Zuni Mountains, an extensive
timber-bearing range that approaches within 12 miles of Zuni, narrowing
down the extent of the surrounding arid region.
Cibola has also been more generously treated by nature in the matter of
water supply, as the province contains a perennial stream which has its
sources near the village of Nutria, and, flowing past the pueblo of
Zuni, disappears a few miles below. During the rainy season the river
empties into the Colorado Chiquito. The Cibolan pueblos are built on the
foothills of mesas or in open valley sites, surrounded by broad fields,
while the Tusayan villages are perched upon mesa promontories that
overlook the valley lands used for cultivation.
PLANS AND DESCRIPTIONS OF RUINS.
HAWIKUH.
The village of Hawikuh, situated about 15 miles to the south of Zuni,
consisted of irregular groups of densely clustered cells, occupying the
point of a spur projecting from a low rounded hill. The houses are in
such a ruined condition that few separate rooms can be traced, and these
are much obscured by debris. This debris covers the entire area
extending down the east slope of the hill to the site of the church. The
large amount of debris and the comparative thinness of such walls as are
found suggest that the dwellings had been densely clustered, and carried
to the height of several stories. Much of the space between the village
on the hill and the site of the Spanish church on the plain at its foot
is covered with masonry debris, part of which has slid down from above
(Pl. XLVI).
[Illustration: Plate XXXV. View of Shumopavi.]
The arrangement suggests a large principal court of irregular form. The
surrounding clusters are very irregularly disposed, the directions of
the prevailing lines of walls greatly varying in different groups. There
is a suggestion also of several smaller courts, as well as of alleyways
leading to the principal one.
The church, built on the plain below at a distance of about 200 feet
from the main village, seems to have been surrounded by several groups
of rooms and inclosures of various sizes, differing somewhat in
character from those within the village. These groups are scattered and
open, and the small amount of debris leads to the conclusion that this
portion of the village was not more than a single story in height. (Pl.
XLVII.)
The destruction of the village has been so complete that no vestige of
constructional details remains, with the exception
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