The Anasazi people who lived just north of the Little Colorado River in northeastern Arizona built their pueblos out of the locally available sandstone and/or limestone. Sometimes, but not often, they added some volcanic basalt for decorative purposes. The Sinagua, on the other hand, repeatedly used volcanic basalt cobbles for their house walls. Sometimes they would use other materials, however, basalt remains the predominant material type. Volcanic basalt is a common rock in the Sinagua culture area because of the nearby volcanoes. Thus, the choice to use a specific material type was primarily influenced by the ease of raw material availability but was also probably a cultural decision. "I am Sinagua, therefore, I build my home out of basalt." The Sinagua people identified who they were based on what material they used to build their houses.
