New Mexico
Art, History & Archaeology Sites & Museums
New Mexico possesses three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, a number equalled only by California. Like other parts of the American Southwest, the archaeology of New Mexico is best known for its Pueblo settlements, inhabited by sedentary agricultural communities long before Europeans arrived. Nomadic hunter-gatherer peoples probably moved into the area around the 15th century, the ancestors of today’s Navajo and Apache. The Spanish claimed ownership of the area in the 16th century and in 1821 it became part of Mexico. In 1848, the United States secured control of the territory through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which ended the Mexican-American War. New Mexico then became one of the last parts of the coterminous United States to gain statehood, in 1912.
Archaeology & History Sites in New Mexico
Chaco Canyon National Historical Park
One of the most famous archaeological sites in the American Southwest, Chaco Canyon National Historical Park encompasses a number of prehistoric settlements and other structures. Between the 9th and 13th centuries the Chacoan people flourished here, a number of the great houses were constructed. By 1050, Chaco was the ceremonial, administrative and economic centre of the San Juan Basin, becoming home to thousands of people. Making it one of the largest urban environments in the prehistoric Americas.
