tfEWKEs] EXCAVATIONS AT CASA GRANDE, ARIZONA 309 



by the Pimas. Near one end there was excavated a square per- 

 forated stone, recalling that through which balls were thrown in the 

 Nahuatl pelota. 1 



RELATION OF EXCAVATED ROOMS TO CASA GRANDE 



It is not the purpose of the present article to discuss the archi- 

 tecture of Casa Grande, notwithstanding the fact that the author 

 differs somewhat in his observations and conclusions from those who 

 have preceded him. His interpretations of this subject will be made 

 a prominent feature in the final report, but it may be well in this 

 place to point out the relation of Casa Grande to the new rooms 

 brought to light by the excavations, in order to comprehend the 

 former appearance of the compound. 



One of the most important facts to be determined, in order to 

 form in our mind's eye a picture of Compound A in its prime, is 

 the number of stories of the main building. There is a want of uni- 

 formity in the statements of the most reliable writers regarding this 

 feature. 2 The majority of the older observers state that there were 

 four stories ; the more recent find evidences of only three. Both are 

 correct ; but, as has been stated, there is evidence that the lowest or 

 ground story was purposely filled in with solid earth, so that the 

 floor of the lowest room was on a level with the roofs of the build- 

 ings around Casa Grande several feet above the base of the founda- 

 tion wall. In other words, when Casa Grande was constructed the 

 walls of the lowest story were first built to the height of seven feet, 

 and then or later filled solid with "caliche," the top of which is 

 the present floor of the second story. Later the walls were carried 

 up to the desired height. The reasons for this conclusion are : First, 

 digging into the floor of the building, we found no trace of beams 

 such as would appear were the floor a roof of a lower room ; second, 

 in the south and west rooms, where the solid earth has been removed 



1 We have good evidence that this game was known and played by the an- 

 cient people of the Casas Grandes in Chihuahua, which would indicate that it 

 was not unknown in the Gila region. 



- The Pimas have a legend that there were formerly more than four stories, 

 and old residents corroborate this, but there is no evidence that Casa Grande 

 was ever more than four stories high. The same Pima legend that speaks of 

 the main building being more than four stories high says that the walls of 

 the Casa were cut down by a great serpent, which a magician of a hostile 

 tribe had created by drawing a human hair through his mouth. This story 

 may refer to the wall surrounding the compound. 



