EL MORRO NATIONAL MONUMENT

national monument in west-central New Mexico, U.S., 12 miles (19 km) southeast of Ramah. The national monument was established in 1906, with an area of 2 square miles (5 square km). El Morro (the Headlands, or Bluff), or Inscription Rock, is a soft sandstone mesa rising 200 feet (60 m) above the valley floor and covering several acres. A water catchment basin and sheltered coves at its foot made it an important camping place on the trail to Cibola. Indians, Spaniards, and Americans left their inscriptions (16051774) on the cliff sides of the mesa. El Morro also has a number of pre-Columbian petroglyphs, and on its top lie ruins of Zuni Indian pueblos.