T?AAIYALANA.
On the abandonment of the pueblos known as the Seven Cities of Cibola,
supposed to have occurred at the time of the general uprising of the
pueblos in 1680, the inhabitants of all the Cibolan villages sought
refuge on the summit of T?aaiyalana, an isolated mesa, 3 miles southeast
from Zu?i, and there built a number of pueblo clusters.
This mesa, otherwise known as "Thunder Mountain," rises to the height of
1,000 feet above the plain, and is almost inaccessible. There are two
foot trails leading to the summit, each of which in places traverses
abrupt slopes of sandstone where holes have been pecked into the rock to
furnish foot and hand holds. From the northeast side the summit of the
mesa can be reached by a rough and tortuous burro trail. All the rest of
the mesa rim is too precipitous to be scaled. Its appearance as seen
from Zu?i is shown in Pl. LIX.
On the southern portion of this impregnable site and grouped about a
point where nearly the whole drainage of the mesa top collects, are
found the village remains. The Zu?is stated that the houses were
distributed in six groups or clusters, each taking the place of one of
the abandoned towns. Mr. Frank H. Cushing [4] was also under the
impression that these houses had been built as six distinct clusters of
one village, and he has found that at the time of the Pueblo rebellion,
but six of the Cibolan villages were occupied. An examination of the
plan, however, will at once show that no such definite scheme of
arrangement governed the builders.
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