Petroglyph National Monument

Petroglyph National Monument is a small reserve of the type of a National Monument in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It preserves ruins of several prehistoric Native American settlements of precursors of the Pueblo culture and about 20,000 rock, predominantly of the prehistoric Indians, but also of Spanish settlers and earlier white Americans except the volcanic landscape and vegetation of the semi-desert.

The area was dedicated as a National Monument in 1990 and managed by the National Park Service along with the City Council of Albuquerque.

Description

On the western outskirts of Albuquerque, the cliffs on the west mesa from the valley of the Rio Grande rise to an escarpment mainly of volcanic basalt. The protected area covers a portion of the plateau, several canyons, where the carvings are predominantly, and in the far west three small cinder cone volcanoes.

About 90 % of the carvings are from the prehistoric Indians from which the Pueblo culture emerged. They were produced between the years 1300 and about 1600. The first or by direct blows of a stone on the coated dark patina rocks. Later, a hammer and chisel technique was developed with suitably shaped stones, could be worked out through the details with much greater control. In addition to human figures and body parts such as hands and feet in particular, mainly animals were imaged. In addition, there are geometric figures such as spirals and stars. Other carvings were made by Spanish settlers in the 17th and 18th centuries, and some of white American settlers in the 19th century.

The Indian petroglyphs have rich, according to the modern Pueblo Indians cultural and ritual meanings that are only partially mediated to outsiders.