exceptional feature is the large number of the component stones decorated on their outer faces with deeply incised geometrical figures, apparently traced with some pointed implement.[22]

Comparison of the architecture of this ruin with that of the Black Falls ruin here figured (pl. 3) shows a resemblance which is more than superficial, in the elevated site, character of the masonry, and general ground plan; and comparison of its walls with those of Old Walpi shows a similar likeness, which is instructive so far as it goes. This is the only large ruin visited that is characterized by high standing walls on top of an eminence, but Navaho guides said they were familiar with others in this neighborhood similar in structure and situation.

Immediately after leaving this ruin the attention is drawn to the first of the large cliff-dwellings, cliff-house B, situated near Marsh pass. The contrast in color of the Cretaceous rocks on the right and the Triassic formations on the left side of the pass is noticeable for some distance. The great cliff-dwellings are found high up in the red sandstone on the left.

CLIFF-HOUSE B

This picturesque ruin occupies the whole floor of a narrow, low cave situated in an almost vertical cliff forming one side of a canyon which extends deep into the mountain; the entrance is between low hills on the left, where the road ascends to Marsh pass. The ruin can be seen for a long distance, but as one approaches the canyon in which it lies the site is hidden by foothills. The accompanying view (pl. 5) was taken from the opposite side of the canyon, it being impossible to get an extended detailed view of the ruin from above or below. Beyond the ruin the canyon forms a narrowing fissure with precipitous sides; its bed is covered with bushes, stunted trees, and fallen rocks. No flowing water was found in this canyon, but in the ledges near its mouth, below the ruins, there are pockets and potholes which contained considerable water at the time of the writer’s visit.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 7

SWALLOWS NEST]

This cliff-dwelling is difficult to enter, the walls of the canyon, both above and below and on the sides, being almost perpendicular. A pathway extending along the side of the cliff on the level of the cave approaches within 20 feet of the ruin; from its end to the first room of the ruin this trail is continued by a series of footholes pecked in the rock, making entrance hazardous at this point.[23] Although the walls of this cliff-dwelling are more or less destroyed and their foundations deeply buried, there still remains standing masonry of a square tower (?) reaching from the floor to the roof of the cave. One corner of this tower is completely broken out, but the remaining sides show that this building was three stories high, composed of rooms one above another.

Several other rooms lie concealed under fallen walls and débris. One of the most instructive of these is what may have been a _kiva_, or ceremonial room,[24] the location of its walls being indicated by stakes projecting out of the ground. Lower down, where the wall was better preserved, sticks or wickerwork were found interwoven in the uprights, the whole being plastered with adobe, a form of wall construction common in prehistoric ruins of Arizona.

In comparison with the Mesa Verde ruins, the masonry of this ruin is poor, but the stones used in constructing the walls are large. The many fragments of pottery strewn over the surface of the floor of the cave resemble in symbolism pottery from Black Falls, the same colors, black and white, predominating.[25]

In descending the declivity of the cliff in the sides of which cliff-house B is situated, there comes to view a cluster of broken walls crowning a low elevation, which indicate a former house of some size. In their neighborhood are the foundations of other walls, and the ground in the vicinity is strewn with many fragments of pottery and much fallen masonry half buried in débris. Farther down the hill, on the level of the road and extending parallel with it, are low ridges or mounds covered with pottery, indicating the former presence of a pueblo of considerable size. No walls were traced in these mounds, which seem to indicate the existence of an ancient cemetery, as several rings of small stones, suggesting graves, were found. A short distance beyond this supposed cemetery is a little cave, situated a few hundred feet to the left of the road. In this cave are a few walls, but the cliff-dwelling is not of great size; beyond it the road rises steeply to Marsh pass. (Pl. 6.)

Although some of the ruins in the Navaho Monument may be visited without the use of saddle horses, the largest can not now be approached with wagons. It would be possible at a small expense, however, so to improve the Indian trail up the canyon of Laguna creek that one could drive within a fraction of a mile of the great ruins, Betatakin and Kitsiel. At present, to reach these one must leave carriages at Marsh pass and descend with saddle horses to the bed of Laguna creek, which flows along the canyon, in the side branches of which are situated the greatest two cliff-dwellings of the region. One of these, Betatakin, is about six miles, the other, Kitsiel, about 10 miles, from Marsh pass.

SWALLOWS NEST

Descending to Laguna creek and following the bottom of the canyon, crossing and recrossing the stream several times, the first cliff-dwelling is seen built in a niche in the cliffs high up on the right. This ruin seems to fill the bottom of a symmetrically vaulted, open cave, the high arched roof and sides of which are so eroded that from one point of view the shadow cast by the ruin at certain times outlines the profile of a head and part of a human body, as seen in plate 7. Although a talus[26] extends from this ruin some distance down the cliff, rendering access difficult, the ruin was entered, but found to be in a poor state of preservation. Several of the walls, viewed from the road, appeared to be in good condition, and some of the rooms are more than one story high.

BETATAKIN

Following the canyon about five miles from Marsh pass, the writer’s party came to a fork in the canyon,[27] where a guide was found who led the way across the stream into a small side canyon, in the end of which lies Betatakin. This canyon is wooded and at the time of the writer’s visit contained plenty of water, a small stream issuing from almost under the walls and trickling down through the bushes over a mass of fallen rock which forms the talus. The climb to the ruin from the place where horses must be abandoned is not a hard one and a trail could easily be made; in fact a carriage road might be constructed at small expense from Marsh pass to within half a mile of this great ruin, one of the largest two and best preserved cliff-dwellings in the Navaho National Monument.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 8

BETATAKIN—GENERAL VIEW]

A feature of this ruin (plates 8-11) which attracts attention on entering it is the fine echo, due to the shape of the open cave in which it lies. Were the name not preempted, it would seem that Echo House would be a much more appropriate designation for the ruin than Betatakin, “High-ledges House,” applied to it by the Navaho.

Certain differences in architectural features between cliff-houses in the Mesa Verde region and those here considered are apparent. The caves in which the cliff-dwellings of the Navaho Monument region are situated differ in geological formation from those of the Mesa Verde National Park. While in the former there are many instances of horizontal cleavage planes, as a rule the falling of blocks of stone has left vertical flat faces. On this account the caves are shallow and high-vaulted rather than extending deep into the cliff. The process of formation of these vertical planes of cleavage is shown by examining plate 9; in this case a pinnacle of rock has begun to break away and is partially separated from the surface of the cliff. This pinnacle will ultimately topple over and fall as many have done before, leaving a broken stump at its former base. In this way, from time to time, in the past geological history of the cave, detached pinnacles and slabs of rock have broken away along these vertical planes of cleavage, leaving the tops of their broken bases later to become foundations for rooms. Similar flat vertical planes of cleavage are rare, almost unknown, in the Mesa Verde caves. Here the cleavage is horizontal, the caves extending deep into the cliffs.[28]

The modifications in architecture brought about by the difference in direction of these cleavage planes are apparent. The ancient builders in the Navaho Monument region utilized the vertical faces as supports for walls of rooms on one or more sides. In some cases the face of the cliff forms the rear walls; in others a side wall and the rear wall of a room are formed by vertical cleavage planes at right angles, as shown in plate 9. It can be seen that adjacent houses built upon fallen rocks of different heights, the vertical faces being utilized as rear walls, would seem to stand one above another, or, in other words, they would present the well-known terrace form which exists in some modern pueblos.

The writer approached this ruin by following the fallen débris at the end, where the rooms, being without covering and exposed to the elements, are most dilapidated. Over this fallen mass one makes his way with difficulty and is often in danger of falling from the cliff. On account of the perpendicular face of the cliff below the foundations of the other end of the ruin, it is impossible to climb into it, except from this side. On approaching the ruin there is to be seen on the vertical face of the cliff a pictograph (pl. 12) worthy of special mention, or rather two pictographs which are doubtless connected in meaning. The larger of these is a circle, painted white, resembling a shield (a common object in pictographic representation), the other a horned animal, perhaps a mountain sheep.[29] The figure on the shield, which bears evidence of former coloration, represents a human being with outstretched arms, the hands being raised to the level of the head. On each side of the body are represented two designs—a circle of yellow and a crescent in which are parallel bands of red, yellow, and probably green.

The rooms in this cliff-house are rectangular, cubical, or box-like structures built against the face of the cliff, which serves as their rear wall. There are no towers or round rooms such as those that lend picturesqueness to several of the Mesa Verde cliff-dwellings. Few of the rooms are more than two stories high, the appearance of terraced rooms being given by the varying heights of their foundations. The masonry is crude, the lines are irregular, and the external faces of the walls vertical. The interior wall was probably plastered, and some walls afford good evidence that their exterior was formerly covered with mud.

A marked feature of ruins in this region is the adobe walls supported by rows of stakes with interwoven sticks. No adobe bricks were seen in the walls examined.[30]

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 9

BETATAKIN—WESTERN END]

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 10
GROUND PLAN
OF THE
BETATA KIN
NAVAHO IND·RES·ARIZ·
BY
W·B·DOUGLASS
U·S·EXAMINER OF SURVEYS
·GENERAL LAND OFF·
]

One of the largest clusters of rooms in this cliff-house (Betatakin) stands on a huge rock foundation, the vertical face of which is continuous with the wall of masonry of the front building of the cluster. (Pl. 11.) The rear wall of the front room is formed by the vertical face of the cliff. About half of the roof of this room has gone, but several patches still remain even in the broken section. The rooms of the higher tier are set against an upright wall. The doorway is on one side. The shelf of rock on which this room stands is level with the roof of the first room and the cave wall forms its rear. This room was probably a ceremonial chamber, having a fire-hole in the floor, between which and the doorway is a low wall of masonry corresponding to the deflector, or altar, in Mesa Verde ruins.[31] The part of the floor on which one steps in entering this room is raised slightly above the remainder, serving to connect the base of the deflector with the doorsill. The deflector and fire-hole are practically duplicates of features common to several Cliff Palace kivas. At Betatakin, however, the ceremonial room is above ground, not subterranean, and is entered from the side instead of from the top.

A two-story room stands on the rock one tier higher than the ceremonial room just mentioned, its foundation being at the level of the roof of the ceremonial room, as shown in the illustration. The front wall of this room is more or less broken down, but on one side, where projecting rafters are found in place, the masonry, otherwise unbroken, is pierced by a small window. This room has also a door on the side. Several well-preserved rooms extend along a ledge of rock on the same level as the roofs of these buildings, forming another tier above the ceremonial room. One of these has a fine roof; ends of rafters extend from the walls.

Beyond the ceremonial room, on the side where the ruin is most dilapidated, may be noted the same arrangement of the rooms in tiers or terraces, brought about by the varying height of their foundations. Several walls in these rooms are in good condition, but the fronts of many are broken down. Here are found rows of sticks or supports projecting from the débris. The walls are almost invariably of stone; those supported by sticks are usually connecting walls. The roofs of some of these rooms are entire, but many are broken, although their rafters still remain in place.

The whole length of Betatakin is not far from 600 feet, following the foundations from one end to the other. There are not far from 100 rooms visible, and evidences of others covered with débris. The larger of the two rooms identified as ceremonial rooms on account of their deflectors, measures 10 by 7 feet and is about 5 feet high; the smaller is about 7 feet square. There are no vertical ventilators as in circular kivas, the smoke evidently finding egress through a small hole in the roof. The floor of one of these ceremonial rooms was cut in the solid rock.

As above mentioned, there are no circular rooms or towers in Betatakin, although one room has a rounded corner. Traces of the repair of doors and windows are evident, but none of these apertures are T-shaped.

One of the interesting features in Betatakin and several other ruins in this region consists in rows of eyelets cut in the rocky side of the cliff evidently for the attachment of some long object.

A cluster of small rooms isolated from those above described are shown in plate 9; these give a good idea of the general type of architecture of these buildings and of the modifications or adaptations due to the sites on which they are erected and the vertical cliffs against which they are built. Three rooms set into the angle formed by two vertical cliff faces at right angles to each other illustrate how the cliff serves for rear walls and how the buildings are attached to it for support. The roofs of these rooms are entire and their rafters project beyond the upright walls. The doors and windows are, comparatively speaking, small and rectangular in form. Fragments of walls projecting out of the ground indicate the existence of many rooms covered with débris. These are especially numerous at the end of the ruin to which the trail leads, but as most of them are buried an adequate idea of their arrangement can not be gained without systematic excavation.

KITSIEL (KEET SEEL)

This ruin, which lies about 10 miles from Marsh pass, is a most interesting cliff-dwelling.[32] As this is the best preserved of all the ruins thus far discovered in the Navaho National Monument, it should be excavated and repaired for future visitors and students. Kitsiel is a large ruin, its length (estimated at 300 feet) being not less than that of the greatest cliff-dwelling of the Mesa Verde National Park. Like other ruins in the vicinity, it is not so picturesque as the structures of that region, lacking round towers and other features so attractive in Cliff Palace.[33] The accompanying illustration (pl. 13) presents the ground plan of this ruin, the architectural features of which are similar to those of Betatakin.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 11

BETATAKIN—CENTRAL PART]

One of the most striking features of Kitsiel is the great log, 35 feet long, under which the visitor passes to inspect the interior of the ruin. West of this log, which evidently once supported a retaining wall, the rooms are well preserved; east of it this wall in places has slipped down the cliff and its component stones are to be found in the talus below.

It is difficult to discover how many rooms this great cliff-house formerly had, but there is little doubt that they numbered more than 150, besides the kivas. This ruin is believed to be one of the largest known cliff-dwellings of the Southwest, ranking in size the Cliff Palace in the Mesa Verde, which it does not rival, however, in variety of architectural features. The masonry in Kitsiel is inferior to that in the Spruce-tree House and the Balcony House, the walls of which show the highest aboriginal achievement in stonework north of Mexico.[34]

The walled inclosures of Kitsiel are reducible to a few types of which the following may be distinguished:

(1) Kivas, or circular subterranean rooms with a large banquette on one side, the walls being generally broken down and without pilasters or roof-supports.

(2) Kihus, or rectangular rooms with doors on one side, each having a low bank, or “deflector,” rising from the floor between the doorway and the fire-hole. Instead of this bank being free from the wall, as at Betatakin, it is generally joined to it on one side, the floor at the point of junction being raised slightly above the remaining level. Smoke-holes are sometimes, but not always, present in the roof. These rooms, like the circular rooms, are ceremonial in character. The only opening in their floors that can be compared with the ceremonial aperture, or _sipapû_, is a shallow depression a few inches deep. The diameters of these openings are greater than in the case of the sipapû in Cliff Palace kivas.

(3) Rectangular rooms, some of which have benches and show evidence of having been living rooms.

(4) Large rooms each with a fireplace in the middle of the floor.

(5) Rooms with metates set in bins made of stone slabs (milling rooms).

(6) Courts and streets. The longest street extends from the middle of the ruin to the western end and is lined on both sides by rooms many of the roofs of which are still intact.

An instructive architectural feature of some of the rooms of this ruin is the use of upright logs in supporting corners. Part of the roof of one of these rooms situated deep in the cave is formed by the natural rock and the remainder by an artificial covering supported by upright logs forked at the end to receive the rafters.

SCAFFOLD HOUSE

This ruin, about 2 miles from the place where two large canyons open into Laguna creek, lies in a cavern worn in the side of a large butte on the left of the stream. It is appropriately called Scaffold House from a finely made wooden scaffold (fig. 1) which the ancients constructed in a vertical cleft in the cliff about 50 feet above the east end of the ruin. Although this scaffold is now inaccessible from the walls of the room below, all the beams and much of the earthen floor still remain.

The construction of the scaffold is as follows: The crevice in which it lies is rectangular, with the longest axis vertical. Several large logs placed horizontally, their ends fitted into holes pecked in the sides of the crevice, support smaller beams laid across them at right angles. These latter in turn are covered with small sticks on which are laid bark and clay, leaving a hatchway at a point about midway. The construction of this scaffold, probably as daring a piece of aerial building as can be found anywhere among cliff-dwellings, is so well preserved that it shows no sign of deterioration. We can only conjecture what its use may have been, but the plausible suggestion has been made that it was an outlook or place of defense.

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 50 PLATE 12

PICTOGRAPHS AT BETATAKIN]