Mesa Verde National Park

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Mesa Verde National Park

• By Gabe Alvarez
• April-May 2009
• Highland Park Elementary

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Location and Description

• Mesa Verde is a national park in Colorado. It
  was nominated to become one in 1906. With its
  forests of piñon pines and juniper, and the
  ancient ruins that occupy the park, Mesa Verde is
  a very interesting place. In Spanish, the name
  means green table, because of the vegetation.
  It is the largest archaeological site in the
  U.S., with over 4,000 individual sites. Besides
  being the largest site in the U.S., Mesa Verde
  also houses the record of the greatest number of
  cliff dwellings ever found. It is built under
  overhanging cliffs, probably for protection.

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Occupational History

• Mesa Verde was inhabited by thousands of
  Anasazi Indians, from about 1 A.D. to 1300 A.D.
  Though this was only one Anasazi site, it was one
  of the great cultural centers of the Four Corners
  area. After the Anasazi, only nomadic hunters
  stayed at Mesa Verde.
• The Anasazi first lived on top of the cliffs,
  but moved down to beneath the cliffs in about
  1100 for protection. Then, in about 1300, Mesa
  Verde was evacuated completely because of a
  severe drought.

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Significant Artifacts and Features

• Among the artifacts and features at Mesa Verde,
  there were the following. Kivas, which are used
  to hold religious ceremonies (underground), woven
  baskets, and woven belts made from dog hair. Then
  there were the different sites, each one named.
  Cliff Palace, the largest individual site at Mesa
  Verde, had 115 living rooms and a population of
  about 275 Anasazi. Spruce Tree House, another
  named area, was almost as large as Cliff Palace,
  had 115 living rooms and pit houses, which are
  like kivas.

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History of Excavation

• Mesa Verde was discovered in the late 1800s. A
  group of cowboys were riding over the cliffs, and
  the horses discovered the ruins of Mesa Verde
  under the cliffs.
• The main things that were done were that the
  rubble was cleared off of the roofs, and then the
  roofs were removed.

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Cultural Data

• The Anasazi who lived at Mesa Verde Park were
  people who grew food and also hunted for food.
  They grew corn, squash, and beans. They hunted
  wild game, and they also raised turkeys.
• Their buildings were pueblos made of sandstone
  and adobe. The pueblos were in villages, probably
  for protection.
• Their main tools were the bow and arrow,
  decorated pottery, and woven baskets.

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