2000 years ago people arrived, lived and cultivated, then after several hundred years seemingly vanished overnight. Why?
Today was the theme day for the Seven Deadly sins. When going through my photos this particular thought struck me, "Which sin could have been the cause of this mystery? Certainly something terrible!"

Called Montezuma's Castle, in actuality Montezuma never stepped a foot into this 12th century structure. It was, in fact, constructed by the Sinagua - northern cousins of the Hohokam - and abandoned over 100 years before the great Aztec emperor Montezuma was born. The ruins and remains of the early people tell a story of a peaceful race who had plenty of land and resources, and no need to fight over it. Evidence suggests a democratic society, with all of the dwellings in the pueblo of equal size and shape. History does not say why it was abandoned: it has been thought that it was caused by too much pressure on the land, drought, or conflict with Yavapai, who were living here when the Spanish entered the valley in 1582.