When it has been decided to build an iyáȼaskuni all the young men of the neighborhood join in the labor while some of the older men direct them in the prescribed methods. The procedure is much the same as that employed in building the regular hogán, but larger timbers are required. Any kind of timber growing in the vicinity is used; but as groves of piñon and juniper are most abundant in the Navaho country, these are the kinds usually employed. The stunted, twisted trunks of these trees make it a matter of some difficulty to find the necessary timbers of sufficient size, for they must be at least a foot in diameter. When found, the trees are cut down and carried to the site selected, which must have fairly level surroundings, free from dense wood and underbrush, so as to afford a clear space for the ceremonial processions and dances. Four heavy posts are necessary—“legs,” the Navaho call them—and these must be trimmed so as to leave a strong fork at the top of each at least 6 feet from the ground when set upright. Four others, for the horizontal roof-beams, must be 10 feet long, but without forks; and two more, the straightest and longest, are necessary for the doorway passage. These ten timbers are called tsáȼi, the same term that is applied to the five main timbers of the ordinary hogán.
The four posts are set firmly in the ground in shallow holes at distances apart corresponding to the length of the main roof-beams, and so arranged as to describe a square, the sides of which face the cardinal points. The prescribed position of the doorway is the center of the eastern side, and it must face the east exactly. The post at the southeastern corner is the first to be set, then the one at the southwestern corner, with the forks arranged on the same line. The northwestern post is then set, and finally the one at the northeastern corner, and the forks of the last two are also placed on the same line. In the ground plan (figure 241) the posts are numbered in the order in which they are set up. This sequence is not always strictly followed, but the old men say that this is the proper way.
The beam for the southern side of the roof is next lifted into place and laid so as to rest in the forks of the two posts on that side, with the ends projecting a little beyond them. The beam on the northern side is similarly placed, and the western and the eastern beams are next laid so that their ends rest upon the ends of the beams already in place. Another timber is then placed parallel with the eastern beam, as shown on the plan. This forms the western side of the smoke-hole and also a support for the smaller roof-timbers to rest upon. Sometimes an additional timber is laid across for this purpose between the one last named and the next beam. The two timbers for the sides of the doorway passage are then placed in position about 3 feet apart and leaning against the eastern roof-beam. The butt ends rest upon the ground, and the space between them should be in the center of the eastern side. All the main posts and beams are stripped of bark, the rough knobs and protuberances are hewn off, and they are finished according to the skill of the builders or the exactions of the old men who superintend the construction.
While this work is in progress a great number of smaller and less shapely timbers are procured for the sides and roof. To determine a pitch for the sloping sides all the workers arrange themselves so as to encompass the square frame, and a few of the longest of the irregular timbers are placed here and there around it, leaning against the beams. They are roughly aligned, and some attempt is made to have the sides of the same slope. The floor area thus determined, the outer edge of which would fall 4 to 6 feet outside the posts, is then lightly dug over to remove all irregularities, and is made as level as possible.
As in the ordinary hogán, the upright posts of the door-frame are set near the lower ends of the doorway timbers, and the roof and sides of the doorway are covered in when the sides of the hut are inclosed, which is the next step in the construction. Small tree trunks and timbers are placed closely around the excavated floor area, with their upper ends leaning against the roof beams. They are not set very regularly and boughs are often used to fill the larger crevices, while the corners are turned in a clumsy manner, with the tops of the timbers overlapping each other, while the butts diverge in a haphazard curve.
Fig. 242—Framework of Yébĭtcai house
The roof is laid with smaller timbers, the longest resting on the smoke-hole timber and the western beam, while the shorter pieces span the smaller interval from the former timber to the eastern beam. The arrangement of the smoke exit differs from that of the ordinary hogán. In the latter an open space is left between the doorway timbers at their upper ends; in the iyáȼaskuni the doorway roof is continued up to the eastern beam, which forms the eastern side of the smoke hole. This hole is in the main roof, in line with the doorway but just beyond the ends of its timbers, and it is usually about 3 feet square. Figure 242 is an interior view of the frame, looking outward. The structure is finished like the hogáns; the frame is covered by heavy layers of cedar or juniper bark over the sides and roof, and finally with a deep covering of earth packed firmly over the whole exterior. The door frame is usually about 4 feet high and 2½ feet wide; the roof is about 7 feet high in the interior, and the floor area measures roughly 20 feet square, with the four posts standing about 5 feet from the base of the sides. Figure 243 shows some actual measurements.