In the summer of 1909 the writer was detailed by the
Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, at the request of the
Secretary of the Interior, to continue the excavation and repair of
ruins in the Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado. This work was placed
under his sole charge and continued through the months May to August,
inclusive. In that time the writer was able to repair completely this
great ruin and to leave it in such condition that tourists and students
visiting it may learn much more about cliff-dwellings than was possible
before the work was undertaken.
The force of laborers, numbering on an average 15
workmen, was from Mancos, Colorado. Many of them had worked on
Spruce-tree House during the previous year and had become expert in
repairing ruins. By their aid it was possible to accomplish more and at
less expense than was expected. It has fallen to the writer to prepare
the report on the work which he had the honor to direct, and he is
conscious how difficult it is to put it into a form that will adequately
express the devotion with which those under him have accomplished their
respective tasks.
A report on the general results accomplished at Cliff
Palace was published by the Secretary of the Interior in 1909; the
following account considers in a more detailed way the various
scientific phases. The purpose of the present paper is to present a more
accurate account of Cliff Palace than was possible before the
excavation and repair work was done, and to increase existing knowledge
by directing attention to the scientific data revealed by excavations
of this largest, most picturesque, and most typical cliff-dwelling in
the Southwest. In order to give this account a monographic form there
have been introduced the most important descriptions of Cliff Palace
previously published. There is also included a description of the few
minor antiquities brought to light in the progress of the work. These
specimens are now in the United States National Museum, where they form
the nucleus of a collection from Cliff Palace. The increasing interest,
local and national, in the prehistoric culture of the Southwest and the
influence of these antiquities in attracting visitors to localities
where they exist, furnish a reason for considering in some detail
various other questions of general interest connected with
cliff-dwellings that naturally suggest themselves to those interested in
the history of man in America.
The method of work in this undertaking has been
outlined in the report on Spruce-tree House published by the Secretary
of the Interior.a The primary thought has been to increase the
educational value of Cliff Palace by attracting tourists and students of
archeology.
aIn his Annual Report for 1908. See also
Bulletin 41 of the Bureau of American Ethnology.
The reader is reminded that from the nature of the
work at Cliff Palace very few specimens can be expected from it in the
future, and that so far as the minor antiquities are concerned the
objective material from this ruin is now all deposited in public
museums or in private collections. Additional specimens can be
obtained, however, from other ruins near it which will throw light on
the culture of Cliff Palace. It is appropriate, therefore, to point out,
at the very threshold of our consideration, that a continuation of
archeological work in the Mesa Verde National Park is desirable, as it
will add to our knowledge of the character of prehistoric life in these
canyons. The next work to be undertaken should be the excavation and
repair of a Mesa Verde pueblo. The extensive mounds of stone and earth
on the promontory west of Cliff Palace have not yet been excavated, and
offer attractive possibilities for study and a promise of many
specimens. Buried in these mounds there are undoubtedly many rooms,
secular and ceremonial, which a season's work could uncover, thus
enlarging indirectly our knowledge of the cliff-dwellers and their
descendants.b
bA few holes that have been dug here and there
in these mounds have brought to light sections of walls with good
masonry, but no excavations that could be called extensive or scientific
have yet been attempted on this site. The excavation of these mounds
might reveal a pueblo like Walpi, and a comparison of objects from them
with those from Cliff Palace would be important in tracing the
relationship of cliff-dwellings and pueblos.
The writer considers it an honor to have been placed
in charge of the excavation and repair of Cliff Palace, and takes this
occasion to express high appreciation of his indebtedness to both the
Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and the Secretary of the
Interior for their confidence in his judgment in this difficult
undertaking.
Maj. Hans M. Randolph, superintendent of the Mesa
Verde National Park, gave assistance in purchasing the equipment, making
out accounts, and in other ways. During the sojourn at Cliff Palace the
writer was accompanied by Mr. R. G. Fuller, of the Peabody Museum of
Harvard University, a volunteer assistant, who contributed some of the
photographs used in the preparation of the plates that accompany this
report. The writer is indebted also to Mr. F. K. Vreeland, of Montclair,
New Jersey, for several fine photographs of Cliff Palace taken before
the repairing was done.
Plate 2. CLIFF PALACE, FROM THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE CANYON
|
Previous
Contents