Cliff Palace

The Cliff Palace in 2006

Cliff Palace in 2003

The Cliff Palace is the largest cliff dwelling in North America. The structure built by the Ancient Pueblo Peoples is located in Mesa Verde National Park in their former homeland region. The cliff dwelling and park are in the southwestern corner of Colorado, in the Southwestern United States.

History

Tree ring dating indicates that construction and refurbishing of Cliff Palace was continuous from c. 1190 CE through c. 1260 CE, although the major portion of the building was done within a twenty-year time span. Cliff Palace was abandoned by 1300, and while debate remains as to the causes of this, some believe a series of megadroughts interrupting food production systems is the main cause.^[1][2]

Description

Cliff Palace

The Cliff Palace was constructed primarily out of sandstone, mortar and wooden beams. The sandstone was shaped using harder stones, and a mortar of soil, water and ash was used to hold everything together. "Chinking" stones were placed within the mortar to fill gaps and provide stability. Many of the walls were decorated with colored earthen plasters, which were the first to erode over time.^{[citation needed]} Many visitors wonder about the relatively small size of the doorways at Cliff Palace; the explanation being that at the time the average man was under 5' 6", while the average women was closer to 5'.^{[citation needed]} The Cliff Palace contains 23 kivas (round sunken rooms of ceremonial importance), and 150 rooms and had a population of appropriately 100 people. One kiva, in the center of the ruin, is at a point where the entire structure is partitioned by a series of walls with no doorways or other access portals. The walls of this kiva were plastered with one color on one side and a different color on the opposing side.^[3] It is estimated that around 100 people inhabited Cliff Palace during its time of use. "It is thought that Cliff Palace was a social, administrative site with high ceremonial usage". ^[4] Archaeologists believe that the Cliff Palace contained more clans than the surrounding Mesa Verde communities.

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  Cliff Palace Dwellings

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  Cliff Palace in 1891

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  Round tower, Cliff Palace in 1941.
  Photograph by Ansel Adams.

Square Tower House

The large square tower, known as Square Tower House, is to the right and almost reaches the cave "roof." It was in ruins by the 1800s. The National Park Service carefully restored it to its approximate height and stature, making it one of the most memorable buildings in the Cliff Palace. Slightly different-colored materials were used to show it was a restoration.^[5]

References

1. ^ Turney, Chris (2008). Ice, Mud & Blood: Lessons of Climates Past.
2. ^ People, NPS.gov, Accessed November 11, 2010
3. ^ Cliff Palace, NPS.gov, Accessed November 11, 2010
4. ^ Cliff Palace, NPS.gov, Accessed March 14, 2011
5. ^ Preservation, NPS.gov, Accessed November 11, 2010

Bibliography

North America portal

• Chapen, Frederick H. The Land of the Cliff-Dwellers. Appalachian Mountain Club, W. B. Clarke and Co., Boston, 1892. Reprinted by the University of Arizona Press, with notes and forward by Robert H. Lister, 1988. ISBN 0-8165-1052-0.
• Noble, David Grant. "Ancient Ruins of the Southwest", pp. 36–43. Northland Publishing, Flagstaff, Arizona 1995. ISBN 0-87358-530-5.
• Oppelt, Norman T. "Guide to Prehistoric Ruins of the Southwest", pp. 159–161. Pruett Publishing, Boulder, Colorado, 1989. ISBN 0-87108-783-9.
• Turney, Chris. "Ice, Mud & Blood: Lessons of Climates Past", 2008
• Mesa Verde National Park Website

External links

• National Park Service: official Cliff Palace website
• National Park Service: Mesa Verde National Park website

Coordinates: 37°10′00″N 108°28′22″W / 37.1666667°N 108.47278°W / 37.1666667; -108.47278