Rock Art Photo Gallery
There are different kinds of rock art. Each was painted at a different time in the history of the Archaic Indians of the Lower Pecos. Each of these styles is briefly described below. You can see pictures of the various styles in the Photo Gallery.
Pecos River Style
The Archaic Indians of the Lower Pecos began their painting about 5,000 years ago after the end of the last Ice Age. The earliest paintings are called the Pecos River Style. They are one of the oldest styles of painting in North or South America. It was popular for about 2,500 years.
People who study primitive art think that the Pecos River Style shows a universe with three levels. The good spirits live on the top level, much like heaven. Humans live in the middle on earth, and the evil spirits live below the earth. When shamans left the earth, they journeyed to one of the spirit worlds.
The characters in the Pecos River Style paintings were never shown in action. They were painted as though the figures were posing for a portrait.
Red Linear Style
This style of painting first appeared about 2,500 years ago. It was popular for about 500 years. The images in this style are smaller than those in the Pecos River Style. These are also action paintings that show someone or something engaged in an activity. Red Linear Style paintings were painted in places that are harder to find. Some of these places are very difficult to reach.
Petroglyphs
Petroglyphs are images etched or carved into rock. No paint is involved. This very different kind of art appeared about 2,000 years ago in a place called Lewis Canyon.
There are two styles of petroglyphs. One style is abstract. That means it does not show anything that we recognize. The other style is the Serpentine Style. These etched images are of weapons, stick figures, and animal tracks.
Bold Linear & Red Monochrome Styles
About 1,000 years ago, two new art forms appeared in the Lower Pecos. The Bold Linear and Red Monochrome Styles were used for about 600 years. Just like the Lower Pecos Style, the images in this style were not action figures. Some of the images include dogs, mountain lions, bison, and turkey. This style also showed people with bows and arrows. Since bows and arrows did not appear in the Lower Pecos until about 1,400 years ago, paintings of these weapons help to date these art forms.
Click below to enter the Photo Galleries:
Please Note: The Photo Gallery is a large page and, depending on the speed of your internet connection, may take a while to load. Visit www.rockart.org to see their photo gallery.
Copyright 2008