its my theory that that whole culture from ariona to new mexico up to the border of Nevada utah and colorado was wiped out in the 1300-1400 or about 100-200 years before Cortez. That’s known. Its also known that they all disappeared at once. What’s not known is who or what did them in.
My guess is that it was aztec raiders from south of the border. Especially if aztec obsidian was found in chaco canyon
https://i.imgur.com/QU7CwvM.jpeg
There was a constant flux of nations and states in the region. North of the border things were also diffuse, but borders were far less certain, being controlled by raiding parties.
At the same time, Chaco was central to a trading axis all the way from New England to South America.
The latest word I have read on the death of the south west Indian cultures in that period was a combination of increased population and a long severe drought situation.
According to information I found years ago, the Aztecs derived from a very savage tribe in northern Mexico which around 1200 or 1300 began to drift south until it found the great lake, Texcoco where they built their town on islands and developed their civilization. I Googled and found a lot of information I had not seen earlier in my life.
However, one striking piece of information I had heard was that about a hundred years before Cortez arrived, a top minister in Aztec land decided to institute a policy of warfare against lesser tribes, and sacrifice and EAT the captives. One of their main enemies were the Tlaxcalans. And many of them were killed and eaten. In fact the Nahuatl (Aztec language) word for tortilla is tlaxcali. The Tlaxcalans gave a large number of their warriors to fight with Cortez’s 150 Spaniards in the eventual conquest of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital built on the lake.
