Pennsylvania Petroglyph Studies

[CMD]

A little off the wall for us arrowhead collectors, but something you might run into. Jack has both petroglyphs and pictographs on his Big Bend property, but we have such things in the Northeast as well.
Here's a couple of good articles on the presence of Native American rock art in Pennslylvania. Some, including some archaeologists, are quick to dismiss folks who lack a certificate or degree. But to a large degree Rock Art studies are still a dicipline in its' descriptive phase. There are plenty of studies comparing design motifs, and design element distribution, and theories as to meaning, but it remains a fertile area for amateurs to make significant contributions. Guys like Paul Nevin, co-author of these 2 articles. I imagine his 25 years experience is worth a certificate or two

http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/petroglyphs/3892/pa_heritage_petroglyph_article/981882

http://pa.gov/portal/server.pt/community/petroglyphs/3892

I imagine Mr. Nevin would be a good guy to touch base with where rock art studies in Pa. are concerned.

[Butch Wilson]

Good articles here, thanks for the links on petroglyphs.

[Hoss]

Thanks Charlie that is very informative information. Very interesting.

[cgode]

Cool articles Charlie, I'm assuming you know of a few in RI?

[CMD]

cgode wrote:

Cool articles Charlie, I'm assuming you know of a few in RI?

Yeah, Chris, I'm only half a mile as the crow flies from the largest site in RI. Much storm damage in recent years, but many have been safe a foot or so beneath the mud and sand for years. Some of my favorites there were wiped out by storms, though.

[turkeytail]

Cool read Charlie! We have some about an hour from my house. Went there last year and its very interesting. Too bad they had to put a fence around it because of morons defacing them.

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-54463_18595_18612---,00.html

[gregszybala]

Thanks Charlie, would be cool to go see these

[CMD]

turkeytail wrote:

Cool read Charlie! We have some about an hour from my house. Went there last year and its very interesting. Too bad they had to put a fence around it because of morons defacing them.

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-54463_18595_18612---,00.html

Cool link and petroglyphs, Mark. At least your state is protecting them now. Vandalism is a huge problem at such sites. Especially bad in the desert West, where people use rock art panels for target practice. All but a few of those located in RI are on sandstone outcrops directly on Narragansett Bay, and subject to storm damage. Dighton Rock, one of the most famous examples in the US, was located on a huge boulder in the Tauhton River, which drains into Narragansett Bay. Years ago, the state of Ma removed it to a hillside park above the Taunton River and built a building and museum display around it. So it's protected now, which is a good thing, even though it no longer sits in its' natural setting. The English were making drawings of, and attempting to interpret it, as early as the 1600's.

[rmartin]

Thanks for that Charlie. As you know this is a real interest to me. I have seen many in the southwest,  but there are  few in Illinois, no very few. I have some old 35mm pics of one in So. Illinios I will have to look for. Ray.

[CMD]

rmartin wrote:

Thanks for that Charlie. As you know this is a real interest to me. I have seen many in the southwest,  but there are  few in Illinois, no very few. I have some old 35mm pics of one in So. Illinios I will have to look for. Ray.

Yes, I know your interest in this Ray. On my first trip to the Southwest, while driving through the Petrified Forest, I realized nearly every boulder had some image or images pecked into it, easily seen against the desert varnish contrast. I think I took over 100 slides before finally exiting the park :lol:
From then on, on that trip, and later visits, I made it a point to seek out petroglyph sites. I really liked Newspaper Rock, but I can't remember if it was the one by that name in Arizona, or the one in Utah.
Yes, much less common in the eastern half of the US. Hope you can find your old 35mm pics.
Charlie

[CliffJ]

My favorite NC petroglyph. It looked a lot more like the first pic when I first saw it years ago, nestled in the river valley in the mountains. Renowned artifact collector Tommy Beutell lives close to this ancient icon near Sylva NC. The Cherokee believe that the scratches came from the claws of the giant bird Judaculla as he flew from mountain to mountain.

http://www.judacullarock.com/

[CMD]

CliffJ wrote:

My favorite NC petroglyph. It looked a lot more like the first pic when I first saw it years ago, nestled in the river valley in the mountains. Renowned artifact collector Tommy Beutell lives close to this ancient icon near Sylva NC. The Cherokee believe that the scratches came from the claws of the giant bird Judaculla as he flew from mountain to mountain.

http://www.judacullarock.com/

WOW! Cliff, that's a great link and one of the best petroglyph panels I've ever seen from the east coast.
In its' sheer extent, it reminds me of the Peterborough site in eastern Canada or the famous Newspaper Rocks from Az. and Utah. Thanks for sharing that!

[CliffJ]

[CMD]

CliffJ wrote:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]n218190[/ATTACH]

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: