Day December 5, 2021

Chaco Culture, aka Chaco Canyon

Map of Chaco Canyon, close to Pueblo Alto
Chaco Culture National Historical Park, situated in the American Southwest, is a remarkable United States National Historical Park that features a concentration of ancient pueblos. Located in northwestern New Mexico, nestled between Albuquerque and Farmington, this park is set within a remote canyon carved by the Chaco Wash. It is renowned for preserving one of the most significant pre-Columbian cultural and historical regions in the United States. Between the years AD 900 and 1150, Chaco Canyon stood as a thriving cultural center for the Ancestral Puebloans. The Chacoans demonstrated their remarkable architectural skills by quarrying sandstone blocks and transporting timber from distant locations. They erected fifteen major complexes, which remained the largest buildings ever constructed in North America until the 19th century. Their architectural achievements are often associated with precise astronomical observations, as exemplified by the famous "Sun Dagger" petroglyph on Fajada Butte. Many Chacoan structures are believed to have been aligned to track the solar and lunar cycles, a feat that required generations of astronomical expertise and centuries of meticulously coordinated construction. Here's an overview of Chaco culture: