Tuff

The Ancestral Pueblo people made walls out of blocks of tuff.

photo by sally king

The Rock
Tuff is a pinkish-tan rock which forms from volcanic ash flows that consolidate into thick layers of soft rock. The cliffs you see throughout Frijoles Canyon are tuff.

The Uses
Because tuff is relatively soft and light, it could be carved with hand tools to create cavates and shaped into blocks for building houses.