Our 'weekend' plans were designed around the need to purchase and mail the external hard-drive and to restock our larder at WalMart. A visit to the Parowan Gap petroglyph panels about 15 miles outside Cedar City, briefly mentioned in a tourist brochure, seemed like an interesting activity for Tuesday morning.
Although the directions were sketchy, the site was easy to reach and well worth the trip. Archeologists have counted over 1500 figures, some nearly 5000 years old, scattered over 90 panels on both sides of a 600-foot deep notch in the hills surrounding Cedar Valley. What makes the site so unusual, aside from the number of figures and span of time during which they were created, is that the Gap was used by the Paleo-Indians as a solar calendar. The main glyph, nicknamed "The Zipper", may record the sun's movement through the Gap in order to schedule planting and harvesting times.
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| Zipper Petroglyph |
Earlier visitors to the site have felt compelled to add modern graffiti to the ancient. Thus, chainlink fencing has been erected around several panels to protect them from further damage or theft. (Yes, people have pried off slabs of petroglyphs!) . The necessity of the barrier is apparent but regretable because the direct and bright light (it's a solar calendar, after all) makes photography difficult.
On the way back across Cedar Valley, we saw a long white line moving across the horizon. As we drew closer, we discerned a shepherd on horseback moving a huge herd of ~300 sheep from one side of the road to the other. Cool!
