Aztec Ruins - National Monument - Mexico - Aztec Ruins National Monument is just 2 miles from the center of Aztec, a bustling town near Farmington in the far northwest of New Mexico, and close to the busy US 550 that leads to Durango in Colorado.This photo shows ruins at this national monument.They actually date from around the 12th century and were built by tribes indigenous to this region. Construction of the Aztec settlements began in the late 11th century, had two distinct phases separated by many decades of inactivity and ended around 1300