This entry is a continuation of the previous entry in the series, further examining a large petroglyph site on the Volcanic Tablelands.
In this entry, we will finish examining the top and westerly side of ridge we’ve been following. We’ll also peek over the ridge to get a glimpse of what awaits us in the next entry.
Remember that I pointed out some bird-print like petroglyphs previously? Well, this part of the site takes that quite a bit further. All along the top of the ridge we’ll find a progression of bird prints, usually in sets of two, all the way down to a large boulder with a whole jumble of bird print petroglyphs. Quite amazing.
Let’s get started!
Picking up where we left off. We’ll have a look at the top of the ridge stretching down to the right, following the pecked bird print petroglyphs all the way down. In the foreground is a panel that seems to have at least one bird print design as well as some squiggles. In the background are some more ridges we’ll examine in more detail later.The front of the boulder has flaked away. Judging by the color of the exposed surface the petroglyphs might have been pecked after the exfoliation, since the petroglyphs are a little lighter in color, but we can’t tell for sure.The squiggling meander line leads into one three-toed bird-like print, with another next to it. This is very interesting imagery. In some cultures petroglyphs are connected with shamanism or spirit journeys. Elsewhere in the Great Basin we can find petroglyphs that seem to depict a person transforming into a spirit animal version – deer, sheep, rattlesnakes. It is not a stretch to think that these petroglyphs might represent a transformation too – a snake transforming into a bird.Past this first panel we find a grinding slick right atop the ridge, followed by a shield-like petroglyph, and off in the distance what looks like a pretty complicated, deeply incised Linear petroglyph. Let’s look at these in more detail.In this extreme closeup we can see how shallowly pecked the shield-like design is. The varnish was barely scraped away to reveal the lighter rock below.Contrast that with how the lines of the Linear petroglyph jumps out in relief. In the lower left center we can see a single barbell shape. The rest of the element is mostly composed of lines.A nice square on view. The very long line in the center seems lighter than some of the other elements. Maybe it was added later. The petroglyph also extends to the left, down into a curve of the rock.Deeply incised lines at the very top of the petroglyph. Contrast this with the mostly pecked designs that we’ve seen so far, with other incised designs spread few and far between. This design reminds me a little bit of utilitarian rocks where many deep, haphazard grooves were worn over the years as tools were sharpened and shaped against the rock. The same panel in different light. Do you see the fishbone / pine three like shape in the upper left? And the quartered circle, much brighter than the other elements, in the upper right? Very often, petroglyph sites look completely different depending on the time of day you visit. Details pop out in relief, other details fade, elements that were hard to see in the full glare of the sun become dimly visible in the soft evening light.A glance back at the petroglyphs already shown, to emphasize that we’re following the top of the ridge. The circular shield is down by our feet, and in the distance we can see the grinding slick as well.Ahead of us the ridge stretches away. You can see several elements carved on the top. And look – down below and to the left of the ridge there is a housing circle! This circle and several others at the site are very well preserved. Except for the ones we already saw in the previous entry, they are all on the easterly side of the outcroppings, providing shade in the heat of the afternoon and nice warm sunlight first thing in the morning after a cool night. These circles would have formed the base for a structure such as a wickiup, made of willow and other materials.You may have noticed this element almost dead center in the background in the previous photo – a spoked wheel, carved around a natural indentation in the rock.With overview shots it is hard to see how rough the rock and the designs are. This design is pretty deeply pecked, filled in here and there with specs of lichen.Only when we look up from that design do we really start to see the bird print aspect of the site. Here, the rock contains numerous bird prints, often in pairs, sometimes not. There is also a zig-zag line in the foreground ( perhaps the snake motif again? ) and a double-U shape in the background.Two prints, the zig-zag, another print, and then in the background one clear print to the left and another, harder to see, next to it on a small ridge.Let’s turn around. This picture was taken at a different time of day, closer to noon, so different details are highlighted. In the background we see the zig-zag, but we also see several more bird prints, including a pair close by the U-shaped element and another pair, back by the one on the ridge we just saw, that was hidden behind the ridge, in shade, from our previous vantage point.The whole grouping of prints. ( The zig-zag is in the upper right. )That U-shaped element actually has THREE lines, not just two!Off on a smaller ridge to the east there is another pair of bird prints.Let’s lead off with an overview of the most interesting part of this area. Facing back towards the panel we looked at, we can see a grouping of prints, all facing the same way, in the foreground, and two more sets in the background – one pair also facing towards us as another to the left of that that faces easterly. Finally, look really carefully, above that set there are more set in the side of the outcropping.A different light, as this picture was taken at a different time of day. We’re a little further away and so we can see that there are more prints going towards the edge of the outcropping.The bird print panel is broken up by a single circle with a dot in the center. What’s interesting is that there is a panel elsewhere on the Tablelands that has sheep and deer on it, and also one of these yoni-like circles. Maybe these panels are connected to a ritual to ensure plentiful prey.The ridge we’ve been following is almost at an end. I can stand next to it and see the elements carved into the side.Here’s one of the sets of prints, close-up. I’ll show several more. This is fascinating.Another set of two.The set by the U shape.Another pair, one partly obscured by some dark lichen that blends in well with the rock.In a way, they almost look natural when you look at them up real close. They are pretty strikingly man-made when you see them in person, though.I really like this one, again with lichen growing in the petroglyphs. I’ve noticed before that lichen seems to grow well in petroglyphs – maybe the exposed rock is easier to adhere to and get a spore started?Here’s that one anomalous set that faces east instead of southerly.Maybe you noticed this panel in the background in one of the early overviews shown in this entry. It seems a little out of place here, the elements are not very similar to the rest of the site, except for the zig-zags. This pretty much marks the southerly boundary of our walk along this ridge.Close by there’s a subtle squiggle line on the easterly side of the ridge.Finally, this element was visible in the background before and I wanted to double back to it. Atop this rock is the zig-zag and bird prints. Here, on the side, we see another squiggle line, and an odd element that kind of reminds me of a dragonfly.I mentioned that we visited this site twice. What a difference time and a careless bird makes!To wrap up, I promised a glimpse at cupules in the previous entry. We’ll see these in a lot more detail soon. This picture is taken straight down from the top of the ridge, looking down on a boulder with a lot of cupules on it.
Well, that wraps up this entry! Weren’t those bird prints cool to see? I’ll be back soon with another entry. We’ll walk along the inside of the outcropping, looking at the stone circles and the elements on the easterly side of the ridge. This is also the area where most of the obsidian chips scattered about the site can be found.
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2 thoughts on ““For The Birds” Petroglyphs”
JMS
It seems many of these sites around the Tablelands have a theme when it comes to track petroglyphs.
I have seen in the area two toed hooves, human feet, human hands, and possibly bear paws, and with yours bird tracks.
Neat find!
Yes! I’ve also seen human handprints and footprints, as well as bear paws, at sites on the Tablelands. There’s one site I’ve been to already that I later heard had bird prints hidden, if you know where to look. I want to go back there soon and find them for myself. These bird prints are really pretty amazing, running right along the ridge like they do. There is a definite theme of them here. Quite apart from these, this is a very rich site full of amazing finds.
It seems many of these sites around the Tablelands have a theme when it comes to track petroglyphs.
I have seen in the area two toed hooves, human feet, human hands, and possibly bear paws, and with yours bird tracks.
Neat find!
Yes! I’ve also seen human handprints and footprints, as well as bear paws, at sites on the Tablelands. There’s one site I’ve been to already that I later heard had bird prints hidden, if you know where to look. I want to go back there soon and find them for myself. These bird prints are really pretty amazing, running right along the ridge like they do. There is a definite theme of them here. Quite apart from these, this is a very rich site full of amazing finds.