The cliff houses considered in the preceding pages are habitations. There
are also specialized buildings on the Mesa Verde which were never
inhabited but were used for other purposes. Two of these are supposed to
have been devoted to religious purposes and are known as Sun Temple and
Fire Temple.
Sun Temple is situated west of Cliff Palace, across Cliff Canyon on a
high cliff at the entrance to Fewkes Canyon. Up to the year 1915 the site
of Sun Temple was a mound of earth and stones, all showing artificial
working or the pecking of primitive stone hammers. This mound had a
circular depression in the middle and its surface was covered with trees
and bushes. No high walls projected above the ground nor was there any
intimation of the size or character of the buried building. It was
believed to be a pueblo or communal habitation. Excavation of this mound
brought into view one of the most instructive buildings in the park.
Sun Temple is a type of ruin hitherto unknown in the park. The building
excavated shows the best masonry and is the most mysterious form yet
discovered in a region rich in so many prehistoric remains. Although at
first there was some doubt as to the use of this building, it was early
recognized that it was not constructed for habitation, and it is now
believed that it was intended for the performance of rites and
ceremonies; the first of its type devoted to religious purposes yet
recognized in the Southwest.
The ruin was purposely constructed in a commanding situation in the
neighborhood of large inhabited cliff houses. It sets somewhat back from
the edge of the canyon, but near enough to present a marked object from
all sides, especially the neighboring mesas. It must have presented an
imposing appearance rising on top of a point high above inaccessible,
perpendicular cliffs. No better place could have been chosen for a
religious building in which the inhabitants of many cliff dwellings could
gather and together perform their great ceremonial dramas.
The ground plan of the ruin has the form of the letter D. The building is
in two sections, the larger of which, taken separately, is also D-shaped.
This is considered the original building. The addition enlarging it is
regarded as an annex. The south wall, which is straight and includes both
the original building and the annex, is 131.7 feet long. The ruin is 64
feet wide.
There are about 1,000 feet of walls in the whole building. These walls
average 4 feet in thickness, and are double, enclosing a central core of
rubble and adobe. They are uniformly well made.
The fine masonry, the decorated stones that occur in it, and the unity of
plan stamp Sun Temple as the highest example of Mesa Verde architecture.
The walls were constructed of the sandstone of the neighborhood. Many
stone hammers and pecking stones were found in the vicinity.