00:00Imagine standing in a wide, windy desert canyon in New Mexico.
00:04The ground is dry, the sun is hot, and the huge stone walls rise up all around you.
00:11This is the Chaco Canyon.
00:13Over 1,000 years ago, this empty desert was the bustling center of the massive ancient world.
00:20A group of Native American people known as the Ancestral Pablons turned this harsh valley into a thriving city,
00:29filled with massive buildings, busy trade roads, and deep mysteries.
00:34They were master builders, without using horses, wheels, or metal tools.
00:39They carried thousands of heavy pine logs from mountains over 50 miles away.
00:45They used these logs and millions of cut stones to build what we call the great houses.
00:52These were not just regular homes, they were giant apartment-like complexes.
00:57The biggest one, called Pabllo Bottino, rose five stories high and had over 600 rooms.
01:04Until the late 18th century, these were the largest buildings ever constructed in North America.
01:11The people of Chaco were also incredible scientists.
01:15They built their massive stone towns to line up perfectly with the movement of the sun and the moon.
01:21On the longest and shortest days of the year, the solstices, the morning sun would strike exact spot on their
01:28walls and rock art like a giant natural clock.
01:33They also built a huge network of straight, wide roads that spread out for hundreds of miles across the desert,
01:40connecting Chaco Canyon to over 200 other communities.
01:45Chaco was a major trading hub and a sacred place.
01:49People traveled far away to meet here, bring gifts and hold religious ceremonies.
01:55Archaeologists have dug up prayers that prove just how far their trade reached.
02:01They found beautiful turquoise jewelry, bright feathers from tropical parrots,
02:06and even jars with traces of the Mexican chocolate.
02:11People gathered in large rooms, underground rooms called chavis.
02:16But by the year 12th century, the bustling city fell completely silent.
02:20A long, terrible droid spell called a drought hit the region,
02:25making it almost impossible to grow corn or find water.
02:29The Chaco people left their great stone cities behind and moved to new areas.
02:34Today, modern pablo tribes like the Hupi and Zuni still consider Chaco Canyon a sacred homeland.
02:42The massive stone walls still stand under the desert sky,
02:46reminding us of the brilliant people who built a world out of the desert sand.
02:51Today, Chaco Canyon is protected as a National Historical Park and is UNESCO World Heritage Site.
02:59This means it is recognized as a treasure that belongs to the whole world just like the pyramids of Egypt
03:06or the Great Walls of China.
03:09Chaco Canyon is so far away from big, bright cities, so it is an official international dark sky park.
03:17The night sky there looks exactly the same as it did to the ancient builders over a thousand years ago,
03:25crowded with millions of bright stars and the glowing milky way.
03:29So, it is very important to remember that the story of Chaco did not truly end when the people moved
03:35away.
03:36The descendants of the Chaco peoples, the modern pablo and Navajo peoples still visit the canyon today to honor their
03:44ancestors and keep their traditions alive.
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