Rich in areas of geological interest, New Mexico is equally rich in
areas of archeological interest. Four of these are preserved as units of
the National Park System.
Chaco Canyon National Monument, in the northwestern part of the state,
contains more than a dozen large prehistoric ruins and hundreds of
smaller archeological sites. These ruins are considered to be without
equal north of central Mexico. No other archeological area in the
Southwest exhibits such a high development of prehistoric Pueblo
civilization. Most of the sites lie within a strip of land about eight
miles long and two miles wide, through which Chaco Canyon runs. Although
the Monument is relatively isolated, it is open year around and is
visited by about 22,000 people annually.
The most imposing and best known of the ruins is Pueblo Bonito. Built
between 800 and 900 years ago, this 4- and 5-story village covered more
than three acres and contained about 800 rooms and 32 kivas, or
ceremonial chambers. Archeologist Neil M. Judd, of the National Museum,
who conducted some of the late excavations, has said that Pueblo Bonito
was the largest apartment house built anywhere in the world prior to
1887, estimating that at one time it housed 1200 people.
Earliest of the Chaco sites, small villages of crude pit houses were
occupied during 600 to 800 A.D. Archeologists, studying changes in
masonry style, pottery types, and other remains, have pieced together
the development of the culture of the inhabitants of Chaco Canyon over a
period of six centuries.
After Chaco Canyon’s cultural high point was reached in the 1100’s, a
gradual decline set in. The population decreased, and in the 1200’s, the
region was abandoned. During this same century, other Pueblo centers
within the San Juan Basin were also deserted.
Various theories have been advanced to explain this exodus: soil
erosion, warlike enemies, poor facilities for urban sanitation, drought,
and intervillage warfare. One or a combination of these factors might
have been instrumental in bringing about the abandonment of the region.