DAVID ALAN BOYD studio

Chaco Canyon. The Hopi call this place of their ancestors Yupkoyvi: the place beyond the horizon. Between the mid-9th century and mid-12th century CE something remarkable emerged high on the Colorado Plateau: a religious-political-commercial nexus, covering over 30,000 square miles, with Chaco Canyon at its geographical and cultural center. What is known of the people of Chaco Canyon is what can be deduced from the significant, but sparsely excavated, archaeological evidence and from the culture and oral traditions of their descendants –the modern-day pueblo peoples.

It is known the the Chacoans were sophisticated hydrologists and agriculturalists, creating gardens in the desert. They were extraordinary architects and builders: constructing large multi-floor complexes using innovative masonry techniques. And, they were skilled artists who created timelessly beautiful black-on-white pottery and inlayed turquoise jewelry. Theirs was a cosmopolitan culture that maintained trade relationships far beyond the San Juan Basin –to the west coast of North America, and to the high cultures of Mesoamerica.

Chaco Canyon was the center of a culture that spread across the San Juan Basin and into the surrounding mountains. The core of the canyon contains seven "great houses" within a few square mile area. There are dozens of great house communities within a day's walking distance, and well over one hundred great house communities within a hundred mile radius of the core. The extended Chacoan civilization was connected by a network of roadways and signaling stations, and the ruins of the great houses provide evidence of the movement of a high volume of materials and goods. The Pueblo Ancestors were a sophisticated people.

One hundred years of archaeological and anthropological study has revealed a great deal about Chaco Canyon, and the oral traditions of modern Pueblo and Navajo peoples provide many clues. Still, much less is known than is unknown, and Chaco Canyon remains beyond our horizon.

Chaco Canyon and the San Juan Basin is a topic of intense interest to me. In 2015 I spent a week at Chaco Canyon, photographing this sacred landscape and the ruins of a remarkable Pre-Columbian civilization. The summer rains had come early and abundantly making the desert landscape particularly verdant. This is a small selection of photographs and panoramic photographs from that visit.

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