Adults were buried in the refuse dump near a settlement, or placed in a cavity or under a ledge along the base of a cliff. Most bodies were buried at full length, lying on the back, and were generally accompanied by offerings or grave gifts. Pioneers reported several burials beneath floors in Montezuma Castle, and one additional burial was located in 1939. It contained the remains of a child about 5 years old, which had been wrapped first in a cotton blanket and then in a yucca leaf mat. The child had been buried in the corner of a room about 2 feet below the floor level. Some rooms in Montezuma Castle were built directly above others; therefore, no floor burials were possible in these upper rooms. This might explain why one shallow grave was found on a narrow ledge at the base of the building. The mummified remains of a 2-year-old child from this grave can now be seen in the museum. The undercut graves dug into soft bedrock at Montezuma Well constitute one of the unusual features of that area. Sometimes similar individual burials are found in other Indian ruins. In contrast to most sites, including others in the Verde Valley, there is at the Well a fairly definite cemetery—an area in which these peculiar graves are concentrated. Now, let us turn from the general story of customs and way of life to a detailed description of the Castle and the Well. _Montezuma Castle_ Montezuma Castle is one of the best preserved cliff dwellings in America. About 600 years ago, it was an apartment house occupied by perhaps 45 or 50 individuals. The Castle might be called a 5-story structure, though there is no place where 5 stories have been built directly above each other. It is actually a 4-story building of 17 rooms, plus a “basement” of 2 store-rooms. The building was fitted into the ledges of the natural cave in such a way that it appears terraced. There are 2 rooms in the first story, 4 in the second, 8 in the third, 3 in the fourth, and 2 in the fifth. The Indians had 2 trails that led to the Castle: 1 leading up from the creek bottom and the other coming in along the face of the cliff to the top of the first ledge. Overlooking the point where the upper and lower trails join are 2 smoke-blackened cave rooms which are too small to be dwellings. Perhaps these held sentries to guard the trails at night. Geologists believe the cliff has changed but little since the Indian occupation. If so, the Indians must have used ladders to make numerous trips to their dwellings each day. In addition, ladders had to be employed in the building to go from one floor to another. No original Indian ladders are known to have been found at Montezuma Castle. Ladders found at other Indian dwellings, however, indicate that two types were known—single logs with notches cut into them, and a type made by lashing rungs across upright poles. [Illustration: MONTEZUMA CASTLE AREA]