Montezuma Castle National Monument
When European Americans discovered the cliff ddwellings in the 1860s, they named them for the Aztec emperor (of Mexico) Montezuma II, due to mistaken beliefs that the emperor had been connected to their construction.
Montezuma Castle is near the top of a Verde Valley cliff and is one of the best preserved cliff dwellings in North America.
The latest estimated date of Sinagua occupation for any site is for Montezuma Castle National Monument around 1425 AD.
Montezuma Castle up close. The area was briefly abandoned to due to volcanic ash from the Sunset Crater Volcano.
July 23, 2006. At Montezuma Castle National Monument.
July 23, 2006. At Montezuma Castle National Monument.
The five-story stone and mortar dwellings contain 20 rooms and once housed about 50 people.
A natural overhang shades the rooms and shelters them from rain.
The dwellings and the surrounding area were declared a U.S. National Monument on December 8, 1906.
The castle was carved into the limestone of a high cliff. This shows that the Sinaqua were very daring builders. It took ladders to climb Montezuma Castle which made it incredibly difficult for enemy tribes to penetrate the natural defense of the vertical barrier.
Beaver Creek. Most flooding happens in the spring with snow melt from the Mogollon Rim.
Montezuma Castle National Monument
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