Canyons of the Ancients National Monument

The Canyons of the Ancients National Monument is located in southwestern Colorado in the United States. It is managed by the Bureau of Land Management, which in turn is subordinate to the Ministry of Interior. It was established by a decision of the President Bill Clinton on June 9, 2000 and surrounds three of the four separate sub-areas of Hovenweep National Monument, which is, however, managed by the National Park Service. The monument includes the largest number of archaeological sites in the United States, in 2005 there were over 6,000 of them.

History

Human footprints in the park can be traced back over 10,000 years. First settlements come from Paläoindianern, but which probably took advantage of the current park only for hunting and as nomads in the area were only temporarily settled. The changes taking place after about 8000 years settlements are attributed to the Anasazi Indians. The Anasazi built Pueblo -style dwellings, which were ultimately entire villages and urban centers. For unknown reasons, the Anasazi abandoned around 1300 the area. It was probably a combination of a prolonged drought associated with armed conflict, which forced the Anasazi to abandon their settlements. The bulk of the up to now excavated stone houses is attributed to them. Only for short periods were Ute and Navajo encountered in the park. Spanish missionaries reported in 1700 about their encounters with these two Indian tribes. But it was great discoveries of the past valuable iron ore led to a permanent white settlement around 1830.

Excavations

More than 6,000 archaeological sites exist in this area and thus represent the highest density of excavations within the United States dar. From simple cottages to entire cities Pueblo extends the range of the finds. The largest settlement in this case comprises more than 420 rooms and over 90 kivas, an extremely large kiva and a central square. Stone towers were distributed over the whole area found, which probably served as an observation post. Numerous caverns with a sophisticated irrigation system with artificial canals have been discovered. In river valleys were found numerous remains of dams for water regulation. Numerous petroglyphs were cataloged in the park.

Resources

The Bureau of Land Management manages this National Monument and regulates the use of natural resources. 85 % of the area used by ranchers and the oil industry. The latter in particular endangered by intensive use of resources, road construction and development of new oil sources, the archaeological remains. Deep blasting seismic locating new oil and gas deposits add some pueblos damage. Due to the intensive road construction and the lightweight, non- controlled access intentional and unintentional vandalism also occurs more frequently.

Flora and Fauna

The area is home to many lizards and snakes. But many hunting birds such as peregrine falcons, golden eagles, kestrels and buzzards are native here. Mammals such as mule deer, foxes and bobcats are rarely seen.