The Power to Symbolize

Sunset Crater is a living ancestral homeland to the Hopi, Zuni, Yavapai, Havasupai, Navajo, Western Apache, and Southern Paiute, and it is remembered, revered, and cared for. People return often, bringing prayers and engaging in timeless traditions. Through the land, the past comes into the present, stories are recalled, and values are evoked. Hopi people believe that their ancestors' spirits, the Katsinas, travel from the San Francisco Peaks to the Hopi villages and back each year via Palatsmo (Sunset Crater) and Bonito Park. Some deities reside in the immediate area. The Pueblo of Zuni considers Sunset Crater part of a much larger sacred landscape that continues to be important for plant and mineral collection, and pilgrimages have taken place in historic times. Navajo people believe the cinder cones surrounding Dook'o'oostiid (San Francisco Peaks), including Dzíl k'ídzítsooí (Sunset Crater), are the guardians or protectors of Dook'o'oostiid. Within these sacred mountains reside Navajo deities honored every day by offerings.

Doney Park, Arizona · United States