TRACCEAmerica Archives - Page 3 of 7

Archive for America

New Pictographs at Guatin – Northern Chile

In 2013 Mario Giorgetta, an academic botanist from Switzerland, discovered for the first time a small rock panel with a collection of clearly associated pictographs on a rock cliff in the gorge of the Río Vilama. Mario reported the site to me in 2019 and we agreed to publish a paper describing the panel and its context. This paper comprises two parts. The first part is written by Maarten van Hoek and briefly attempts at interpreting the elements that make up the pictograph scene and the second part is independently written by the discoverer of the pictograph panel at Guatin, Mario Giorgetta.

by Maarten van Hoek and Mario Giorgetta
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Contextualising the Geoglyph of Huacán, southern Peru

April 8, 2021 Academics, Geoglyphs, South America No comments

Arequipa in southern Peru is very rich in rock art. This study investigates the relationship between the Majes Rock Art Style and the geoglyphs (not a form of rock art, though) in the area. It proves that several geoglyphs are directly related with the petroglyphs of Toro Muerto and also that they are located on ancient routes to and from the Majes Valley. Arequipa en el sur de Perú es muy rico en arte rupestre. Este estudio investiga la relación entre el Estilo del Arte Rupestre de Majes y los geoglifos (no una forma de arte rupestre) en el área. Demuestra que varios geoglifos están directamente relacionados con los petroglifos de Toro Muerto y también que están ubicados en las rutas antiguas desde y hacia el Valle de Majes.

Serrated Edges in Rock Art

March 2, 2021 Academics, North America, South America No comments

Certain rock art images prove to occur at numerous places in the world, like cupules and zigzags. In most cases this is a matter of parallel invention. However, a number of motifs may have travelled across the globe for short or even enormous distances. This study investigates the distribution of one of the enigmatic rock art features, the serrated edge and explores the possibility that this practice diffused from North America to South America (or vice versa).

By Maarten van Hoek

The Enigma of the “Feathered Homunculus”, Peru

February 2, 2021 Academics, Featured, South America No comments

Rock art images often include unexpected and enigmatic elements. This study investigates the petroglyphs of especially anthropomorphic figures in the Majes Valley of southern Peru that have an unanticipated feather-element; a long groove (sometimes slightly curved) with a row of parallel but shorter grooves attached to one side only. This study will describe the petroglyphs of the several types of biomorphs featuring a feather-element, focussing however on the “Feathered Homunculus”, as well as their surprisingly limited distribution.

By Maarten van Hoek

Feline Petroglyphs in the Majes Valley, Peru

January 4, 2021 Academics, South America, Zoomorphic No comments

The Majes Valley of southern Peru is well-known for its enormous collection of petroglyphs. A significant diversity of animal species has been depicted on the relatively soft volcanic rocks of those sites. Images of felines are relatively scarce in the Majes Valley, yet they are unexpectedly numerous in absolute terms in the Central Majes Valley. In this study the image of the Majes feline and its graphical anomalies will be discussed, as well as the unexpected distribution pattern of feline imagery in the Majes Valley.

By Maarten van Hoek

New “Carcancha” Petroglyphs in Arequipa, Peru

December 2, 2020 Academics, Featured, South America No comments

This paper presents the description of two new sites in Majes, Peru, both featuring an example of a skeleton-like petroglyph that may spiritually be linked with the Sacred Mountain of Coropuna. The documentation of those two new sites thus reveals new information about the symbolic spatial organization and ritual functions of the “Death Valley of the Andes”. It is especially hypothesized here that the specific setting of those two new sites may indicate a physical “Road to Coropuna”.

By Maarten van Hoek Read more

False Information Concerning Majes Rock Art, Peru

November 13, 2020 Academics, Featured, South America No comments

Scientific publications should always be reliable. The content may never be incorrect or misleading. This also goes for publications regarding rock art, whether by amateurs or by academics. This short paper deals with two photographs of petroglyphs from the Majes Valley, southern Peru, and the conclusions based upon those illustrations published by two academics from the USA. Regrettably, both the photos and the conclusions are unambiguously incorrect.

By Maarten van Hoek

Enfrentando los dibujos… ¡otra vez! (Perú)

August 24, 2020 Academics, Featured, Imaging, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.46 No comments

With great interest I have watched the YouTube Video called: Charla Rupestre: Los Petroglifos de Chillihuay. Arequipa, Perú by Maritza Rodríguez Cerrón and Daniel Chumpitaz Llerena (21 August 2020), two leading Peruvian archaeologists who have intensively surveyed the important rock art site of Chillihuay in southern Peru. However, a couple of those drawings in their 2014-paper drew my attention, as they proved to be incorrect (PDF available).

by Maarten van Hoek – rockart @home.nl Read more

The Three Rivers 3D Masks

July 22, 2020 Academics, Featured, North America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.46 4 comments

In several cases rock art manufacturers were intrigued by natural rock features such as holes and cracks. This paper deals mainly with rock art images of masks that are folded across two rock panels creating 3D masks. In particular the Mogollon 3D masks of Three Rivers in New Mexico, USA, will be discussed. Also the puzzling anomaly regarding the distribution of Mogollon 3D masks and Rio Grande Style 3D masks will be dealt with. Finally, it will be attempted to offer an explanation for the enigmatic 3D masks (PDF available).

By Maarten van Hoek

The Rock Art of El Vagón – Moche Drainage, Peru

October 13, 2019 Academics, Featured, Geoglyphs, South America No comments

Despite increasing interest in inventorying of the rock art in the northern coastal area of Peru, only very little has been published by Peruvian scholars. In fact, several scholars said to publish inventories of – for example, Palamenco in Ancash and even of whole departments such as La Libertad – but nothing happens. This interim inventory about El Vagón (La Libertad) hopes to contribute to the digital safeguarding of important rock art that runs the risk to be vandalised or even destroyed.

By Maarten van Hoek

Enigmatic Configurations in Arequipa Rock Art, Peru

October 3, 2019 Academics, Asia, Morocco, South America, Zoomorphic No comments

The rock art of Arequipa (southern Peru) is characterised by several idiosyncratic images, like ‘Dancers’. However, also rather simple elements form rare and uncommon configurations that are composed of grooves, arcs of dots and crosses that are hovering over or are emanating from zoomorphic petroglyphs, yet intimately associated. Similar configurations prove to be very rare in global rock art.

By Maarten van Hoek Read more

The Incomplete Versus The Unfinished

July 8, 2019 Academics, Featured, Geoglyphs, North America, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.44 No comments

Only the manufacturer of a rock art image could reliably have informed us whether a rock art image is unfinished or whether it is incomplete. Unfortunately informed knowledge is often completely unavailable. Then only the image and its graphical and cultural context are available to possibly separate the unfinished from the incomplete. Additionally, the incomplete image may even include something invisible. To address these issues I will use the rich rock art repertoire of the Desert Andes, focussing mainly on Toro Muerto and Miculla, two enormous rock art sites in the south of Peru.

By Maarten van Hoek

Calling Cards: a New Plains Rock Art Site Type

July 6, 2019 Academics, Ethnography - Etnografia, Featured, North America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.44 No comments

Calling Card rock art sites, drawn by war parties in enemy territory to taunt their adversaries by illustrating deeds executed against them, are a newly identified site type on the northern Plains of North America. One such site is Cheval Bonnet, a small petroglyph in Northern Montana. Containing coup counting and horse raiding narratives from the early 1800s, analysis of these images shows that most of the petroglyphs can be identified as Crow drawings, even though they are carved in the heart of Historic Blackfeet tribal territory. Once this site was identified as a calling card petroglyph, I was able to identify three others elsewhere on the northern Plains (PDF available).

by James D. KEYSER Read more

The Saluting Anthropomorph in the Rock Art of the Americas

September 30, 2018 Academics, Featured, North America, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.43 No comments

Although in general complex biomorphic figures in rock art are not suitable to demonstrate diffusion, there is one idiosyncratic anthropomorphic figure the in rock art repertoire of the Americas, which, although it is very rare, has a remarkably wide distribution that might indicate long-distance diffusion. I have labelled this icon the Saluting Anthropomorph. See the UPDATE at the end of the paper.

By Maarten van Hoek Read more

Long Distance Diffusion of Rock Art Motifs in the Americas

September 7, 2018 Academics, Africa, America, Australia, Europe, Featured, Mid-America, Morocco, North America, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.43 No comments

Rock art motifs are found in every inhabited continent. In most cases those motifs develop independently, but it is also certain that specific rock art motifs migrated from one area to another area, sometimes travelling for thousands of kilometres. This study investigates the possible long-distance diffusion of a number of abstract rock art motifs along the Pacific seaboard of the Americas.

By Maarten van Hoek Read more

Indifferent Obliteration of Petroglyph Art

August 9, 2018 Academics, Featured, North America, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.43 No comments

Petroglyphs are often found superimposed by other petroglyphs, but in some cases they have also been (partially) obliterated by hammering, rubbing or polishing of the rock’s surface. This short study investigates a number of cases in North and South America where petroglyphs may have (and in some cases definitely have) been obliterated by such grinding activities. This study therefore strongly recommend to accurately record instances where grinding activities took place, even when there are no petroglyphs visible.

By Maarten van Hoek

The ‘Trophy-Bird’ of Alto de Pitis

June 8, 2018 Academics, Africa, Featured, Morocco, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.43 No comments

This paper provides a few examples of petroglyphs that have drastically been transformed by later rock art manufacturers. However, it focuses on one specific petroglyph, which is found at Alto de Pitis in the Majes Valley of southern Peru; aptly called ‘The Death Valley of the Andes’. In this paper I tentatively argue that the unique ‘Trophy-Bird’ petroglyph of Alto de Pitis initially started off as a ‘trophy’ head, which was later intentionally transformed to symbolise the Supernatural Flight of the Dead towards Apu Coropuna, the Sacred Mountain of the area.

by Maarten van Hoek

Una Actualización del Arte Rupestre del Cerro la Puntilla, Perú

March 4, 2018 Academics, Featured, South America, TRACCE Onl. RA Bull.43 No comments

Este artículo trata sobre el sitio de arte rupestre de La Puntilla en el norte de Perú. Aunque pasé este sitio muchas veces no lo he visitado. Sin embargo, el sitio tiene varios paneles muy interesantes con petroglifos – todos reportados por primera vez por el arqueólogo aficionado local, Francisco Gregorio Díaz Núñez – que serán discutidos en este artículo.