Cliff Dwellings
Cliff Palace, Balcony House, the Wetherill family's 1888 find, Nordenskiöld's 1891 excavation, and the crate that went to Finland.
- 01
Somebody Found Cliff Palace in a Snowstorm on the Eighteenth of December
On 18 December 1888, ranchers Richard Wetherill and Charlie Mason crossed the Mesa Verde plateau in snow and looked across a canyon to see Cliff Palace for the first time by non-Native eyes.
- 02
Gustaf Nordenskiöld's 1891 Excavation, and the Crate That Went to Finland
Swedish geologist Gustaf Nordenskiöld arrived at Mesa Verde in 1891, conducted systematic excavations at Cliff Palace and other sites, and shipped 614 objects to Finland — now held by the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki.
- 03
Cliff Palace: 150 Rooms, 23 Kivas, One Alcove
Cliff Palace (NPS: approximately 150 rooms, 23 kivas) is the largest cliff dwelling in North America by room count, built into a single sandstone alcove on the mesa's south-facing cliff.
- 04
Balcony House and Spruce Tree House: Two Different Problems of Access
Balcony House (NPS: 40 rooms) is accessible only by ladder and a crawl through a tunnel; Spruce Tree House (NPS: approximately 130 rooms) sits above Chapin Mesa and is the park's best-preserved dwelling.
- 05
Chimney Rock: The Easternmost Great House on the Colorado Plateau
Chimney Rock National Monument (USFS), designated in 2012, contains a Great House pueblo built by Ancestral Puebloan people at 7,000 ft on a narrow ridge between twin rock spires.