Eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology: to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1886-1887, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1891
History
Eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology: to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1886-1887, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1891
Navajo Indians -- Rites and ceremonies; Pueblo Indians -- Antiquities; Pueblo architecture
In the most common form of window in present use in Tusayan and Cibola
the width usually exceeds the height. Although found often in what
appear to be the older portions of the present pueblos, this shape
probably does not date very far back. The windows of the ancient pueblos
were sometimes square, or nearly so, when of small size, but when larger
they were never distinguishable from doorways in either size or finish,
and the height exceeded the width. This restriction of the width of
openings was due to the exceptionally small size of the building stone
made use of. Although larger stones were available, the builders had not
sufficient constructive skill to successfully utilize them. The failure
to utilize this material indicates a degree of ignorance of mechanical
aids that at first thought seems scarcely in keeping with the
massiveness of form and the high degree of finish characterizing many of
the remains; but as already seen in the discussion of masonry, the
latter results were attained by the patient industry of many hands,
although laboring with but little of the spirit of cooperation. The
narrowness of the largest doors and windows in the ancient pueblos
suggests timidity on the part of the ancient builders. The apparently
bolder construction of the present day, shown in the prevailing use of
horizontal openings, is not due to greater constructive skill, but
rather to the markedly greater carelessness of modern construction.
[Illustration: Fig. 87. Diagram illustrating symmetrical arrangement
of small openings in Pueblo Bonito.]
The same contrast between modern and ancient practice is seen in the
disposition of openings in walls. In the modern pueblos there does not
seem to be any regularity or system in their introduction, while in some
of the older pueblos, such as Pueblo Bonito on the Chaco, and others of
the same group, the arrangement of the outer openings exhibits a certain
degree of symmetry. The accompanying diagram, Fig. 87, illustrates a
portion of the northern outer wall of Pueblo Bonito, in which the small
windows of successive rooms, besides being uniform in size, are grouped
in pairs. The degree of technical skill shown in the execution of the
masonry about these openings is in keeping with the precision with which
the openings themselves are placed. Pl. CV, gives a view of a portion of
the wall containing these openings.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account