Aztec Ruins National Monument

The panel's later Mesa Verde additions were a second community. About a century after Chacoan builders raised West Ruin early in the 1100s, people tied to the Mesa Verde region moved in, added and remodeled rooms, and made a different style of pottery. The monument also holds the Hubbard site, one of only a handful of three-walled round buildings in the Southwest. By the late 1200s Aztec stood empty, about when Salmon, nine miles south, burned and was left. This panel near US 550 repeats the one on West Aztec Boulevard.

What the plaque says

Official Scenic Historic Marker Aztec Ruins National Monument Despite its name, this magnificent site reflects 11th century influence from nearby Chaco Canyon rather than from the later Aztecs of Mexico. The striking masonry pueblos illustrate the classic Chaco architectural style with later Mesa Verde additions. Aztec was finally abandoned by 1300.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Aztec Ruins National Monument — 0.7 mi
  A Chacoan great house on the Animas River, misnamed by settlers who thought the Aztecs built it, with original roofs nine centuries old and a great kiva rebuilt whole.
• Southern Ute Cultural Center and Museum — 29 mi
  A small tribal museum of 1971 rebuilt in 2011 as a $38 million building shaped like an eagle, facing east to the rising sun.

More markers nearby

• Aztec Ruins National Monument — 0.7 mi
• Aztec — 1.5 mi
• City of Bloomfield — 8.1 mi
• Salmon Ruin — 8.6 mi