Prehistoric villages, castles, and towers of southwestern Colorado

Chapter 25: GRASS MESA CEMETERY

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About This Book

A systematic archaeological survey documents prehistoric masonry sites across southwestern Colorado and nearby canyons, cataloguing village plans, cliff dwellings, towers, and defensive works. The author classifies ruins by layout and construction, supplies measured ground plans and photographic plates, and examines masonry techniques, tower construction, reservoirs, cemeteries, pictographs, and minor artifacts. Individual groups receive detailed descriptions and maps, and comparisons emphasize architectural variation—rectangular room blocks, circular ritual or storage compartments, peripheral chambers, and isolated towers. The account concludes by synthesizing site distribution, building practices, and functional interpretations to illuminate past settlement patterns and material culture.

GRASS MESA CEMETERY

Grass Mesa, a plateau with precipitous sides overlooking the Dolores River, is about 10 miles down the river from Dolores on the right bank of the stream. There remain few signs of former buildings at this place, but very many artifacts, pottery, stone implements, and fragments of well-worn metates occur at various places, some of which are among the best ever seen by the author. This bluff seems to have been the site of a settlement, possibly pre-Puebloan, like that on McElmo Bluff, with rough walls, resorted to for refuge, and later used as a cemetery. It is well adapted for these purposes, its top being almost inaccessible on the river side. There are many other similar sites of Indian settlements farther down the river, but this is one of the most typical. The scenery along the road that follows the banks of the river from Dolores is ever to be remembered on account of high cliffs on each side.