Redondo Peak Explained

Redondo Peak
Elevation Ft:11258
Elevation Ref:[1]
Prominence Ft:2454
Prominence Ref:[2]
Location:Sandoval County, New Mexico, U.S.
Range:Jemez Mountains
Map:New Mexico
Map Size:180
Coordinates:35.872°N -106.5606°W
Topo:USGS Redondo Peak
Type:Resurgent dome
Easiest Route:Hike

Redondo Peak (Tewa: Tsiku'mup'in) is a conspicuous summit in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico, in the southwestern United States.[3] It is located entirely within the Valles Caldera National Preserve. It is the second highest summit in the Jemez after Chicoma Mountain. It is the most visually prominent peak in the range when viewed from the south, for example, from Albuquerque. From many other directions it is less prominent or not visible, due to its location in the center of the Valles Caldera, well away from the caldera's rim.

Redondo Peak is an example of the volcanic feature known as a resurgent dome. It was formed shortly after the caldera-forming eruption of 1.25 million years ago, but it is not itself an eruptive feature. The summit of the mountain is composed of tuff ejected by the caldera-forming eruption, rather than of subsequent volcanic ejecta.[4] It is forested all the way to its summit.

Cultural significance

Redondo Peak is sacred to various Pueblo peoples of New Mexico and, as a result, hiking and other recreational activities on the mountain are sharply restricted as of 2008. The summit area is occupied by a shrine that was studied and excavated by anthropologist William Boone Douglass in the early 20th century[5] and remained in use well into the 20th century. The shrine and its immediate surroundings are closed to visitors.

The Tewa name, Tsiku'mup'in, likely means 'obsidian covered mountain' i.e. 'mountain covered with pieces of obsidian' (tsi'i, obsidian; ku'mu, to be covered; p'in, mountain).

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. FO1482 . 11252 Redondo . 2008-12-21.
  2. 3992 . Redondo Peak, New Mexico . 2008-12-21.
  3. Harrington . J. P. . 1920 . Old Indian Geographical Names around Santa Fe, New Mexico . American Anthropologist . 22 . 4 . 341–359 . 0002-7294.
  4. Goff . F. . Warren . R.G. . Goff . C.J. . Whiteis . J. . Kluk . E. . Counce . D. . Comments on the geology, petrography, and chemistry of rocks within the resurgent dome area, Valles Caldera, New Mexico . New Mexico Geological Society Field Conference Series . 2007 . 58 . 354-366 . 4 February 2022.
  5. Douglass, William Boone (1917), Notes on the Shrines of the Tewa and Other Pueblo Indians of New Mexico, pp 344–378, in Proceedings of the Nineteenth International Congress of Americanists, Frederick W. Hodge, ed., Washington, DC, 1917.