Taos Pueblo, USA

Working with the Taos Tribal Government, The US National Park Service and World Monuments Fund, CyArk documented the site in collaboration with Nolte Engineering in 2010. CyArk utilized laser scanning and photogrammetry to document the entire complex including the multi-storeyed North house, San Geronimo church and several private homes. URC Ventures further assisted in drone documentation of the site. The project was part of a larger program led by World Monuments Fund to develop a training program for tribal members in conservation and conserve an 11-unit dwelling at the site. The documentation was used to create orthographic images and guide the conservation at the site. CyArk also provided a training to the tribal members on site documentation and data processing techniques.

The adobe structures at Taos Pueblo were built from mud brick using traditional techniques. The individual houses of Taos Pueblo were built side by side, with the use of common walls. They were originally accessed from the rooftop, with a ladder. The doors and larger windows of many of the buildings have been added in recent years. The churches on the other hand, were built stand alone. During the Mexican-American War a group of Mexican and Taos soldiers took refuge in San Geronimo Mission Church at the Pueblo. American troops bombarded the church, killing or capturing the soldiers and destroying the building. Around 1850, a new mission church, San Geronimo, was constructed near the west gate of the pueblo wall.