Cliff Palace, containing more than 200 rooms, is the largest of many cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde National Monument in southwestern Colorado.

The Anasazi people, who settled the region about 600 AD, originally lived on top of the plateau. About 1200 AD they moved down into the sheltered alcoves of the canyon and built dwellings. They occupied them for less than 100 years, when a severe drought forced the Anasazi to move after depleting their food resources and water supply. By 1300, Mesa Verde was deserted.

The Anasazi are the ancestors of as many as 24 Indian tribes in the southwestern US.

ISBN: 0-9761601-5-3