The rock has an immense power of shelter and safety. Ancestral Puebloans lived in this cliff dwelling, perhaps for several centuries. Visitors can imagine the lives of these people, who farmed corn, beans, and squash in the fertile valley below the community house. And what a setting it is: with the long streaks of desert varnish coming down the cliff like streaks of lightning from the sky high above.

Eventually, the Ancestral Puebloans continued their journey through the world, leaving this canyon and hundreds of other canyons in the region and moving south, perhaps because their climate had dramatically changed and the rains stopped coming. Later, the Navajo moved into the region from their Athabaskan roots in the Canadian Rockies, and now they have lived in the canyon for decades, with the silent ruins adding a looming presence.

Location: Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Navajo Nation, USA

LIMITED EDITION: This photographic print is part of a limited edition produced by photographer Lee Rentz. The edition consists of 250 prints, which includes all sizes and methods of printing.