This extensively etched cliff wall near the San Juan River is representative of many in the area. It lies outside the new boundaries of the monument. The oldest drawings on this wall could date to 4000 BC, according to Sally Cole, an archaeologist who lives in Bluff, Utah. They help identify how society developed, from groups of hunter-gatherers to agrarian communities.
Assigning an exact date to a petroglyph is difficult, and archaeologists instead group styles into larger eras. Artistic style is one indicator of when a drawing may have been created.
This 12- to 14-inch human figure, shown wearing a headdress, Cole said, is an example of art created in the early Basketmaker period, before 500 AD, known for societal use of woven baskets.
When that drawing was etched into the rock, there were already ancient pictures on it. This animal, probably a bighorn sheep, was drawn in Archaic times and could be as old as 4000 BC, Cole said.
This sheep has lighter-colored spots around its feet and mouth, something often repeated on this panel. The lighter etchings were probably added later.
“Things that are older, they tend to take on that patina … the color of the background,” said Till of the Edge of the Cedars museum. “So if something is totally repatinated, then we know it’s pretty darn old as opposed to something that is a lot lighter.”
Artists created compositions that told stories. These two twinlike figures are probably part of a traditional narrative, Cole said, and similar pairs of figures can be seen across the region.
The rows of dots that stretch across the panel are understood to be narrative tools, representing physical or temporal movement of people. They also connect pieces of stories together.
A hundred feet away and a few hundred years later, Pueblo people etched these drawings into the same cliff. The broad-shouldered, legless human figures are similar to examples in and around Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado, Cole said. The hunting scenes are also consistent with Pueblo style.
The large, Archaic-style quadruped is positioned amid Basketmaker drawings of humans and animals and even appears to have something, maybe footprints, Till said, etched on top of it.
Although these drawings were made at different times by different peoples, they share the common purpose of communication.
“When these things were first made, they were singing out to everybody,” Till said. “These rock art panels that we have here were meant to be seen by everybody. They’re very public.”
Explore the panel on your own and discover more information about many of the drawings from archaeologists Sally Cole and Jonathan Till. Use two fingers to drag the panorama.
Use these markers to find out more about the petroglyphs.
These Basketmaker II-style figures appear to have atlatls or darts.
A hunting dog with a curled tail follows a group of bighorn sheep.
Another example of a sheep with pecked-out hooves.
Similar shapes can be seen in late Basketmaker jewelry. Its meaning is unknown but resembles the layout of a Basketmaker pit structure.
Zig-zag lines could be narrative tools similar to the rows of dots, representing migration or the passage of time.
This image has been scratched over completely.
These vertical rows of dots may serve the same function as the longer horizontal rows before — indicating the passage of time or travel.
This plant image could represent wild tobacco or corn.
A hunting composition including a person with a bow and arrow.
A sheep image that could be from the Archaic age
Ducklike birds are common subjects from the Basketmaker era
This figure may represent injury or death.
A hunting dog.
Broad-shouldered phallic male figures are typical of the Basketmaker II period.
A human holding an atlatl or dart.
This row of sheep is brighter than others nearby, indicating it may have been “re-pecked” or drawn later.
A human-sheep encounter.
An Archaic-style sheep.
A human-sheep encounter.
These images are consistent with Pueblo style.
This plant may be a Basketmaker representation of a yucca stalk.
These figures, two carrying sacks and one playing a flute, may represent gatherers.
This large human figure was drawn more recently than the round, four-legged animal to the right.
Shapes, possibly footprints, were etched on top of the animal figure at a later date.
A horned animal depicted as part of a hunting or game-driving scene from the Basketmaker II period.
A human figure probably part of the Basketmaker II hunting or game-driving scene.
A human figure with some kind of headdress that resembles horns.
Another game-driving scene.
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