Ch.5: Regional System

URBAN GENESIS AT CHACO: Case Study of the Origin of Civilizations. Chapters: 1 2 3 4 5 6

5.3 Pueblo Alto

The site of Pueblo Alto is so dry that water probably had to be carried to the site from springs one kilometer to the west. The area is so barren that little if any agriculture could be practiced there (Windes 1978). Building this structure may have been especially difficult because of the water needed to make mortar.

In terms of local resources, then, the location of Pueblo Alto is not ideal. The unique quality of this site, and the probable motive for locating a great-house there, is the view. Approaching the Chaco vicinity from the north, this is the first place from which one can see Chaco Canyon, as well as Fajada Butte, Mount Taylor, and Hosta Butte. If one emerges from the canyon heading north, this is also the first site from which one can see the Chuska and Carrizzo Mountains, Shiprock, and the San Juan Range to the west and north (see also figure 2.1). The absence of any traces of previous habitation at Pueblo Alto reinforces the likelihood that view was the sole motivating factor for locating a great-house here. Alto sits astride the threshold of two vast realms, to the south and to the north. For travelers arriving from the north, this is the moment in which their expectations begin to be realized. Alto may have served the same purpose for travelers from the southern parts of the Chaco region: arriving at Chaco via South Gap, Alto is a prominent landmark on the horizon (Lekson 1984:10). This visual axis was later reinforced by the location of Pueblo del Arroyo down in the canyon. The high priority given to the placement of a great-house on this site indicates that by at least 1040 ad, the Chacoans were addressing a regional audience.