ARCHITECTURE—THE CEREMONIAL ROOMS
To the person who views a cliff dwelling for the first time the most interesting feature is the underground ceremonial room. Modern Hopi Indians call these rooms “kivas,” and this term is commonly used. The kivas in Mesa Verde cliff dwellings developed from earlier pithouses and exhibit a high degree of standardization. Although there are occasional variations almost all Mesa Verde kivas contain the same standard features. Kivas are thought to have been used chiefly by the men and served as combination ceremonial rooms, club rooms, council chambers and workshops.
No. 1.
Mesa Verde kivas were underground rooms, usually circular or roughly circular in shape. The log and adobe roof covered the room completely except for the small hatchway in the center. Secrecy was thus provided for events that took place in the kivas. The hatchway in the roof served not only as an entrance but also as a smoke hole for the small fire that burned below. Usually the hatchway was the only entrance but a few kivas had side tunnels leading to nearby rooms. As will be explained later, the kiva roof was one of the most important areas in a cliff dwelling for it formed a large open court. Most of the daily activities of the people took place in these courts. The kiva pictured is in Spruce Tree House. The roof has been reconstructed to show the original appearance.
No. 2.
The kiva pictured here contains all features common to the kivas of the Mesa Verde ruins. Warmth and light were provided by a fire that burned in the large pit in the floor. The hatchway in the roof served as a smoke hole. As the smoke and warm air rose through the hatchway, fresh air was drawn down the ventilator shaft. The small hole at the top of the picture is the opening of a vertical ventilator shaft which extended down to the rectangular opening at the base of the wall. Between the firepit and the ventilator a stone slab served as a deflector, keeping the fresh air current from blowing across the fire. The low shelf around the kiva wall served as storage space for articles of all types. The low pilasters on this shelf, usually six in number, supported a log and adobe roof. Note that the shelf is wider on the far wall, next to the ventilator shaft. The use of this deeper recess, which was usually more or less toward the south, is not known. In the back wall of this recess were two small niches which served as storage space for small articles. The one remaining feature is the small hole in the floor in front of the firepit. This same feature exists today in the kivas of some of the present-day Indians. It is called the “sipapu” and serves as a symbolic entrance to the Mother Earth.
No. 1.