Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument preserves Mogollon cliff dwellings in New Mexico's Gila Wilderness, 45 miles north of Silver City at 6,000 ft elevation. The Mogollon culture flourished in the region between 300 B.C.E. and 1300 C.E., with occupants moving to the Gila area in the 1270s from approximately 40 miles away near present-day Reserve. An ongoing research question is whether the Mogollon were a concentrated or widely dispersed civilization.
Mogollon world extent in Gila Wilderness remains uncertain after survey
Key facts
- Expedition aimed to determine if Mogollon civilization extended into remote Gila areas
- Winter sunrise orientation principle used to identify potential cliff dwelling locations
- Uncharted upper West Fork valley surveyed for first time in modern era
- Question of whether Mogollon were concentrated or widely dispersed civilization
- Three main river forks converge in central Gila region
- No major cliff dwellings found in surveyed slot canyons
Sources
The History of the Gila Cliff Dwellings - New Mexico Magazinenewmexicomagazine.org
Occupied by the early Mogollon people in the 1270s, Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument offers a glimpse into the lives and culture of these early ...
Gila Cliff Dwellings: An Administrative History (Introduction)npshistory.com
Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument was established in 1907 to protect the prehistoric architecture known at the time as the Gila Hot Springs Cliff-Houses.
Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument - Home of the Mogollonadventurousway.com
45 miles north of Silver City in south-eastern New Mexico, at 6,000ft in the Gila Wilderness, the Mogollon people built dwellings high up in ...
New Mexico National Monuments : The Gila Cliff Dwellingsnewmexiconomad.com
The Mogollon culture was cohesive between 150 – 1400 AD. Archaeological sites attributed to the Mogollon culture have been found in the Gila Wilderness, Mimbres ...
The Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monumentcasitasdegila.com
The Gila Cliff Dwellings are hidden within six south-facing shallow alcoves or caves located about 200 feet up on the northwest side of Cliff Dweller Canyon, ...
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