Basin and Range

Basin and Range NM https://www.blm.gov/programs/national-conservation-lands/nevada/basin-and-range-national-monument https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basin_and_Range_National_Monument Basin and Range National Monument is a national monument of the United States spanning approximately 704,000 acres of remote, undeveloped mountains and valleys in Lincoln and Nye counties in southeastern Nevada.

Rock Art The nevAdA rock Art FoundAtion produced this product with funding provided by the sale of public lands by the BureAu oF LAnd MAnAgeMent and approved under an inter-agency partnership authorized by the Lincoln County Land Act. Mt. Irish Archaeological Mount Irish District Archaeological District BLM NRAF LincoLn county ArchAeoLogicAL initiAtive Project Rock Art of Lincoln County Mount Irish Archaeological District Pres e rvin g t h e Pas t S ome of the oldest petroglyphs in the Great Basin date to 10,000 years ago; in the Mt. Irish Archaeological District, some petroglyphs are 4,000 years old. Despite this antiquity, rock art, like other archaeological monuments, is a fragile part of Nevada’s cultural heritage. Natural erosional processes, such as weathering from water and wind, are slowly wearing away these ancient markings. Time itself works against the images as the surface of the petroglyph slowly darkens, a process known as repatination, which ultimately erases the glyphs. Other threats include intentional defacement like graffiti or other vandalism. This damage cannot be removed or even camouflaged easily and is expensive to treat. Federal and state laws protect archaeological sites from vandalism and theft, and many sites are monitored by concerned local citizens volunteering in the State of Nevada’s site stewardship program. Because the past deserves a future, visitors at archaeological sites can help by following a few simple guidelines. • • Take only pictures, leave only footprints Be a steward—volunteer to monitor the condition of archaeological sites For more information on how you can help preserve Nevada’s past, visit these websites www.nv.blm.org www.nvshpo.org/stewards.html www.nvrockart.org 16 Mt. Iris h Archae ologica l Dis t ric t T he Mt. Irish Archaeological District, located on the eastern flank of the Mt. Irish Range, is one of the most important archaeological areas in eastern Nevada. The District covers 640 acres and provides a vista of prehistoric rock art and habitation sites, set in a dramatic landscape of tuff (volcanic ash) knolls and outcrops, alluvial fans, and washes. The District is best known for spectacular rock art that portrays the cultural lives of the Native American peoples who used the area some 4,000 years ago through the nineteenth century. The three largest rock art sites in the District (Mt. Irish IV, V, and VI) have interpretive trails and a trail guide that is available at visitors’ register boxes at these sites. Eastern Nevada, until the coming of Euro-American settlers in the nineteenth century, was settled by hunter-gatherer cultures who skillfully harvested the wild resources of this arid region for several thousand years. Aided by deep knowledge of the environment’s animal and plant resources, hunter-gatherers used efficient technology and lived in small, mobile family groups to gather seasonally available plants, animals, and other resources across the landscape. The Mt. Irish area was used for short-term stays to hunt animals, gather plants, and make rock art. These repeated visits stretch back as far as 4,000 years ago but became more intensive and frequent during the period 2,000-500 years ago. Rock art, settlement, and economic activities are intertwined in the Mt. Irish area. Many rock art sites are accompanied by the remains of campsites and foraging activities. Rock-shelters, middens, stone tools, and fragments of tools show that animals and plants were often processed in the vicinity of rock art. Were people drawn to the area by seasonally by available resources, or did the area have a special social and cultural significance, marked by rock art, that explains why hunter-gatherers visited the area? The exact meanings and cultural significance of Mt. Irish’s rock art and its landscape may be unknowable, but these cultural marks indicate the area was important to the peoples who used these galleries of ancient art. The rock art and the Mt. 1 Rock RockArt ArtofofLincoln LincolnCounty County Mount MountIrish IrishArchaeological ArchaeologicalDistrict District Mt. Iris h Mt. Iris h XI Archae ologica l Dis t ric t: Sou t h e rn Locus In troduc tio n con t ’d Th e Archae ologica Mt. Iris h I: l Dis teric East rn tLocus M t. Irish XI is located lower south-central portion Irish area continue today toinbethe important to Native American the District, approximately 140 m southwest of Mt. peoplesofliving in the region. Irish XI.Mt. TheIrish site area comprises 38 main petroglyph panels onone a northThe has two rock art styles, south trendingStyle) tuff outcrop and boulders andisisuncertain flanked atand the (Pahranagat whose cultural affiliation O south end by aassociated wash. Rock art hunter-gatherers is scattered along(Basin a 150 m stretch one generally with and Range oftradition). this outcrop, accompaniedStyle by occasional evidence of pastof The Pahranagat is an enigmatic portrayal resource gathering and processing (

Archaeological Initiative Project The Nevada Rock Art Foundation produced this product with funding provided by the sale of public lands by the Bureau of Land Management and approved under an inter-agency partnership authorized by the Lincoln County Land Act. Rock Art White River Narrows National Register District N E VA DA R OCK A RT F O U N DAT I O N BLM NRAF Lincoln County Rock Art of Lincoln County White River Narrows National Register District Whit e Ri v e r Na rrows In troduc tio n Pres e rvin g t h e Pas t T he oldest petroglyphs in the Great Basin are 8,000 years old; in the White River Narrows, some petroglyphs are 4,000 years old. Despite this antiquity, rock art, like other archaeological monuments, is a fragile part of Nevada’s cultural heritage. Natural weathering processes, such as wind and rain, are slowly eroding these ancient markings. Other threats include intentional defacement like graffiti or other vandalism. Intentional damages cannot be removed or even camouflaged easily and are expensive to treat. Federal and state laws protect archaeological sites from vandalism and theft, and many sites are monitored by concerned local citizens volunteering in the State of Nevada’s site stewardship program. Because the past deserves a future, visitors at archaeological sites can help by following a few simple guidelines. Take only pictures, leave only footprints. Be a steward—volunteer to monitor the condition of archaeological sites. For more information on how you can help preserve Nevada’s past, visit these websites. www.blm.gov/nv www.nvshpo.org/stewards www.nvrockart.org 12 W hite River Narrows, in lower White River Valley, is one of the largest concentrations of prehistoric rock art in eastern Nevada. The importance of the Narrows’ archaeological heritage is recognized by its listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The petroglyphs here provide glimpses into the cultural lives of Native American peoples who lived by harvesting wild plants and animals from some 4,000 years ago until the nineteenth century. Although the exact meanings of the Narrows’ rock art may be unknowable, they mark the Narrows as a place important to those who made and used these galleries of ancient art. These petroglyphs continue today to be important to Native American peoples living in the region. White River Narrows is a winding canyon that was carved by the White River during the Pleistocene or Ice Age (ca. 2.5 million to 11,700 years ago). The Narrows forms a travel corridor used by ancient Native American cultures and, more recently, it was a route for unpaved SR38 until 1980. For most of the region’s history, until the coming of EuroAmerican settlers in the nineteenth century, hunter-gatherer cultures settled eastern Nevada. Hunters and gatherers skillfully harvested the wild resources of the arid Great Basin. Their deep environmental knowledge and efficient technology allowed them to prosper in the region for thousands of years. Huntergatherer groups lived in small, mobile family groups and moved across the landscape to gather seasonally available plants, animals, and other resources. Their cultural knowledge was expressed through song, myth, and rock art. Early farmers from the Fremont Culture (2000-850 years ago) of Utah also influenced the prehistory of eastern Nevada. Short-term campsites and pottery made by the Fremont are found in eastern Nevada, indicating trade and cultural connections with their core territory to the east. 1 Rock Art of Lincoln County White River Narrows National Register District ThNa e Na tionI a l rrows Regist e r Dis t ric t InNa troduc rrowstio VIn (con t i n ued) White RiverVINarrows hasnorth two main rock styles, one arrows is near the end of theart Narrows, located generally associated with hunter-gatherers (Basin and Range on the east face of a tuff cliff. The site is notable for the tradition) and one with Fremont Basin and with Rangemany sheer quantity of densely clusteredgroups. rock art images, tradition rock art is distinguished by finely made abstract younger designs placed on top of older ones. N T N designs suchrange as circles, spirals,portrayed rectangles, wavy VI lines. The wide of imagery at and Narrows is These were often combined to make complex images long and compositions particularly striking. Abstract designs include lines that that are very ambiguous and evocative. In this tradition of rock extend for several meters, complex meanders, outlined crosses, art, artists depicted peopleRepresentational as stick-figures. They portrayed rakes, spirals, and circles. figures include a wide range of animal species, most commonly bighorn a large number of bighorn sheep (arranged in groups, assheep, if but also deer, coyotes, lizards, mountain lions, and birds.(human portraying herds), lizards, stick-figure anthropomorphs Fremont rock art is famous fordesigns its stylized portrayals of people,of figure), and footprints. These are lo

Shooting Gallery BLM NRAF Rock Art Sh oot in g Ga l l e ry In troduc tio n S hooting Gallery, situated on the east flank of Badger Mountain, is an archaeological district rich in prehistoric rock art, hunting sites, and campsites. The intermixing of settlement archaeology and art offers a unique glimpse into the cultural lives of the Native American peoples who visited this rugged landscape for thousands of years prior to the coming of Euro-American settlers. Over some 200 acres of tuff (volcanic ash) outcrops is a landscape that records the mundane and ceremonial lives of ancient hunter-gatherers. Whether ancient peoples were drawn to Shooting Gallery for economic or cultural reasons, the archaeology found here sheds light on the various social and practical meanings that landscapes have for cultures. Hunter-gatherers made short-duration visits repeated over millennia to Shooting Gallery, leaving behind rock art and the remains of daily life. Making a living in this area required deep knowledge of the environment’s plant and animal resources. This included knowing when was the best time to relocate campsites to take advantage of seasonally available resources. The Shooting Gallery area was used as far back as 6,000 years ago but was most intensively visited during the past 3,000 years. Small groups of related households visited the area to hunt, gather wild plants, and to make and use rock art. During the winter, family households congregated with other households in large lowland villages. Evidence of these visits is dotted around Shooting Gallery’s rugged landscape. Ancient projectile points, small stone chips or flakes, pottery sherds, and grinding slicks may be encountered in the area. Dart points and, later, arrow points were used to hunt animals, either by groups of hunters or by a solitary hunter. The stone flakes were left over from making or maintaining stone tools that were used for hunting, butchering, preparing hides, and a range of cutting activities. Pottery was used for storing dry foodstuffs and cooking. Grinding tools (either as heavy stone 1 Rock Art of Lincoln County In troduc tio n slabs or on bedrock) were used for processing hard seeds and plants by grinding or pounding. These artifacts provide archaeologists with important clues about how prehistoric peoples made a living, the chronology of these activities, and their cultures. The significance of these artifacts derives from where they are found. If they are removed without proper study, they no longer communicate important archaeological information. Remember to leave in place whatever you may encounter so that future generations can also experience the thrill of discovery. This ensures that the area’s cultural heritage will continue to tell its story to visitors and archaeologists. Two styles of rock art can be found at Shooting Gallery. The most common is Basin and Range tradition abstract and representational designs. This style may be as much as 10,000 years old and continued to be made by Native American cultures into the nineteenth century. Composed of a wide range of curvilinear and rectilinear abstract designs, this style also includes stick-figure anthropomorphs and naturalistic depictions of a range of animal species. The most common animal portrayed is the bighorn sheep figures and Shooting Gallery 2 Shooting Gallery In troduc tio n contains one of the largest concentrations of bighorn sheep figures in southeastern Nevada. Hundreds of portrayals of this animal can be seen singly or in groups on Shooting Gallery’s tuff outcrops. The Pahranagat Anthropomorph Style is found in small numbers at Shooting Gallery and is unique to Lincoln County. It comprises two schematic ways of depicting people with either decorated rectangular bodies (often without heads) or as solidpecked oval or rectangular bodies with heads that have a short line protruding from their top. Both the decorated rectangular type (or pattern-body anthropomorph [PBA]) and solid-body type are found in the Shooting Gallery area. This style may be as old as 6,000 years in age but appears to have been mostly made from around 3,000-800 years ago. The largest rock art concentrations (Shooting Gallery I-III) are clustered on the northwest side of the canyon. Much smaller rock art sites are found father south along the slopes of the canyon. These concentrations blend together and can be found by looking for prominent outcrops in the landscape. There is no developed trail in the area so the modern visitor discovers these sites in much the same way as the ancient artists. § 3 Rock Art of Lincoln County Da i l y Life an d Roc k Art T he intermixing of rock art and campsites provides important clues on past landscape use. Without the ancient artists to tell us, the exact meanings that rock art had in the past are unknowable. Yet, rock art shows that prehistoric hunter- gatherers viewed their landscapes in economic and cultural terms. Cultures rec