Duck Man, San Juan County, Utah

(Click image to enlarge)

Petroglyphs are literally pecked, one dot at a time, into the rock to create figures. Because the process is so difficult and takes so long, it is almost certain that the figures were quite significant to their creators. Some believe that petroglyphs like this one are the work of shamans who recorded their trance visions or spiritual experiences. This ancient and amazingly well preserved petroglyph was painstakingly chipped out of the very dark desert varnish that covers a gigantic boulder. It rests on a talus slope overlooking the San Juan River, and one can only guess why it was created and what its meaning may be.