Thus it is difficult to estimate the number of ruins that contained from 51 to 100 rooms. Probably there were a dozen—perhaps there were twice that many. A more definite answer must await further exploration.
In this discussion of the large ruins one thing becomes evident. Only a small portion of the people lived in the larger villages. The bulk of the population was in the smaller villages, of which there were several hundred.
Kodak House
Kodak House is an excellent example of a large cliff dwelling. It is also an excellent example of the ruins that were badly treated by the early explorers. Large portions of this ruin were pushed out of the cave by the men who were digging for articles of value. Kodak House appears to have contained at least seventy rooms originally.
MEDIUM-SIZED CLIFF DWELLINGS
It is impossible to make even a close estimate of the number of ruins in this 21-to-50-room group. They are to be found in all the canyons and only an exhaustive survey will reveal the actual number. Perhaps there are a hundred of them—probably many more.
As one explores the canyons and enters more and more of the ruins a surprising fact becomes evident. Ruins which at first glance seem small can turn up a surprising number of rooms. A distant view across a canyon may reveal only a few broken walls. Upon gaining access to the cave, perhaps by swinging down on a long rope, the first glance still reveals little. Then, as the ruin is studied carefully, it begins to grow.
The only evidence of a three or four story structure may be rows of small holes in the cliff where the ends of roof beams once rested. A thin line of plaster running up the cliff may be the only indication of a high plastered structure that once stood there. Sometimes, fifteen or twenty feet up on a cave wall, a bright red spot may be seen on the sandstone. This is mute evidence that a structure once stood there for the red discoloration of the sandstone was caused by a small cooking fire that once burned on a third or fourth story roof.
Thus the difficulty of estimating the number of ruins of any particular size is evident. In all probability, not half of the canyons have been explored to any extent by archeologists. Perhaps not more than one-third of the cliff dwellings, especially the small high ones, have been entered by anyone since the days of the early cowboys.