Oct 23 - Three Rivers Petroglyph Site

Today we visited the Three Rivers Petroglyphs site (managed by BLM). What a remarkable place!! The trail is not handicap accessible but is a fairly easy hike (there will be some dodging rocks, and slight inclines). There is a nice guide at the trailhead that describes a very small fraction (11 to be exact) out of the 21,000 petroglyphs that have actually been documented by the Archaeological Society of NM's Rock Art Recording Field School.

These petroglyphs (rock carvings) were made by a group of prehistoric Native Americans referred to as the Jornada Mogollon. The pictures were made with stone tools by removing the dark patina on the exterior of the rock. Some of the petroglyphs were made by just scratching through the patina to the lighter inner layer of the rock. Others were made by pecking through the patina using two rocks like a hammer & chisel. Scholars know how the petroglyphs were made and probably by who - but no one really knows what the petroglyphs were used for.

It was amazing to see these petroglyphs and wonder what they were trying to convey. The hill upon which the petroglyphs reside is fairly remote and not easily accessed - why would they choose that particular place to leave their mark? Was it a place for worship? A gathering place for gossip & news? We may never know. My suggestion is for you to go visit, see how many you can spot and come up with your own theory on their significance.

Variety of Petroglyphs

Mask

Running Bighorn Sheep

Body of Bighorn Sheep - notice body is full of Mimbres-style geometric design & three arrows