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  • Quick Facts
    • What is rock art?
    • Who made Arkansas rock art?
    • How are petroglyphs made?
    • How are pictographs made?
    • What is the difference between rock art and graffiti?
    • How old is Arkansas rock art?
    • Why did Native Americans make rock art?
    • What kinds of rock art images have been identified?
    • What are rock art styles?
    • What threatens to destroy rock art?
    • Where can I see rock art in Arkansas?
    • What can I do at a rock art site?
  • Interpretations
    • A Horse-and-Rider Pictograph
    • Fish-trap and Paddlefish
    • Portals Between the Worlds / Underwater Spirit
    • Footprints, Handprints, and Animal Tracks
    • The Hellgrammite Pictograph
    • The Human Body
    • The Narrows Rock Art Panel
    • Tools for Making Rock Art at The Narrows
    • Rock Art in Context: Art
    • Rock Art in Context: Physical Context
    • Rock Art in Context: Cultural Landscapes
  • Articles
    • The Arkansas Rock Art Project
    • What is Rock Art and What Can it Tell Us About the Past?
    • The Chronological and Cultural Context of Arkansas Rock Art
    • History of Rock Art Research in Arkansas
    • The Petit Jean Painted Rock Art Style
  • Technical Papers
    • Rock Art Documentation in Arkansas
    • The Narrows Rock Art in Archeological Context
    • Photogrammetry at The Narrows
    • Excavations at Rockhouse Cave
    • Archaeogeophysics at Rockhouse Cave
    • Actively Managing Rock Art Sites
  • Resources
    • Activities
      • A Native American Bestiary
      • Ancient Art Forms
      • Ancient Art Styles
      • Here Comes the Sun
      • Petroglyphs and Pictographs
      • Seeing the Ancient Peoples
      • Seeing the World Through Ancient Eyes
      • The Sky World, This World, and the Underworld
      • Using Databases
    • Lesson Plans
      • What is Rock Art Lesson
      • Ancient Animals
      • Art and Culture
      • Mysterious Symbols
      • Rock Art and Ritual
      • Seeing Ancient People Lesson
      • Seeing Ancient Worlds
    • Glossary
    • Bibliography
    • Site Recording Forms
    • Rock Art Links
  • Database
    • Search Database
    • Search Advanced Database
  • Just For Kids
    • Gayle's Quest
    • Raven's Dream
    • Jason and Tiffany's Excellent Adventure
  • Picture Gallery
    • Visit the Picture Gallery
  • Buy the Book!


Quick Facts
What is rock art?
Who made Arkansas rock art?
How are petroglyphs made?
How are pictographs made?
What is the difference between rock art and graffiti?
How old is Arkansas rock art?
Why did Native Americans make rock art?
What kinds of rock art images have been identified?
What are rock art styles?
What threatens to destroy rock art?
Where can I see rock art in Arkansas?
What can I do at a rock art site?

Interpretations
A Horse-and-Rider Pictograph
Fish-trap and Paddlefish
Portals Between the Worlds / Underwater Spirit
Footprints, Handprints, and Animal Tracks
The Hellgrammite Pictograph
The Human Body
The Narrows Rock Art Panel
Tools for Making Rock Art at The Narrows
Rock Art in Context: Art
Rock Art in Context: Physical Context
Rock Art in Context: Cultural Landscapes

Articles
The Arkansas Rock Art Project
What is Rock Art and What Can it Tell Us About the Past?
The Chronological and Cultural Context of Arkansas Rock Art
History of Rock Art Research in Arkansas
The Petit Jean Painted Rock Art Style

Technical Papers
Rock Art Documentation in Arkansas
The Narrows Rock Art in Archeological Context
Photogrammetry at The Narrows
Excavations at Rockhouse Cave
Archaeogeophysics at Rockhouse Cave
Actively Managing Rock Art Sites

Resources
Activities
A Native American Bestiary
Ancient Art Forms
Ancient Art Styles
Here Comes the Sun
Petroglyphs and Pictographs
Seeing the Ancient Peoples
Seeing the World Through Ancient Eyes
The Sky World, This World, and the Underworld
Using Databases
Lesson Plans
What is Rock Art Lesson
Ancient Animals
Art and Culture
Mysterious Symbols
Rock Art and Ritual
Seeing Ancient People Lesson
Seeing Ancient Worlds
Glossary
Bibliography
Site Recording Forms
Rock Art Links

Database
Search Database
Search Advanced Database

Just For Kids
Gayle's Quest
Raven's Dream
Jason and Tiffany's Excellent Adventure

Picture Gallery
Visit the Picture Gallery

Buy the Book!




Why did Native Americans make rock art?

Headdress pictograph
Headdress pictograph from
Petit Jean State Park.

The question of why rock art was made has intrigued archeologists and the public ever since these images were first noticed and understood to be the products of antiquity. We will never know all the reasons for creating rock art. Some images may represent idle doodling, but the most durable theory of rock art interpretation over the years associates these fascinating images with belief systems and ritual activity.

Archeologists recognize that different kinds of rituals take place in different locations. Rock art produced as part of a ritual or ceremony should reflect these differences. Thus, rock art examples at secluded, hard-to-reach sites might have been made during individual rites performed in solitude (for example, vision quests or puberty rites), while images at larger, more accessible sites may be the result of shaman practices performed for the benefit of the wider community.

Analysis of the subject matter depicted at a rock art site is frequently part of a project to understand the belief system or worldview of its makers. The placement of rock art sites at certain geographical locations, and their relationships to other kinds of sites (such as habitations, hunting areas, or ceremonial centers), can also be studied to enlarge our understanding of the total cultural landscape. For example, isolation or difficulty of access may indicate that a site was considered to be "sacred space." On the other hand, rock art in sites also containing domestic refuse (such as The Narrows) argues for a more integrated social landscape in which ritual activity merged with recreational pastimes in the context of everyday domestic activities. In the latter case, rock art might have played an important part in story-telling, with combined value for education, entertainment, and group solidarity. This narrative function of rock art imagery is one of the current trends in interpretation.

8. What kinds of rock art images have been identified?

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Last Updated: April 11, 2007 at 8:27:32 AM Central Time
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