It is quite possible that the
idea was borrowed from some of the earlier Mormon settlers who came into
the country, as these people use a number of primitive devices which are
undoubtedly survivals of methods of construction once common in the
countries from which they came. Vestiges of the use of a pivotal hinge,
constructed on a much more massive scale than any of the pueblo
examples, were seen at an old fortress-like, stone storehouse of the
Mormons, built near the site of Moen-kopi by the first Mormon settlers.
[Illustration: Plate XC. Adobe garden walls near Zu?i.]
The paneled door now in use among the pueblos is rudely made, and
consists of a frame inclosing a single panel. This panel, when of large
size, is occasionally made of two or more pieces. These doors vary
greatly in size. A few reach the height of 5 feet, but the usual height
is from 3? to 4 feet. As doors are commonly elevated a foot or more
above the ground or floor, the use of such openings does not entail the
full degree of discomfort that the small size suggests. Doors of larger
size, with sills raised but an inch or two above the floor or ground,
have recently been introduced in some of the ground stories in Zu?i; but
these are very recent, and the idea has been adopted only by the most
progressive people.
[Illustration: Fig. 77. Paneled wooden doors in Hano.]
Pl. XLI shows a small paneled door, not more than a foot square, used as
a blind to close a back window of a dwelling.
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