Pueblo Alto (also known as Old Alto) is the sixth largest great houses in Chaco Canyon. It is located about 1.5 mile north of Pueblo Bonito, atop the mesa, on the canyon rim.
Pueblo Alto has about 130 rooms and eight kivas, but no great kivas have been identified so far. The site has been only partially excavated during the Chaco Project.
Pueblo Alto presents the classic D-shape of Chacoan great houses and its construction began around AD 1020, in the late chacoan period and the site was a single story building. Because of its position, exposed to the winds, Pueblo Alto has few standing walls.
Recent research at Pueblo Alto made archaeologists conclude that no more than 100 people permanently lived in this great house and, therefore, hypothesize a different function for the site.
Pueblo Alto: Apartment Buildings or Guest Houses?
Analysis of the presence of domestic features such as hearths within the apartments of Pueblo Alto made archaeologists propose that the site had a small population. Why, then, were there so many spacious and well organized rooms, if these were not inhabited?
Archaeologists proposed two main solutions: one idea is that these rooms were used for food storage; a second hypothesis is that these were guest quarters used to accommodate pilgrims visiting Chaco Canyon.
Ceremonial Feasting at Pueblo Alto?
Pueblo Alto occupies a strategic position within the region. Many other great houses are easily visible from Pueblo Alto and the site is also connected to several roads leading to the bottom of the canyon.
Furthermore, excavation carried put at Pueblo Alto identified large ovens for cooking that unlikely were used by individual families. This element along with the individuation of a huge pile of broken vessels and food remains found in the main plaza of the site made some archaeologists suggest that occasional ritual feasting and public ceremonies took place at Pueblo Alto.
Ritual destruction of vessels, after communal feasting and banquets is, in fact, a widespread practice in many ancient cultures.
The strategic location of Pueblo Alto, its large ovens, numerous vessels and large room compounds buttress the idea that all Chaco Canyon system was an important religious center, organized to accommodate and impress with lavish ceremonies its visitors.
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the About.com guide to the Ancient Pueblo Cultures, and the Dictionary of Archaeology.
Kantner, John, 2004, Ancient Puebloan Southwest, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. UK
Vivian, R. Gwinn and Bruce Hilpert, 2002, The Chaco Handbook. An Encyclopedic Guide. The University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City.