Part 5 (1/2)
Having thus sketched, as far as I am able, the topography of the _mesilla_, and described its great wall of circ.u.mvallation, I now turn to the ruins which cover its upper surface, starting for their survey from the transverse wall of the old church-yard, 10 m.--33 ft.--north of the church, and proceeding thence northward along the top of the tabulated bluff.[101]
Sixty-one metres--200 ft.--north of our point of departure we strike stone foundations running about due east and west and resting almost directly on the rock, since the soil along the entire plateau which I have termed the neck is scarce, and has nowhere more than 1 m.--39 in.--in depth. The eastern corner of this wall, as far as it can be made out, is 12 m.--39 ft.--from the eastern wall of circ.u.mvallation. From this point on there extends one continuous body of ruins, one half of which at least (the southern half), if not two-thirds, as the ground plan will show, exhibits nothing else but foundations of small chambers indicated by shapeless stone-heaps and depressions. The northern part is in a better state of preservation; a number of chambers are more or less perfect, the roofs excepted,[102] and we can easily detect several stories retreating from east to west. About 9 m.--30 ft.--from its northern limits a double wall intersects the pile for one half of its width. The ruins beyond it, or rather the addition, is in a state of decay equal to that of the southern extremity. The western side is, generally, in a better state of preservation than the eastern, especially the north-western corner. Along the eastern side upright posts of wood, protruding from stone-heaps, often are the only indications for the outline of the structure. Along the north-west, however, such posts are enclosed in standing walls of stone, at distances not quite regularly distributed, but still showing plainly that here, at least, the outer wall presented an appearance similar to Pl. II., Fig. 4.
At the place where I measured, the upright posts stood at about 1.39 m.--4 ft. 6 in.--from each other; the projecting wall was 2 m.--6 ft. 6 in.--long, and 0.63 m.--2 ft.--thick; the retreating wall 1.40 m.--4 ft.
6 in.--long, and 0.33 m.--13 in.--thick. The posts themselves were sometimes, but not always, backed, or even encased in adobe sheaths, built up like little chimneys in the wall itself. This mode of construction was possibly peculiar to the western side alone, and gives it a slight appearance of ornamentation, as well as more strength, the projecting walls acting like b.u.t.tresses.
The whole structure, taking the sides of the _debris_ as they are now scattered, extends nearly north and south 140 m.--460 ft.--and east and west about 16 m. to 26 m.--50 ft. to 80 ft.--thus forming a rectangle of 140 m. 20 m.--460 ft. 65 ft. To determine the exact size of the building I proceeded to measure each compartment for itself, judging that the total number of these apartments, adding to their sizes the thicknesses of the walls, would finally give, within a few decimetres, the exact length and width of the house. On the ground plan I have numbered this building B.[103]
Beginning at the north-west corner, I ran my line almost due east to within 10 m.--33 ft.--of the circ.u.mvallation, where I found the north-east corner indicated by a broken post of wood. Along this line I met the following sections from west to east: 2.92 m.--9 ft. 6 in.; then a gangway, 1.55 m.--5 ft.; chamber, 3.22 m.--11 ft.; gangway, 1.21 m.--4 ft.; and three chambers, 2.09 m., 2.72 m., and 2.72 m.--7 ft., 9 ft., and 9 ft.--respectively, thus giving, adding to it eight walls of a uniform thickness of 0.33 m.--13 in.,--a total width of 19.07 m.--63 ft.
Its length was easily found to be 8.56 m.--28 ft.; the northern appendix, therefore, forming a rectangle of 8.5 m. 19 m.--28 ft. 63 ft.,--and containing, as the ground-plan shows, ten rooms and two corridors, the latter running through the structure from north to south.
It will also be noticed that the two middle rooms are the largest, measuring each 4.28 m. 3.22 m.--14 ft. 10 ft. I must also advert, here, to the fact that this structure is extremely ruined, and that the east part of it exposes the surveyor to dangerous errors.
The line _a b_, and its continuation eastwardly to _c_, appears to form the main northern wall of the whole structure. Here the annex, just described, terminates. This wall is of unequal thickness. In the north-westerly projection from _a_ to _b_, a length of 8 m.--26 ft.,--its thickness is 0.63 m.--2 ft.; from _b_ to _c_, on the eastern line, it is only 0.33 m.--13 in.--thick. This inequality indicates also a division of the structure to the southward, as far as the line _d d d_, into two longitudinal sections. The western one, whose four corners are respectively _a_ _b_ _d_ _d_ in the diagram, contains eighteen rooms of equal size, measuring each 3.71 m. 2.25 m.--12 ft. 7 ft.; it is consequently, inclusive of the rear wall and the sides, 24.24 m. 8.08 m.--80 ft. 27 ft. The eastern division, comprised within the area _b_ _c_ _d_ _d_, has fifteen rooms, or five longitudinal rows of three, whereas the western has six rows of three. The rooms east must therefore be larger than those west, and we see that they measure from east to west respectively, 2.25 m., 2.28 m., and 2.28 m.--7 ft., 7 ft. 6 in., and 7 ft. 6 in.: from north to south, 3.60 m., 5.07 m., 4.43 m., 4.13 m., and 3.43 m.--12 ft., 17 ft., 15 ft., 14 ft., and 11 ft. It is a rectangle, or rather trapezium, 22.31 m. 7.81 m.--70 ft. 25 ft.,--consequently the width of the building _B_ is somewhat less on the line _d d d_ than on the line _a b c_. The cause of this singular contraction I have found, and shall afterwards indicate.
Then follows a transverse section (_d d d e e_), containing two rows of six rooms each, or twelve in all, of very unequal sizes, as the ground-plans show. This entire section appears to be trapezoidal. The line _d d d_ is 15.89 m.--52 ft.--long; the line _e e_ 16.33 m.--53 ft.; _d e_ measures 7.42 m.--24 ft.--along the west, and 8.04 m.--27 ft.--along the east. Rooms marked _II_ and _III_ are particularly irregular, having, as the diagram shows, not less than six corners.
From _e e_ to _f f_, another transverse section, this time of four rows of six each, or twenty-four cells in all, those of each row being of equal length, to wit 3.65 m.--12 ft.; and in width from east to west, respectively: 2.25 m., 2.78 m., 3.18 m., 2.63 m., and 4.40 m.--7 ft., 9 ft., 10 ft., 9 ft., and 14 ft. (the last measure being the aggregate of the two eastern compartments, the longitudinal part.i.tion being nearly obliterated). To the south of _f f_ a further slight change occurs, inasmuch as the three eastern rooms, instead of being respectively 2.68 m., 2.20 m., and 2.20 m.--9 ft., 7 ft., and 7 ft.,--now become 2.25 m., 2.33 m., and 2.32 m.--7 ft., 8 ft., and 8 ft. From _f f_ to _g g_, the southern limits of the structure, the whole structure is badly ruined; and while the rooms can be counted, measurements are possible only in a few places. Still I am satisfied that no great error lies in the a.s.sumption that they were, taken longitudinally, all equal to the six rooms contained in the transverse row south of the line _f f_, that is, 3.65 m.--12 ft.--from north to south; and in width, counting the cells from west to east, respectively, 2.25 m., 2.78 m., 3.18 m., 2.25 m., 2.33 m., and 2.32 m.--7 ft., 9 ft., 10 ft., 7 ft., 8 ft., and 8 ft. The section, _f f g g_, which forms the southern and largest portion of the house (_B_), contains, therefore, twenty-two transverse rows of six chambers each, or one hundred and thirty-two apartments on the ground-plan; and it forms a rectangle running from north to south and east to west respectively of 80.30 m. 15.11 m.--260 ft. 50 ft.
The general dimensions of this building (_B_), therefore appear as follows:--
Length from north to south, east side 133.81 m.--440 ft.
” ” west side 134.92 m.--442 ft.
Width of northern appendix 19.07 m.-- 63 ft.
Width along line _a b c_ 19.07 m.-- 63 ft.
” ” _d d d_ 15.89 m.-- 52 ft.
” ” _e e_ 16.33 m.-- 53 ft.
” ” _f f_ 15.24 m.-- 50 ft.
Width of line _g g_, approximated 15.70 m.-- 51 ft.
From the appearance of the ground-plan, as I have been compelled to give it, it would result that the ”first floor” contained two hundred and eleven cells, or rooms. Such is, however, not the case. The builders of this extensive fabric had not the means of preparing the hard rock foundation by removing it wherever it protruded over an average level.
While giving a uniform height to their structure, they accommodated its ground-plan to the sinuosities of the rock. Out of this accommodation the irregularities noticed in the construction have mainly arisen. Pl.
II., Figs. 1, 2, 3, will ill.u.s.trate this statement.
Pl. II., Fig. 1.--Cross-section of _B_ along the line a b c, north end; _a b_, actually visible top-line; _c d e f g h_, rock; _i k_, top of probable highest story, now destroyed.
I have every reason to a.s.sume that this cross-section holds good for the entire division (_a b c d d_). From _d d_ on to _f f_ the distance between the rim of the _mesilla_ to the east and the house is greatest; the top-rock bends also to the west about _e e_, and there the irregularities noticed on the diagram about the chambers (_II_ and _III_) come in. They evidently result from an effort to conform the general plan to both the lateral and vertical deviations of its base.
About the line _f f_, while the same number of chambers (six) remains in every transverse row, there is but one story below the general surface to the east. I may safely a.s.sume that south of the line _f f_ all the rooms of the first floor were on the same level. Pl. II., Figs. 2 and 3 will ill.u.s.trate this point. As far as I could detect, the line _e e_ can be admitted as the one where one of the two lower stories disappears, and but one remains on the east side lower than the rest.
[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE II PLAN OF SECTIONS OF BUILDING B.]
I have everywhere a.s.sumed _four_ stories. It is at least certain that there were not less than four. When Coronado visited the pueblo in 1540, he found ”the houses with four stories.”[104] Sr. Mariano Ruiz told me that ”they all were of three stories;” but then he mentioned, below, the ”casas de comodidad,” thus indicating that the lowest story was used for store-rooms. It is very apparent from the ruins that, as I have indicated in the cross-sections, the western wall was unbroken, whereas from the east the stories rose in four retreating terraces. The western wall already mentioned was given additional strength, by means of the b.u.t.tresses, of which I have given a small outline. The winds blow very fiercely over the _mesilla_, especially from the north-west; there is no tree to be seen on or about it, not even a cedar-bush, higher than a couple of feet at most. Against such blasts the solid wall was necessary, while the many intersecting part.i.tions inside gave additional strength. It was a very solid structure as against winds, notwithstanding the comparative thinness of the walls,--0.63 m.--2 ft.--being their greatest width, and 0.33 m.--13 in.--their average.
With reference to the cross-sections, it now becomes possible to approximate the total number of chambers, apartments, or cells, contained in the entire building; a point impossible even to estimate from the ground-plan alone.
Leaving aside the northern appendix, about whose elevation I have not even means of conjecture, it becomes evident that the section whose four corners are marked respectively _a_, _c_, _d_, _d_, had the following number of compartments, starting with the lowest story, and remembering that, as above stated, one longitudinal row had six, and the other five, rooms:--