#Mesa Verde National Park

[rabbitcruiser]

Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde National Park (No. 13)

Cliff Palace is the largest cliff dwelling in North America. The structure built by the Ancestral Puebloans is located in Mesa Verde National Park in their former homeland region. The cliff dwelling and park are in Montezuma County, in the southwestern corner of Colorado, in the Southwestern United States.

Tree-ring dating indicates that construction and refurbishing of Cliff Palace was continuous approximately from 1190 CE through 1260 CE, although the major portion of the building was done within a 20-year time span. The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as Anasazi, who constructed this cliff dwelling and the others like it at Mesa Verde were driven to these defensible positions by "increasing competition amidst changing climatic conditions". Cliff Palace was abandoned by 1300, though debate is ongoing as to the cause. Some contend that a series of megadroughts interrupting food production systems was the main cause.

Cliff Palace was rediscovered in 1888 by Richard Wetherill and Charlie Mason while they were looking for stray cattle.

Source: Wikipedia

[todaysdocument]

Cliff Palace, the Ancestral Pueblo cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde, photographed on July 27, 1923. 

Record Group 95: Records of the Forest Service

Series: Photographs Relating to National Forests, Resource Management Practices, Personnel, and Cultural and Economic History

Image description: We can see a couple dozen of the sandstone-and-mortar rooms that make up the Cliff Palace site. The rooms mostly have sharp corners, but a few are round. They are built under an overhanging cliff. 

[mxchaelridley]

I’ll be here if you need me x 📍Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

[stealth-science]

Pictures from the eclipse in Mesa Verde.

[parksphotography]

Mesa Verde National Park, CO (Sept 2023)

Cliff Palace. You need a special tour guided by a ranger to access any of the cliff dwellings, and this hike involves climbing several long ladders along with many strangers. A fascinating, powerful place that has led me to researching more of the indigenous history of the place that I live.

[aboutoriginality]

[themonkeycabal]

Quick visit to Mesa Verde National Park. Beautiful day.

[thorsenmark]

Engulfed in Memories to Share with Mesa Verde National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the southeast while taking in views across cliff dwellings present at the Spruce Tree House in Mesa Verde National Park. This is from an overlook walk while I began hiking the Petroglyph Point Trail. My thought on composing this image was to capture of you of the cliff dwellings and have them run across the image center. I've pulled back a little more on the focal length so that I could include some of the trees and nearby surroundings as a foreground interest and have a layered look beyond. The cliff wall above was also important as it added to the setting and story for how the Ancestral Puebloan people would have to go up and down the walls to get to those dwellings.

[orkowhereheshouldntbe]

[ID in ALT!]

Orko in Mesa Verde National Park. Exploring the palace!

[drumgirlphotos]

A few weeks ago, went up to Durango, Colorado (one of my favorite spots to frequent) and this time visited Mesa Verde. It was fabulous and such a beautiful area. Was really surprised at how big the park was and defenitely would love to visit there again soon!

[rabbitcruiser]

Mesa Verde National Park (No. 10)

With the introduction of corn to the Mesa Verde region c. 1000 BC and the trend away from nomadism toward permanent pithouse settlements, the Archaic Pueblonians transitioned into what archaeologists call the Basketmaker culture. Basketmaker II people are characterized by their combination of foraging and farming skills, use of the atlatl, and creation of finely woven baskets in the absence of earthen pottery. By 300, corn had become the preeminent staple of the Basketmaker II people's diet, which relied less and less on wild food sources and more on domesticated crops.

In addition to the fine basketry for which they were named, Basketmaker II people fashioned a variety of household items from plant and animal materials, including sandals, robes, pouches, mats, and blankets. They also made clay pipes and gaming pieces. Basketmaker men were relatively short and muscular, averaging less than 5.5 feet (1.7 m) tall. Their skeletal remains reveal signs of hard labor and extensive travel, including degenerative joint disease, healed fractures, and moderate anemia associated with iron deficiency. They buried their dead near or amongst their settlements, and often included luxury items as gifts, which might indicate differences in relative social status. Basketmaker II people are also known for their distinctive rock art, which can be found throughout Mesa Verde. They depicted animals and people, in both abstract and realistic forms, in single works and more elaborate panels. A common subject was the hunchbacked flute player that the Hopi call Kokopelli.

Source: Wikipedia

[internationalpictures]

Mesa Verde National Park, Utah

[pazzesco]

⚞- Mesa Verde -⚟

Cliff Palace dwelling

Long House

🔽Mug House🔽

Mug House

During the winter of 1889-90, six men (five Wetherill brothers and Charles C. Mason) explored ruins of a massive multiroom Ancient Puebloan complex at the far end of the mesa. They first uncovered the Mug House site.

The crew turned up buckskins, poetry, stone axes, and knives. But they also found three mugs tied together with a yucca cord, which presumably gave Mug House its name.

Mug House

© 2021, Dennis R. Holloway Architect

[thelordismylightandmysalvation]

Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, USA

My Photo ~ September 23, 2022

[parksphotography]

Mesa Verde National Park, CO (Sept 2023)

Balcony House