Barrier Canyon Style

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Great Gallery of Horseshoe Canyon, Utah USA
Barrier Canyon Style Rock Art
by ancientartarch|December 21, 2023|Barrier Canyon Style, North America, petroglyph, pictograph, Rock Art, Rock Art Styles, Uncategorized, Utah
The Barrier Canyon Style (BCS) represents an intriguing facet of prehistoric rock art, primarily concentrated in Utah, notably flourishing within the San Rafael Swell and Canyonlands National Park regions
Platinum Palladium Print
by Stephen Alvarez|November 29, 2019|Uncategorized
Master platinum-palladium printer and Guggenheim Grant winner Pradip Malde produced an exquisite, limited-edition print to support the Ancient Art Archive. Pradip and I chose a photograph of the Head of Sinbad rock art site on the San Rafael Swell in Central Utah for this print. The paintings are Barrier Canyon Style and thought to be between 2,000 and 4,000 years old. I shot the image this spring with Pradip’s printing in mind. Platinum print by Pradip Malde, image by Stephen Alvarez image size approximately 9" x 14"
Good News for the San Rafael Swell
by Stephen Alvarez|March 5, 2019|Barrier Canyon Style, Emery County, petroglyph, pictograph, Rock Art, Utah
Buckhorn Wash Pictograph Panel on the San Rafael Swell Those of you who have been following the Ancient Art Archive's work are familiar with our efforts to document Barrier Canyon Style (BCS) artworks. BCS is one of North America's most enigmatic and evocative styles. It is known, primarily from the San Rafael Swell of Central Utah. In general conservation news has been bad in Utah for the past few years. Both Bears Ears and Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monuments were significantly reduced. However, last month a mammoth public lands bill passed both the House and Senate that will increase protections on many National Lands. Among many other things the bill adds 660,000 acres of wilderness designation to Emery County Utah, home of much of the San Rafael Swell. You can read more here. The Rochester Rock Art Panel in Emery County Utah
Barrier Canyon Rock Art, Utah
by Stephen Alvarez|January 16, 2019|2000 BP, Barrier Canyon Style, Native American, San Juan County, Utah
A Barrier Canyon Painting in Southern Utah
Rainbow Man, Barrier Canyon Style Pictographs, Emery County Utah
by Stephen Alvarez|February 10, 2017|4000 BP, Barrier Canyon Style, Emery County, pictograph, Rock Art, Utah
A horned anthropomorphic petroglyph with rainbows enhanced with D-Stretch. Barrier Canyon Style Pictographs, Emery County Utah Within this faded group of Barrier Canyon Style pictograph is the Double Rainbow man. The figure is somewhat faded so I have run D-Stretch to bring it then recombined it with the original image to make the figure above. (more…)
High Gallery Barrier Canyon Style rock art panel, Wayne County Utah
by Stephen Alvarez|February 9, 2017|4000 BP, Barrier Canyon Style, petroglyph, pictograph, Rock Art, Utah, Wayne County
A detailed view of the High Gallery of Horseshoe Canyon, Wayne County Utah. High Gallery of Horseshoe Canyon, Wayne County, Utah Recorded August 2016 This is the first gallery in The Horseshoe (Barrier) Canyon section of Canyonlands National Park. It is on the East wall of the canyon far above the canyon floor. It has well-preserved anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figures in classic Barrier Canyon Style. Besides the pictographs there are also a number of petroglyphs faintly visible within the panel.  BCS style art is thought to be about 4,000 years BP. There is a longer discussion of the age of the art on the NPS Horseshoe canyon page (here). To see the panel in greater context of the canyon look at this image
Nampaweap Petroglyphs
Nampaweap Petroglyph Site
by Stephen Alvarez|October 20, 2016|Arizona, Mojave County, petroglyph, Rock Art
Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, Mojave County Arizona Nampaweap is a very large petroglyph site in the Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument. Hundreds of individual petroglyphs cover the face of a lava flow at the head of Nampaweap canyon. The canyon is a natural corridor from the Colorado River to the Ponderosa pine forest on Mt Trumbull and the wetland around Nixon Spring. There are a large variety of symbols represented at this site including the nearly universal anthropomorphic figures. Additional information from the NPS is here. Nampaweap petroglyph site, Mojave County Arizona Nampaweap petroglyph site, Mojave County Arizona Bighorn sheep petroglyphs at Nampaweap petroglyph site, Mojave County Arizona A desert big horn sheep pictograph at the Nampaweap site, Mojave County Arizona Nampaweap petroglyph site, Mojave County Arizona We have more updated images in our archive here. For anyone who wants to find out more about this site and the rock art of...
Alcove Gallery, Horseshoe Canyon, Utah
by Stephen Alvarez|August 12, 2016|Barrier Canyon Style, Horseshoe Canyon, Utah, Virtual Reality
Rock shelter on Barrier Creek, Horseshoe Canyon, Utah. The Alcove Gallery is the third major Barrier Canyon Style rock art panel in the Horseshoe Canyon unit of Canyonland National Park. It is located inside a major rock shelter on Barrier Creek. Alcove Gallery, Horseshoe Canyon, Utah