Destination West!
  • Home Page
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Idaho
  • Montana
  • Nevada
    • Las Vegas
  • New Mexico
  • Oregon
  • South Dakota
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • Wyoming
  • Route 66
  • About
  • Get In Touch
  • Landscape Gallery I
    • Landscape Gallery II
  • Macro Gallery
  • Street Gallery
  • Wildlife Gallery I
    • Wildlife Gallery II
    • Wildlife Gallery III
  • Archive Albums
DestinationWest.Org

A western tourism resource featuring majestic destinations and lesser known places!   

Wijiji Pictographs ~ Chaco Culture National Historical Park

2/20/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Wijiji Pictographs ~ Chaco Culture National Historical Park

For those who do the invigorating Wijiji hike, a short spur trail runs from the great house pueblo to an ancient pictograph wall that is fascinating to see! Since the total distance of the Wijiji hiking trail round trip is three miles, going a few extra hundred yards to view the rock art is well within order. This venture will consume some extra time, so be sure pack plenty of water for the trek. The cool weather seasons are best for hiking in Chaco Canyon and stormy days can add a dramatic effect. In fact, after a rain storm, many petroglyphs that are barely visible on a dry day will come to life. The angle of the sunlight is another factor that reveals hidden rock art characteristics and the Wijiji Pictographs are a good example of this effect.

The Wijiji Pictographs cover a couple of small areas on the wall of the canyon and their initial appearance is quite subtle. This is especially true in bright sunlight, because many of the hand prints, astronomical symbols and sketches have faded over time. The bold red color paintings are easy to spot and they certainly have a story to tell. It is the faded outline of the painted hands that is the most fascinating to see, because they are not obvious upon first glance. 

When doing the Wijiji Pictograph hike in the late afternoon, several hidden painted hands will magically start to appear on the canyon wall. Because of the reflective crystalline content in the paint mixture, the setting sun reveals what was previously invisible to the eye. Native people are keenly aware of raw material qualities when gathering them for decorative purposes and this definitely holds true in ancient times. Many native people have used the same mineral pigment gathering sites for countless generations and the materials are a valuable trade commodity. The reflective qualities of ground quartz or mica certainly is a quality that an artisan seeks, which is evident at Wijiji. All it takes is good eyes and some patience early or late in the day to see the painted hand magic!   

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Leave no trace!

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020

    Donations help the Destinaton West project continue into the future! 
    Go Fund Me!

    This website uses marketing and tracking technologies. Opting out of this will opt you out of all cookies, except for those needed to run the website. Note that some products may not work as well without tracking cookies.

    Opt Out of Cookies
© COPYRIGHT 2015. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Home Page
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Idaho
  • Montana
  • Nevada
    • Las Vegas
  • New Mexico
  • Oregon
  • South Dakota
  • Utah
  • Washington
  • Wyoming
  • Route 66
  • About
  • Get In Touch
  • Landscape Gallery I
    • Landscape Gallery II
  • Macro Gallery
  • Street Gallery
  • Wildlife Gallery I
    • Wildlife Gallery II
    • Wildlife Gallery III
  • Archive Albums