Tyuonti Map

Map of Tyuonyi

Tyuonyi is an Ancestral Pueblo site in Frijoles Canyon in Bandelier, occupied from the 14th to the 16th century. Its walls were constructed of volcanic tuff stones, laid in earthen mortar and covered in mud plaster. The village was first excavated in 1908-1912. The dirt was removed from 240 ground-floor rooms, which were then left exposed to the elements. By the 1930’s, most of the original earthen plaster and mortar had washed away, leaving the stone walls in a deteriorated state. Beginning in 1937, National Park Service crews periodically stabilized the walls by applying new mortar. Usually they used a mixture of soil, sand, and Portland cement. This made a grey, brittle mortar resembling concrete, which over time proved to be unsuitable for this use.

In 2001 a project was begun to document and assess the conditions of the walls in Tyuonyi. This map shows the conditions found, with 38% (red) requiring emergency stabilization, 53% (green) with medium treatment urgency, and 9% (blue) having low urgency. Work in 2002-2004 treated a total of 412 wall faces, including 56% of those shown in red, 28% of those shown in green, and 18% of those shown in blue. This stabilization was done with a more suitable mortar, specially formulated of soil, sand, and a colorless acrylic binder.

In following years, such assessments and work will also be done on other sites including Talus House and Long House. Of course, the effectiveness of the work will be greatly increased if the thousands of visitors who come to Bandelier annually remember to do all their viewing from the trails.



Map of Tyuonyi Tyuonyi is an Ancestral Pueblo site in Frijoles Canyon in Bandelier, occupied from the 14th to the 16th century. Its walls were constructed of volcanic tuff stones, laid in earthen mortar and covered in mud plaster. The village was first excavated in 1908-1912. The dirt was removed from 240 ground-floor rooms, which were then left exposed to the elements. By the 1930’s, most of the original earthen plaster and mortar had washed away, leaving the stone walls in a deteriorated state. Beginning in 1937, National Park Service crews periodically stabilized the walls by applying new mortar. Usually they used a mixture of soil, sand, and Portland cement. This made a grey, brittle mortar resembling concrete, which over time proved to be unsuitable for this use. In 2001 a project was begun to document and assess the conditions of the walls in Tyuonyi. This map shows the conditions found, with 38% (red) requiring emergency stabilization, 53% (green) with medium treatment urgency, and 9% (blue) having low urgency. Work in 2002-2004 treated a total of 412 wall faces, including 56% of those shown in red, 28% of those shown in green, and 18% of those shown in blue. This stabilization was done with a more suitable mortar, specially formulated of soil, sand, and a colorless acrylic binder. In following years, such assessments and work will also be done on other sites including Talus House and Long House. Of course, the effectiveness of the work will be greatly increased if the thousands of visitors who come to Bandelier annually remember to do all their viewing from the trails.
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