This little gem was an accidental discovery: I had caught wind of the presence of a pictograph cave in the vicinity and was availing myself of an opportunity to look for it. Since the Volcanic Tablelands are known for petroglyphs, not pictographs, I was interested to see what the pictographs in this area looked like!
( In fact, I know of only three pictograph sites in this area, and they are all within a few miles of each other, suggesting a cultural intrusion into this area. )
The pictographs on the left portion of the little cave. All elements are in a narrow band in the center of the photo. Click the photo to see a larger view.
The rightmost portion of the cave wall showing the most visible element right center, an indistinct element in the foreground to the right, and some overlap with the previous photo on the left.
The “accidental” part is that this little cave was not the one I was looking for: the elements did not match the brief description I had of my intended target.
Looking straight into the little cave.
Instead, this cave is within a half mile or so of where I found my original quarry, further along the same bluff.
I only found it because I had been searching on the wrong side of the bluff, and when it started to peter out I climbed up and over the ridge and descended down to the far side to backtrack to my vehicle.
Had I picked the right side of the bluff to start with I would probably have stopped after finding the first, intended site, since the hour was getting late!
An overview of the southern portion of the panel, with DStretch applied to clearly show the elements. The eponymous domino “snake eye” can be seen lower right.
The pictographs are all in the same little shelter at the foot of the bluff, which runs roughly north-south. The cave itself is maybe 10 feet across, and about half as high.
The southern portion of the cave has four distinct elements.
Closest to the outside is a sunburst motif, followed by two circles connected by a line, with two dots above and below the line.
A figure 8 type symbol is drawn below some splotches of pigment, followed by two adjacent rectangles, each with a single dot in the lower center. The shape of the pigment smear above the latter two symbols is not remarkable.
A closer look at the sunburst and accompanying motif.
A closer look at the 8-shape and the Rectilinear style design next to it.
The back wall of the cave displays some wavy lines and a grid of dots.
The next symbols are quite interesting: a precise grid of 14 dots, arranged in rows of 4 across with the rightmost dots missing from the bottom row, as well as a set of wavy lines drawn above and to the north.
The dotted pigments can also be found, for example, at pictograph panels further south in the Southern Sierras. Those panels are in Tübatulabal or Kawaiisu territory, and I haven’t seen the same pattern in pictograph sites outside of that region before.
DStretch enhances the panel, showing the designs very clearly.
This makes it possible that this panel might represent a northerly intrusion of one of those cultures – but this is all just speculation on my part!
The rock shelter itself does not show any clear signs of habitation – no lithic scatter in the vicinity, no bedrock mortars or grinding slicks, and also no soot deposits on the ceiling.
This makes it possible that the location may have been ritualistic. Its small size does make it seem unsuitable for habitation.
To the north is a quite vivid element, the first one I noticed when I entered the cave.
The vivid design, right rear of the cave.
DStretch shows faint designs below and to the left.
This Curvilinear design bears resemblance to pictograph and even petroglyph designs from all over the state.
With a DStretch enhancement some fainter lines of pigment below the figure resolve into three vertical lines and a grouping of four dots, as well as some other traces to the right, now worn away almost completely. There is also a somewhat smudged area of pigment to the top left of the element.
DStretch detail of indistinct area.
The area of pigment that can be seen in the foreground of the very first overview photo up above is prominent but indistinct.
DStretch shows that it is also accompanied by some faint, delicate vertical lines on its left, as well as a few smaller areas of pigment.
This little cave has been untouched by modern hands, and the designs are still crisp even though the southernmost ones are somewhat faded, being closer to the entrance rather than nestled in the well-protected hollow at the rear of the cave.
It is also possible that the elements in this cave may be of different ages, since painting style and pigmentation of the paint differs slightly, with the complex design having a darker pigment that appear to have been more diluted when applied – though this could just be an effect caused by the smoother rock face it was painted on, and the differing coloration could just be due to different exposures to the elements.
If you visit this area, please do not touch the pictographs – they are fragile and your touch can lift pigment off the surface, or leave behind skin oils and other residue that will damage the paint over time. Leave this site as pristine as you found it.