Part 7 (2/2)

---------------- Total length to _f_, my point of departure 53.22 m.--175 ft.

------------------ Entire length of circuit of building _A_ 283.36 m.--928 ft.

Adding to this 15 m.--49 ft.--for the probable periphery of mound _H_, and 64 m.--210 ft.--for the perimeter of a southern annex to the south wing, which I have not yet described, we reach a perimeter of 362 m.--1,190 ft.--in all. Comparing these figures with those given about the great ruins of the Rio Chaco by Dr. W. H. Jackson,[120] and of the pueblo of Las Animas River by my friend the Hon. L. H. Morgan,[121] it will be seen that this building, _A_, at Pecos is probably the largest aboriginal structure of stone within the United States so far described, and that it will even bear comparison with many of the aboriginal ruins of Mexico and Central America.[122]

The size of the interior court can now be easily determined. It is 64 m.--210 ft.--from N. to S., and 19.28 m.--63 ft.--from E. to W. Its area covers therefore 1,235 sq. m.--13,230 sq. ft.,--or about one fourth of an acre; whereas the entire _debris_, measured as well as possible, scatter over more than two acres of ground.

For the computation of the number of rooms in the whole pile, cross-sections are necessary. (Pl. V., Figs. 1-8.) The height of each story is about the same as in _B_, to wit, 2.28 m.--7 ft. 6 in.

Fig. 1, section of west wing about _l l_, from west to east.

Fig. 2, lines _b b_ and _a B_.

Fig. 3, section of west wing along _h h_.

Fig. 4, line _d d_, north, up to south line of _C_.

Fig. 5, section of west wing along line _g g_.

Fig. 6, line _f f_, southern boundary of east wing, and for the entire rectangle up to _E_.

Fig. 7, cross-section of north wing, line _A n_, from north to south.

Fig. 8, south wing, from north to south.

It is possible that the second row, from S. to N., had two superposed chambers, but I am not positive of it, and therefore do not include it in the computation of rooms which will follow.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PLATE V SECTIONS OF BUILDING A.]

It will be seen that, according to the ground plan and sections, the east wing had five stories, the north wing two, the west wing successively two, three, and four, and the south wing four. Looking at the buildings from the great court, the south presented an unbroken front of a two-story wall, the east successively walls of four, three, and two stories; the north side formed two, and the west side, from north to south, in succession, two, three, and four terraces. In this manner, not only was the building remarkably well accommodated to the great irregularities of the surface, but even a tolerably uniform height was attained, well agreeing, therefore, with the description of ”Cicuye,” as Castaneda saw it in 1540. ”The houses have four stories, terraced roofs all of the same height, along which one can make the circuit of the entire village without meeting any street to intercept the pa.s.sage.[123] Here we must remember that the widest gateway is 4 m.--13 ft.--wide,--an expanse easily spanned by common beams used by the Indians in their house architecture.

An attempt to compute the number of rooms in _A_ results as follows:--

Rectangle _f f e e_, 18 longitudinal rows of 6 rooms and 5 stories.

1st story 18 2d story 5 18 90 3d story 4 18 72 4th story 3 18 54 5th story 2 18 36 --- 270 rooms.

(_d d c c_) 1st story and 2d story on the slope, and 3 rooms per row.

1st story 3 2d story 3 3d story 4 3 12 4th story 3 3 9 5th story 2 3 6 -- 33 ”

--------- _Carried forward_ 303 rooms.

_Brought forward_ 303 rooms.

(_b b a B_) 6 rows of 4 rooms, and 3 stories on the slope.

1st, 2d, and 3d story, each 4 12 4th story 3 4 12 5th story 2 4 8 -- 32 ”

(North wing) 2 stories, easily computed as 20 ”

(_k m l l_) 1st story 5 4 20 2d story 5 2 10 -- 30 ”

(_l l h h K_) Lowest story 12 2d story 12 4 48 3d story 12 2 24 -- 84 ”

(_h h K g g I_) Lowest story 4 2d story4 3d story 4 4 16 4th story 4 2 8 -- 32 ”

(South wing) From E. to W.

Lowest story 7 2d story 7 3d story 7 3 21 4th story 7 2 14 -- 49 ”

Adding for the southern annex a probable number of 35 ”

--------- Building _A_ contained in all not less than 585 cells.

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