(ill) 



THE AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL 



burial, the second story room above 

 them was used as a uranary. Fire of 

 unknown origin burned away the ceil- 

 ing- beams beneath the granary, and 

 several hundred bushels of corn fell 

 down u|)on the burials. Naturally the 

 corn caught fire, and the terrific heat 

 generated during the carbonization of 

 the cereal damaged many of the shell 

 and turquoise ornaments, and com- 

 pletely destroyed whatever wrappings 

 and textiles may have shrouded the 

 dead. 



While the greater nnml)ers of speci- 

 mens were taken from burial chaml)ers, 

 many scientifically important objects 

 were recovered elsewhere. Most of the 

 rooms of the east wing contained large 

 quantities of refuse which had been 

 dumped into them by the occupants of 

 other quarters of the pueblo. Such 

 cjuantities of material could not accu- 

 mulate and be cast aside without in- 

 eluding a good many articles that 

 would not have Ijeen intentionally 

 thrown away. Some beautiful bits of 

 handiwork were sifted from this rub- 

 bish, beads, pendants, one shell brace- 



let set with an inlay of turquoise, and a 

 few hammered copper Ijells, being the 

 most noteworthy. 



It is evident that in artistic appre- 

 ciation and manual skill no Pueblos be- 

 fore or since have surpassed those of 

 the Aztec region. During the very long 

 life cycle of this culture center indige- 

 nous arts and crafts were developed to 

 a very high degree, especially archi- 

 tecture, ceramics, textiles, and the 

 manufacture of Jewelry. Although 

 surrounded by wide stretches of moun- 

 tains and deserts, these Pueblos were 

 not isolated provincials like their 

 neighbors of the Mesa Verde, but were 

 familiar with distant lands whence 

 they obtained through primitive com- 

 merce things of beauty and usefulness 

 not afforded by their immediate en- 

 vironment, among which may be men- 

 tioned turquoise from the valley of the 

 Eio Grande, copper bells and macaw 

 feathers from Mexico, ornamental pot- 

 tery from southwestern New Mexico 

 and Arizona, and sea shells from the 

 Gulf of California and the shores of 

 the far Pacific. 



tiiutfful bird loim vessels, each with a head in full relief , doubtless were intended more for orna- 

 mental or ceremonial use than for direct utility. About thirty thousand beads were buried in the 

 representation of a turtle-dove shown at the right 



