Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-09-30

the carved message on the wall OF
Ell MORO, south of Ramah, in an
inscription left by a Spanish soldier
by the name of Lujan. The old
mission was eXcavated several
summers ago by Jesse Nusbaum,
who was working with Mr.. Hodge
at that time. The burnt timbers
of the immense adobe structure as
well as those of the monastery ad-
joining the church. indicate that
the mission was destroyed just as
was port Of the village of Hawiku
perhaps in an attack on the village
by Apaches.
Mr.. Hodges work this summer
has been to study particularly the
structural features of the old
homes of the Zunis. The masonry
was crude and primitive compared
to the work of the Indians of the
San Juan region. The rooms were
necessarily small. for the length
of the timbers which were all
brought on human backs, were
necessarily short and the roofs
were only of such size as could be
made with short cedar poles.
Floors of Adobe.
The floors were of adobe with
at times slabs of stone as in use in
the present day Zuni house.
The walls were provided with
windows and inches to hold uten-
sils of the household and were
plastered very heavily. sometimes
with as many as sixty-seven coats
of adobe plaster indicating that
many years of occupancy, The
fireplaces were more or less CEN
trally located in the rooms and at
times protected with large stone
wind shields.
Benches of masonry and grind
ing bins for grinding wheat were
located on the floor as in Zuni to-
day.
In many cases the lower strata
of homes was filled up with sand
and refuse and new homes built on
top of the old ones. This occurred
sometimes in prehistoric times and
sometimes after the first Spaniards
came. The objects of Spanish
origin, iron, copper. china and
glass being found in the more re-
cent houses while those below are
associated with the earlier types
of pottery.
The different types of pottery
give the investigator a pretty defi-
mite way of judging the age of the
homes as well as the origin of the
builders.
While nothing of a spectacular
nature was found this summer
there was a great quantity Of pot
terry, utensils of stone and bone,
beans, corn, pinons and squash
seeds in good state of preservation.
Stone Fetish Of Lion.
A stone fetish of a mountain lion
about four and a half inches long
and three inches high was found
lamong the most interesting objects
and a pipe with handle shaped
like a cornet and made of clay.
| Some cremated remains were
found in jar In house under the
floor, which is form Of burial
identical with those found under
the refuse outside OF the houses.
Mr.. Hodges camp is located in
the cedars ION the hillside near the
ruins of Hawlku, eleven MILES
southwest of Zuni and fifty miles
from Gallup on the Gallup-St.
Johns highway and is place we'll
worth visiting by those who are In
terested in the historical and
archaeological life of the south
west.
Mr.. Hodge and party will visit
| Ell Moro near Ramah before he
leaves for New York next month.
He Is OF the opinion that the two
large ruins on the crest of Inscrip-
ton rock are of an older culture
than those at Hawiku, having been
occupied perhaps after the kiva
people had left the Hawiku region
and before the first Zunis had be-
gun to build homes at Hawiku.