National monument, central Arizona, U.S. Situated in the Verde River Valley, it occupies an area of 842 acres (341 hectares).
Declared a national monument in 1906, it is the site of the country's best-preserved pre-Columbian Pueblo Indian cliff dwellings. The "castle" is a 5-story, 20-room adobe brick structure, dating from 0441; AD 1100, built into the cliff face about 80 ft (24 m) above the valley floor. To the northeast is Montezuma Well, a large sinkhole rimmed with communal dwellings.