We bucked a wind all the way and got sandblasted by a front that was on it's way east; that then wrecked havoc with tornadoes. Due to the cold and wind, we spent another day in Farmington, Utah and went to Aztec, where we viewed some ruins. This is what we saw as we approached it.
They have reconstructed what was left of a very large Kiva. They know that the roof burnt and collapsed. You can see a portion of it in the above picture and below.
Most Kiva's roofs were at ground level and were used as a working area. They were also entered through a hole in the center of the roof, unlike this one is shown. I'm not sure if that was the case with this one or not. One thing that is different about this is the size and that there are small rooms around it opening into the center. You can see the 'doorways' up on the wall.
I am enclosing this article as it talks about how the roofs were constructed and also that they know that these are 900 years old, comparing the tree rings to other trees rings to establish dates going back. That would place this settlement in the 1100's. We learned that this was the 'second' style of housing; first pit houses, second above ground sandstone brick, third cliff dwellings.
The above are original roofs that have survived. The rooms are small and also the door ways between are small. The ranger was doing some work but he helps you see how small the rooms are. That is B in the doorway.
You can see the thickness of the walls. The outside was sandstone that they had rough cut and fitted together. The inside was filled with rock pieces and dirt. Then both surfaces had been sanded smooth with harder stones. The darker line in the picture is made of a green colored stone. There are some other areas with these green stripes also. They don't know why they were placed there. Some of the rooms were used for living in and some for storage.
This is looking down on the area from a higher spot. You can see some round shaped areas. These are smaller 'family' kivas.
We learned that the Kiva has an outside air vent that is located on the exterior of the wall. This is usually bricked in. It comes out at floor level on the inside. There is a stone to divert the air between the opening and the fire pit, which is located in the center. The way into the Kiva is directly over the fire pit. So one went down a ladder as the smoke went up and out. This next picture show some of this.
This was a good introduction to the things we would see and learn more about. That will come in the next posts.
1 comment:
It is amazing how many different things there are to see in our own country...so interesting. Thanks for sharing.
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