The rooms in the dwelling houses have
always been small and dark, and in early times without chimneys. Within
such cramped limits it was inconvenient for the men to practice any of
the arts they knew, especially weaving, which could have been carried on
out of doors, as is done still occasionally, but subject to many
interruptions. It is possible that a class of kivas was designed for
such ordinary purposes, though now one type of room seems to answer all
these various uses. In most of the existing kivas there are planks, in
which stout loops are secured, fixed in the floor close to the wall, for
attaching the lower beam of a primitive vertical loom, and projecting
vigas or beams are inserted into the walls at the time of their
construction as a provision for the attachment of the upper loom poles.
The planks or logs to which is attached the lower part of the loom
appear in some cases to be quite carefully worked. They are often partly
buried in the ground and under the edges of adjacent paving stones in
such a manner as to be held in place very securely against the strain of
the tightly stretched warp while the blanket is being made. The holes
pierced in the upper surface of these logs are very neatly executed in
the manner illustrated in Fig. 31, which shows one of the orifices in
section, together with the adjoining paving stones. The outward
appearance of the device, as seen at short intervals along the length of
the log, is also shown.
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