Bandelier - Monday, October 13

Bandelier National Monument

Bandelier National Monument is the remains of a settlement of the Ancestral Pueblo People. They were farmers. Bandelier was named after Adolf Bandelier, an anthropologist who worked in the Southwest.

This is the remains of a kiva in the village of Tyuonyi which is at the base of the cliffs where all the cliff dwellings are.

There is a restored house in this picture at the base of the cliff. This kind of house is known as a Talus house, since it is built on the debris (aka, talus) at the base of the cliff.

The cliffs continue to erode.

Skull-like from this angle.

Looks like there is original painting on these walls.

The wife's legs.

This area is called the village of Tyuonyi. The kiva in the above picture is behind the rock formation to the left.

Here you can see the kiva.

All along the top edge of the cliff on this side of the valley were flat sections where huge sections of rock had fallen away.

Here you can see what became known as the long house. You can see the holes where they inserted poles to support the roof and the different floors. It looks like at one point there were three floors in some sections.

A cave where the bats dwell during the summer.

More original painting. This one is behind plexiglass.