The classic period pueblo site normally is closed to the public and is an ancestral home of the people of San Ildefonso Pueblo, said Brad Vierra of the Ecology Group, who along with Mike Elliott of Bandelier National Monument, is leading the tours of Tsiregeh and Tsankawi sites.
The tours are part of New Mexico Historic Preservation Week, said Vierra, an archaeologist who authored a chapter of a book about what is believed to be the only archaeological site attributed to the Spanish explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado circa 1540 near present day Bernalillo.
Vierra said the Tsiregeh site was occupied from about the 1300s to the 1500s, and originally stood up to three stories tall with about 500 rooms. Tsiregeh is a Tewa word for "bird house" or "house of the bird people." Spanish settlers translated this into Pajarito or "little bird," the name given to the Pajarito Plateau.
A sign-up sheet will be located at a table adjacent to the Laboratory's Environment, Safety and Health Training Center in White Rock. The center is located in the strip mall behind the Conoco service station at the NM 4-Rover Boulevard intersection.
Vierra said vans will take tours of about 20 people from White Rock to and from the site. The tour will take about 45 minutes, including a short walk to the site. Visitors should wear shoes appropriate for hiking and no cameras are allowed at Tsiregeh.
Once at the site, visitors will be given a brief talk on site etiquette, safety, cultural heritage, federal laws and regional archaeology, said Vierra. Then the tour will be escorted to the northern area of the pueblo. No one will be allowed to visit the southern portion of the site, nor the adjacent cliff areas with cavates. Entering excavated kivas is strictly prohibited, Vierra reminded. Tribal members from San Ildefonso also will be present at the site. The tour will be escorted back to White Rock by van.
Vierra said posters and reports on Ecology Group activities also will be set up at the sign up table for the public to view.
For more information, contact Vierra at 665-8014. For more information on the Tsankawi tours, contact Elliott at 672-3861, ext. 560. Additional information about Historic Preservation Week activities statewide also can be found at the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office World Wide Web page at http://museums.state.nm.us/hpd/ online.
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