{{Short description|National monument in Arizona, United States}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox protected area | name = Navajo National Monument | image = Interior of Keet Seel ruin,.jpg | image_caption = Keet Seel cliff dwellings | iucn_category = III | mapframe = yes | mapframe-zoom = 10 | mapframe-wikidata = yes | relief = 1 | map_caption = | location = Navajo and Coconino counties, Arizona, USA | nearest_city = Kayenta, Arizona | coordinates = {{coord|36.6783318|N|110.5409720|W|region:US-AZ_source:GNIS|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | coords_ref = <ref>{{cite gnis |id=23407 |name=Navajo National Monument |access-date=2011-08-28}}</ref> | created = March 20, 1909 | area_acre = 360 | area_ref = <ref name="area">{{NPS area|year=2011|accessdate=2012-03-18}}</ref> | visitation_num = 44,099 | visitation_year = 2025 | visitation_ref = <ref name="visits">{{NPS visitation |accessdate=March 23, 2026}}</ref> | governing_body = National Park Service | website = [https://www.nps.gov/nava/ Navajo National Monument] | module = {{Infobox NRHP | embed = yes | name = Navajo National Monument | added = October 15, 1966 | refnum = 66000176 }} }} '''Navajo National Monument''' is a national monument located within the northwest portion of the Navajo Nation territory in northern Arizona, which was established to preserve three well-preserved cliff dwellings of the Ancestral Puebloan people: '''Keet Seel''' (Broken Pottery) ({{spell-nv|'''Kitsʼiil'''}}), '''Betatakin''' (Ledge House) ({{spell-nv|'''Bitátʼahkin'''}}), and '''Inscription House''' ({{spell-nv|'''Tsʼah Biiʼ Kin'''}}). The monument is high on the Shonto plateau, overlooking the Tsegi Canyon system, west of Kayenta, Arizona. It features a visitor center with a museum, three short self-guided trails, two small primitive campgrounds that are free to the public, and a picnic area.
The Sandal Trail is an accessible self-guided {{cvt|1.3|mi|km|adj=on}} roundtrip trail that ends at an overlook of the Betatakin ruins across the {{cvt|560|ft}} deep Betatakin Canyon. The overlook is the only point in the monument where visitors can view the cliff dwelling other than on the guided tours. Rangers guide visitors on free (3-5 hour long) tours of the '''Betatakin''' cliff dwellings and on {{cvt|17|mi|km|adj=on}} roundtrip back-country hikes to the '''Keet Seel'''. The '''Inscription House''' site, further west, has been closed to public access for many years.
The National Monument was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2009a}}</ref>
thumb|left|300px|Betatakin in huge alcove, from overlook
== Keet Seel == thumb|Map of Navajo National Monument '''Keet Seel''' or '''Kiet Siel''' ({{spell-nv|Kįtsʼiil}}), which stands for "broken pottery scattered around"<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120806032603/http://www.nps.gov/nava/planyourvisit/upload/NAVA_S1-for-web-use.pdf Navajo National Monument] (brochure) National Park Service.</ref> in Navajo, is a well preserved cliff dwelling of the ancient Ancestral Pueblo people located in a branch of the Tsegi Canyon in the Kayenta region. The site was first occupied at around 1250, during a time in which a large number of people were believed to be aggregating in sites such as this in this part of the American Southwest. There was a construction boom at Keet Seel between 1272 and 1275, with construction then slowly tapering off and halting completely at 1286. Once construction halted in 1286, there was no evidence of structures being built until its subsequent abandonment some 20 years later. It is believed that, at its peak, up to 150 people inhabited this site at one time. Due to the extremely dry climate and natural overhanging cliff the site's dwellings and artifacts are well preserved. Keet Seel is considered by many archaeological experts to be one of the best preserved larger ruins in the American Southwest.<ref name=oldones>Roberts, David. 1996. In Search of the Old Ones: Exploring the Anasazi World of the Southwest. Touchstone Press. pp. 271</ref>
== Betatakin ==
'''Betatakin''' means "House Built on a Ledge" in Navajo. In Hopi, the name of the place is ''Talastima'', or "Place of the Corn Tassel".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nature.nps.gov/geology/inventory/publications/reports/nava_gre_rpt_body_print.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012023000/http://www.nature.nps.gov/geology/inventory/publications/reports/nava_gre_rpt_body_print.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 12, 2008 |title=Navajo National Monument: Geologic Resource Evaluation Report |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=2013-02-18}}</ref> Betatakin is smaller than nearby Keet Seel, with about 120 rooms at the time of abandonment. However, like Keet Seel, Betatakin was constructed of sandstone, mud mortar, and wood. Today only about 80 rooms remain, due to rock falls inside the alcove. Betatakin only has one kiva,<ref name=oldones/> whereas Kiet Siel has several. Betatakin was built in an enormous alcove, measuring {{convert|452|ft}} high and {{convert|370|ft}} across, between 1267 and 1286<ref name=dean69>Dean, Jeffrey. 1969. Chronological analysis of Tsegi Phase sites in Northeastern Arizona. Tucson.</ref>
The first excavations occurred in 1909 under Byron Cummings of the University of Utah,<ref>records at the Natural History Museum of Utah</ref> and continued into the 1950s and 1960s under archaeologists such as Jeffery Dean.<ref name=oldones/> During its two-decade heyday Dean estimated a maximum population of about 125 people. thumb|center|600px|View of cliff dwellings from overlook at Navajo National Monument
== Discovery == thumb|Kit-Siel ruins - NARA ({{Circa|1871}} to c. 1907) The site of Keet Seel was known to resident Navajos in the area for decades or longer prior to the first Europeans arriving in 1895 (the Wetherill brothers). Originally part of a ranching family from Colorado, the Wetherills' keen interest in the Ancestral Puebloans led them to pursue numerous expeditions into the heart of the Kayenta region, largely uncovering a number of sites that had remained undiscovered to Anglos until then. The Wetherills took many artifacts from the ruins which the Navajos had left untouched for centuries. Richard Wetherill is credited for selecting the term Anasazi, which refers to the ancient people (ancestral puebloans) that inhabited this region and means "Ancient Enemy Ancestors" in Navajo. It was not until 1909, after Navajo National Monument was created, that John Wetherill, Byron Cummings, and Navajo guide Clatsozen Benully first recorded Betatakin.<ref>Judd, Neil M. “Byron Cummings 1860-1954.” American Antiquity, vol. 20, no. 2, 1954, pp. 154–157.</ref> The Wetherill Brothers made a living from giving guided tours of sites in and around the Tsegi Canyon and Utah. Later in their careers, the Wetherill brothers were largely involved in efforts for the preservation and protection of the sites that made up Navajo National Monument. The artifacts which the Wetherills had removed from the Ancestral Pueblo sites were sold or shipped to far-flung locations so that today little is known of the artifacts' whereabouts.
== Subsistence == thumb|Approach ladders, Keet Seel ruins, 2012 The Ancestral Pueblo people of this area were a sedentary group that largely based their subsistence on agriculture. Their primary crop at the sites within Navajo National Monument was maize, with beans and cucurbits also being incorporated into their diet. While the people of the Tsegi Canyon system relied heavily on agriculture for their food, they also hunted wild game that was indigenous to the area.
It is thought that these Ancestral Pueblo people lived in these cave dwellings to optimize the amount of sustainable land to produce crops. By living in these caves, and not on the mesas or the canyon floors, they were able to use this land towards agricultural production to ensure their success in this high elevation, desert environment. The ruins that make up Navajo National Monument were a large number of rooms used for storage, suggesting that at some point their crop production was successful enough to dedicate a significant amount of their living area towards storage purposes.
== Dwellings/Architecture == thumb|Cliff Dwelling of Keet Seel, Navajo Reservation, Kayenta, Navajo County, AZ (1933) The structures contained within this cave site were constructed mainly of sandstone blocks plastered together with mud and mortar. In marked contrast to earlier constructions and villages on top of the mesas, the cliff dwelling of Navajo National Monument reflected a region-wide trend towards the aggregation of growing regional populations into close, highly defensible quarters during the mid to late 13th century.
While much of the construction in this site remains similar to common ancestral Pueblo architectural forms, including such features as Kivas, a circular tower (at Keet Seel), and pit-houses, the limited space that this site presented created a much more densely populated living area. At its peak, Keet Seel had more than 150 rooms and 6 kivas, while Betatakin had about 120 rooms and only one kiva.<ref name=oldones/>
Jacal walls were also found to be used at this site. Jacal walls were made from a screen of upright wooden poles plastered together with mud. The dry conditions and protection from the elements at Keet Seel allowed for preservation of these architectural characteristics.
There were also a number of structures believed to be built at the base of the cliff as well. But due to this area not being protected by the over-hanging cliff wall, its exposure to the elements led to its destruction by erosion. At Keet Seel, archaeological excavations have revealed that there were 25 room clusters beneath the overhanging wall, each that included one common living room, with anywhere from one to four storage rooms surrounding a small courtyard. The layout of these dwellings greatly mirrored that of the Pueblo III structures at Mesa Verde, whereas Betatakin had about 20 room clusters.
== Depopulation == thumb|Betatakin ruins in Betatakin Canyon Although many archaeologists agree that there is a definitive and sharp exodus from this region in the Southwest, there has been considerable debate on the determining factors that forced people to migrate out of this area. Archaeologists have determined that there was a distinct decrease in the amount of annual precipitation between AD 1276 and 1299, a period of time that is now referred to as the "Great Drought". With the limited amount of rainfall in an already arid environment, there is no doubt that there was a considerable amount of increased stress put on the agricultural systems that these people depended on.
There is evidence later in the record to suggest the beginning of an episode of deep arroyo cutting, that would have damaged what was left of the usable agricultural land. Increased deposition of sediment onto agricultural lands caused the lowering of the water table, thus making the land inadequate for farming. Regardless of their reasoning, near the end of the thirteenth century it's evident that the Ancestral Pueblo people migrated towards places with more stable and abundant water sources, suggesting that the agricultural land in this area had become unsuitable to sustain the population levels that once inhabited this spectacular cave site.
Hopi legends tell a different tale. According to oral tradition, the area known as Wunuqa (modern day Tsegi Canyon)<ref name=oldones/> was abandoned as part of a spiritual quest.<ref name=oldones/><ref name=4thworld>{{citation | last = Courlander | first = Harold | ref = HC71 | date = 1971 | title = The Fourth World of the Hopis: the epic story of the Hopi Indians as preserved in their legends and traditions | page = 239 | publisher = University of New Mexico Press }}</ref> In particular, the Snake Clan inhabited the Navajo National Monument ruins, along with the Horn Clan. The Horn Clan forced the Snake Clan out, due to the children of the Snake Clan biting other children and causing death.<ref name=4thworld/> This may be an allegory for some historical occurrence, in which one group forced another out for a perceived fault or slight.
==Designation== President William Taft originally designated the monument in 1909.<ref>{{cite web |title=Proclamation 873—Establishment of the Navajo National Monument, Arizona |url=https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/proclamation-873-establishment-the-navajo-national-monument-arizona |website=The American Presidency Project |access-date=8 August 2023}}</ref> In 1912, he reduced the monument to three specific tracts of land: a {{convert|160|acre|ha|adj=on}} tract surrounding Betata Kin, a {{convert|160|acre|ha|adj=on}} tract surrounding Keet Seel, and a {{convert|40|acre|ha|adj=on}} tract surrounding Inscription House.<ref>{{cite web |title=Proclamation 1186—Navajo National Monument, Arizona |url=https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/proclamation-1186-navajo-national-monument-arizona |website=The American Presidency Project |access-date=8 August 2023}}</ref>
==Climate== Navajo National Monument has a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen: ''BSk'') with cold winters and hot summers.
{{Weather box |location = Navajo National Monument, Arizona, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1939–present |single line = Yes |collapsed = yes |Jan record high F = 61 |Feb record high F = 69 |Mar record high F = 76 |Apr record high F = 90 |May record high F = 94 |Jun record high F = 101 |Jul record high F = 100 |Aug record high F = 98 |Sep record high F = 96 |Oct record high F = 93 |Nov record high F = 70 |Dec record high F = 61
|Jan avg record high F = 51.8 |Feb avg record high F = 55.9 |Mar avg record high F = 65.6 |Apr avg record high F = 74.1 |May avg record high F = 82.8 |Jun avg record high F = 91.3 |Jul avg record high F = 93.5 |Aug avg record high F = 90.7 |Sep avg record high F = 86.0 |Oct avg record high F = 77.0 |Nov avg record high F = 64.4 |Dec avg record high F = 54.1 |year avg record high F = 94.5
|Jan high F = 39.9 |Feb high F = 43.8 |Mar high F = 52.5 |Apr high F = 60.7 |May high F = 70.8 |Jun high F = 82.1 |Jul high F = 85.7 |Aug high F = 82.9 |Sep high F = 76.2 |Oct high F = 63.9 |Nov high F = 50.7 |Dec high F = 40.3 |year high F = 62.5 |Jan mean F = 31.0 |Feb mean F = 34.1 |Mar mean F = 41.4 |Apr mean F = 47.9 |May mean F = 57.5 |Jun mean F = 68.3 |Jul mean F = 72.9 |Aug mean F = 70.6 |Sep mean F = 63.9 |Oct mean F = 52.5 |Nov mean F = 40.5 |Dec mean F = 31.2 |year mean F = 51.0 |Jan low F = 22.0 |Feb low F = 24.5 |Mar low F = 30.2 |Apr low F = 35.1 |May low F = 44.3 |Jun low F = 54.6 |Jul low F = 60.1 |Aug low F = 58.2 |Sep low F = 51.7 |Oct low F = 41.2 |Nov low F = 30.2 |Dec low F = 22.1 |year low F = 39.5
|Jan avg record low F = 7.3 |Feb avg record low F = 10.3 |Mar avg record low F = 16.6 |Apr avg record low F = 20.4 |May avg record low F = 29.3 |Jun avg record low F = 41.0 |Jul avg record low F = 51.0 |Aug avg record low F = 49.0 |Sep avg record low F = 38.4 |Oct avg record low F = 25.4 |Nov avg record low F = 13.8 |Dec avg record low F = 7.8 |year avg record low F = 2.8
|Jan record low F = -11 |Feb record low F = -14 |Mar record low F = 2 |Apr record low F = 0 |May record low F = 19 |Jun record low F = 28 |Jul record low F = 30 |Aug record low F = 33 |Sep record low F = 23 |Oct record low F = 7 |Nov record low F = -2 |Dec record low F = -14 |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation inch = 1.17 |Feb precipitation inch = 1.03 |Mar precipitation inch = 0.79 |Apr precipitation inch = 0.64 |May precipitation inch = 0.58 |Jun precipitation inch = 0.18 |Jul precipitation inch = 1.23 |Aug precipitation inch = 1.45 |Sep precipitation inch = 1.23 |Oct precipitation inch = 0.96 |Nov precipitation inch = 0.69 |Dec precipitation inch = 1.16 |year precipitation inch = 11.11 |Jan snow inch = 8.3 |Feb snow inch = 9.1 |Mar snow inch = 3.7 |Apr snow inch = 3.3 |May snow inch = 0.4 |Jun snow inch = 0.0 |Jul snow inch = 0.0 |Aug snow inch = 0.0 |Sep snow inch = 0.0 |Oct snow inch = 0.3 |Nov snow inch = 3.2 |Dec snow inch = 7.2 |year snow inch = 35.5 |Jan precipitation days = 5.2 |Feb precipitation days = 5.3 |Mar precipitation days = 4.1 |Apr precipitation days = 2.8 |May precipitation days = 3.0 |Jun precipitation days = 1.3 |Jul precipitation days = 5.6 |Aug precipitation days = 6.7 |Sep precipitation days = 4.9 |Oct precipitation days = 3.5 |Nov precipitation days = 3.2 |Dec precipitation days = 4.0 |year precipitation days = 49.6 |unit precipitation days = 0.01 inch |Jan snow days = 3.8 |Feb snow days = 3.5 |Mar snow days = 2.0 |Apr snow days = 1.0 |May snow days = 0.1 |Jun snow days = 0.0 |Jul snow days = 0.0 |Aug snow days = 0.0 |Sep snow days = 0.0 |Oct snow days = 0.3 |Nov snow days = 1.9 |Dec snow days = 3.4 |year snow days = 16.0 |unit snow days = 0.1 inch |source 1 = NOAA<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=fgz |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |title=NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data |access-date=December 12, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USC00020750&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |title=Summary of Monthly Normals 1991-2020 |access-date=December 12, 2022}}</ref> |date=October 2022 }}
==See also== * List of national monuments of the United States * Canyon de Chelly National Monument * Mesa Verde National Park * Oasisamerica cultures
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Related Readings== #Doyel, David E. & Dean, Jeffrey S. "Environmental Change and Human Adaptation in the Ancient American Southwest". The University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City. 1996 #Ferguson W.M. & Rohn A.H. "Anasazi Ruins of the Southwest in Color". The University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. 1999 #Noble, David Grant. "Houses Beneath the Rock: The Anasazi of Canyon de Chelly and Navajo National Monument". Ancient City Press, Santa Fe, New Mexico. 1986 #Plog, Stephen. "Ancient Peoples of the American Southwest". Thames & Hudson Inc., 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10110. 1997 #Rothman, Hal. "Navajo National Monument: A Place and Its People". Southwest Cultural Resources Center. Santa Fe, New Mexico. Professional Papers No. 40, 1991
==External links== {{commons category|Navajo National Monument}} * [https://www.nps.gov/nava/ NPS: official '''Navajo National Monument''' website] * [https://www.nps.gov/nava/learn/historyculture/index.htm NPS: History + culture of Navajo National Monument] * {{HABS |survey=AZ-70 |id=az0227 |title=Cliff Dwelling of Keet Seel, Navajo Reservation, Kayenta, Navajo County, AZ |photos= |color= |dwgs=3 |data= |cap=}} *[http://navajopeople.org/blog/inscription-house-ruin-nitsie-canyon-arizona/ Inscription House Ruin, Nitsie Canyon Arizona], includes a color photo of the ruins. * [http://jqjacobs.net/southwest/betatakin.html Betatakin Photo Gallery] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070625090928/http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/amsw/ American Southwest, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary] * [http://www.thenedscottarchive.com/galleries/betatakin-ruins.html Vintage Photos of Betatakin from 1935] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141019190031/http://www.thenedscottarchive.com/galleries/betatakin-ruins.html |date=October 19, 2014 }} by Ned Scott
{{Cliff dwellings}}{{Pre-Columbian North America}} {{AZ Parks}} {{National Monuments of the United States}} {{Registered Historic Places}}
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Category:National Park Service national monuments in Arizona Category:Cliff dwellings Category:Ancient Puebloan archaeological sites in Arizona Category:Museums in Navajo County, Arizona Category:Native American museums in Arizona Category:Archaeological museums in Arizona Category:Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona Category:National Register of Historic Places in Coconino County, Arizona Category:Geography of the Navajo Nation Category:Native American history of Arizona Category:Oasisamerica cultures Category:Pre-Columbian cultural areas Category:1909 establishments in Arizona Territory Category:Protected areas established in 1909 Category:Protected areas of Coconino County, Arizona Category:Protected areas of Navajo County, Arizona Category:Ruins on the National Register of Historic Places Category:Historic American Buildings Survey in Arizona Category:13th century in North America Category:13th-century architecture Category:Chapters of the Navajo Nation