Chetro Ketl, part 1
Chaco Canyon, San Juan Basin, New Mexico

With the number images of Chetro Ketl, it became necessary to "divee-up"
the collection in "web-manageable" chunks. Hence this artificial division:
part I part II

Chetro Ketl viewed from eastern cliff in the side canyon it dips into
(from the 1990 "Chaco Culture National Historical Park" brochure)

1. 2.
entering the west side of the site, the walls' masonry was varied and beautiful.
note the difference between the earlier, "Type I" masonry visible in the foregrond
of 1, and the "Type III" sections on the broken `V' edge of 2.

3.
facing a tad north of due west, this shot was taken out-of-sequence
of the site trail (see image 12 in part 2), but this area
(between trail locations 9 and 10) called out soon after arrival.

4.
from 3, moving back into the section of 4 kivas in the southeast corner,
facing northwest; note the tower-kiva--the tallest (circular)
wall--in the upper-right area of the image.

5.
moving south and a little west of 4, this "double kiva"
shows up on the site guide map as a single kiva, western-most of the four.
the joined kivas indicate different construction periods.

6.
at its south edge, facing north into Chetro Ketl's Great Kiva,
with a diameter of 60 feet and a depth of 14 feet.

at one point this kiva was remodeled, at which time niches in the original kiva were sealed; during excavation in 1932, 3 original niches were opened, each of which contained a string of beads and turquoise pendants--in all more than 17,000 beads of shell and stone in strands up to 17 feet long.

at the Great Kiva's east side facing west:
7. 8.
7: south seating pits+raised floor vaults, with a firebox in the center, and,
8: north seating pits + excavated (3+ feet diameter) discs from the pits.

Quoting from the present-day site guide,

These pits were elaborately constructed and formed the foundation for the large upright roof beams. When the pit in the northeast corner was excavated, four sandstone discs were found layered beneath the floor, and were separated from one another by layers of abode. Beneath the fourth disc, two alternating layers of lignite and adobe were found. Beneath the layers of adobe of lignite, in the center of the circle, a sueded leather bag containing powdered turquoise was found.

9.
turning 180 degrees around from 7-8, facing east, and attempting another "panarama shot"

10. 11.
curious how much the light changes, if one is not a very "practiced" photographer

on to Chetro Ketl, Part 2

Pueblo Bonito Pueblo del Arroyo Casa Chiquita Kin Kletso Casa Rinconada

WUPATKI MESA VERDE AZTEC CHACO CANYON

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