Picurís Pueblo
Picurís is seldom visited by the tourist, for it lies in the mountains forty miles north of Santa Fe and can only be reached over a gravel road. The people of Picurís were among the most warlike of the normally peaceful pueblo peoples. They participated actively in the pueblo rebellion in 1680, killing their priest and all the Spaniards in the vicinity. They also participated in the battle for Santa Fe which broke Spanish power in New Mexico until 1692. After the revolt, fear of the Spanish caused them to abandon their village until they were induced to return in 1706. The population of Picurís is very small, being slightly more than 100.
One of the few old missions left in New Mexico, the San Lorenzo de Picurís church shows the strange mixture of Spanish and Indian traditions. Near the door is a human skull covered with an old cloth, but unfortunately, its story is lost to antiquity.
An interesting feature at Picurís is the unusual construction seen in some of the buildings. Made of puddled adobe, they are the oldest still standing of any pueblo in the Rio Grande Valley. The buildings were made by pouring adobe mud into wall forms. This is the same kind of construction that is found at Casa Grande, Arizona, one of the significant prehistoric ruins in the United States.