Early architecture in New Mexico

This lavishly illustrated account of sixteen hundred years of New Mexico's architectural history is the first comprehensive treatment of the subject. Emphasizing secular buildings, noted architectural historian Bainbridge Bunting begins by describing the fourth-century pithouses of the Basket Makers and goes on to examine the buildings of the Pueblo Indians and the architecture of the Spanish Colonial, Mexican, and Territorial New Mexican periods. His discussion of Pueblo buildings covers material rarely dealt with in the study of architecture. Bunting makes the reader aware not only of the evolutionary process in New Mexico architecture, but also of the strong sense of continuity that characterizes it. Although such events as the American takeover of the area in 1848 and the arrival of the railroad in 1880 led to major modifications in New Mexico's architectural repertoire, pre-American and pre-Hispanic styles have survived as dominant architectural models. The result of twenty-five years of research, this book grew out of a series of lectures delivered in 1973 to the Hispanic Preservation Division of the Graduate School of Architecture and Planning of Columbia University. It will appeal not only to architects and historians but to general readers interested in touring or in duplicating examples of New Mexico's rich architectural heritage.--Cover