Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1899-09-08
MEXICO, EVENING" SEPTEMBER
STUDIED CLIFF JEWELLERS.
The Work Recently performed BY The Nor
NAL University Scientific Party.

The principal work of the scientific
expedition recently organized by Presi-
dent Edgar L. Hewitt Of the University !
Normal school was upon the cliff DWELL
ing region lying west OF the Rio
Grande, extending 10 the Jemez noun
taihs on the west, TO Santa Clara canon
on the north and to the Pajarito on the
south. This section was quite
thoroughly explored and mapped. Il
comprises district approximately ten
miles wide by twenty miles long. II in-
cludes twelve canons of considerable
extent and msnycsnoncitos. The pr pcj-
pal large canons are the Shufnne, the
Puye, Ojo de Aqua, Chupederos,
Juege, Los Alamos, Sandia and tie
Pajarito All these canons contain
more or less dwellings In their walls,
the Puye, Chupederer and the. Pajsrlto
having. been densely populated. each
canon, containing dwellings sufficient
TO accommo late q population OF not
less thau 5000 persons. The entirsrs- ;
gion explored contains mot less than
10,C00 cliff dwellings, and on the al,
joining mesas the ruins Of about twenty
stone.forts and pueblos were located.
A number of these were carefully map
ped and plans drafted. 81
The Puye was the especial object Of
study. Here the entire cliff was map
ped in detail, every dwelling in 1T
(about 500, being explored and located.
This cliff varies from. 100 to ECO ftet In
height and comprises two ledges, ich
ledge being full of dwellings, there.
being in places as many as six levels OF
stories Of dwellings.
The Puye presents especially inter-
esting problems for study because OF
the evidences OF re-occtipation by Il %
Pueblo Indians, notably within the Gen.
tury preceding the coming of Span
iards, the original occupation of the
cliff dwellings doubtless sntedating this
many centuries.
Among the problems studied it
length were the development Of archi-
lecture from the natural cave 10 the
terraeed pueblo, the development Of the
useful arts as shown by the various
utensils found, the developments of
their ideas of fine art as shown by the
petroglyphs on the face of the canon.
In the latter study, every character
found on the cliffs of the Puye was
photographed, SO as to be preserved and
made accessible for future study. This
systematic working out of the various
problems of prehistoric civilization in
New Mexico has not heretofore Leen
attempted. Fifteen rooms In the olds
stone fort upon the Puye were excs-
waited and yielded considerable
amount of interesting material for the
museum of the normal university in
this city, including implements of war,
pottery, the various domestic utensils
of stone and bone, and one stone IDOL
of especial interest because of being
worked out entirely in bas relief
Al preliminary paper concerning the
work Of the expedition will be issued
10 the near future, and number tfi
bulletins will be issued later in the year
upon the various phases of the work
that has been insugurated. 1t is the
opinion of President ITewett and all
members of the party that a most in
teresting and profitable field for re-
search has been opened up.