Best Viewed in 800x640 using Internet Explorer

Silver City NM

The cliff dwellers constructed rooms in the mouth of the caves and on sides, but not in the back. Instead, they partly covered the area with a hard clay floor. They plastered their walls with clay and gave each room a hearth. Although not know, it is believed the backs of the caves, large and open, were used as a special work site, a safe place for babies and toddlers, or an arena for singing, dancing, and story-telling.

In this two-story structure the small size rooms, which you might think were used for storage. Beams which protrude from the right wall are not visible in this picture. A smoke hole is found above the upper doorway, construction as such, it is like a fortress sitting above the canyon.

The Mogollon appeared to be very industrious people. When not tending their fields, hunting, or gathering, they centered their daily life in and around the caves. In good weather, they performed many tasks on the ledge. We know that these people made cotton cloth, plaited sandals from yucca leaves, wove mats and baskets, painted designs on clay pots and jars, and fashioned jewelry out of shells and feathers. Making and repairing tools for farming and hunting was another constant job. Then, of course, there was corn to grind and other foods to prepare. This was a busy place in the thirteenth century, with much work to be done. All the while, the people probably talked and gossiped and kept track of young children playing nearby.