Spruce Tree House Trail Guide: Mesa Verde National Park, ColoradoUnited States. National Park Service
History
Spruce Tree House Trail Guide: Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
United States. National Park Service
Mesa Verde National Park (Colo.) -- Guidebooks
Station 3. In the corner of the court to your left are corn grinding
bins. Women knelt with their heels against the wall and ground corn,
dried nuts, berries and roots on the large flat stone, the metate, with
the small hand stone, the mano.
The circular room directly ahead of you is one of two found in this
dwelling. Circular rooms were not common but they have been found in
several ruins.
[Illustration: _The Second Court. Main street section._]
Note the passageway or “street” which provided access to rooms at the
back of the cave in this part of the dwelling.
[Illustration: _Ground plan of a kiva._]
Sipapu
Pilasters
Banquette
Firepit
Deflector
Ventilator Shaft
Step into the courtyard and look into the kiva. The name kiva is a
modern Hopi Indian word meaning ceremonial room. Judging by present day
Pueblo Indian custom, generally only men would be members of kiva
societies which performed religious ceremonies for bringing rain, good
crops and general well-being to the village. Women undoubtedly assisted
in some ceremonies. When no rituals were being held, the kiva probably
was used as a clubroom and workroom by men.
The _ventilator shaft_ brought fresh air into the kiva. The _deflector_
was a baffle to keep the air from blowing directly across the _firepit_
in the floor. The fire provided light and warmth. The _sipapu_
(see-pah-pooh) was a symbolic opening from the underworld of the gods
and spirits. The bench, or _banquette_, was a shelf or storage space.
The _pilasters_, of which there are generally six, were roof supports.
Entrance to the kiva was by means of a ladder through a hatchway in the
roof.
If you want to go into a kiva, climb down the ladder in front of the
next courtyard. Notice the cribbed roof. This is a restoration copied
from originals found in place in other ruins.
Station 4. Behind the rooms in this part of the dwelling is a large
enclosed area which was used as a trash room. The villagers also kept
some of their domesticated turkeys penned up in it. The main village
trash dump was the talus slope on which you are now standing.
The black stain on the cave roof is smoke.
Notice the wall decorations on the second floor room to the left. It was
made by plastering colored clay on the walls. Many rooms were once
decorated inside like this one.
[Illustration: _The Third Court_]
[Illustration: _Ground plan of Spruce Tree House_]
Refuse Room
Kiva (8)
Refuse Area
[Illustration: _Spruce Tree House about A.D. 1260. (Museum
diorama)_]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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