Rock Art: A Tribute to Hovenweep's Beauty and Ranger Chris Nickel

Hovenweep National Monument is an exquisite land of rock, sculpted by nature for millions of years, altered by ancestral Puebloan people for centuries, and both protected and made accessible to the American people and our guests by presidential proclamation in 1923. It is also a place of beauty, mystery, fascination, and inspiration. Rock art, in its many and varied forms, is abundant here.

When we think of rock art, we most commonly think of the intricate, evocative, and mysterious ancestral Puebloan petroglyphs and pictographs.  There are several fine examples of each type at Hovenweep.

At the Cajon unit of the National Monument, there is a panel of pictographs, paintings on the rocks, in an alcove beneath the canyon rim.

Pictographs at Cajon

It is hard to know the significance of any of the rock art here. It is widely accepted though, that rock art is not graffiti. Rock art is more likely a record of travels or migrations, a marking of territory and special features such as springs or ceremonial sites, or used to track the passage of days, seasons, and celestial events. The three most visible pictographs at Cajon are of a deer, a very typical pottery type design, and what may be a scorpion or centipede. The deer may represent a clan of residents. The pottery design could be simply that, a sketch of the decoration commonly used by those people. The scorpion or centipede may represent crawling animals or clans. That pictograph could also represent a ladder made of a single pole with log rungs. Regardless, the Cajon pictographs are fascinating and hold a beauty and mystery of their own.

Close-Up of Cajon Rock Art

At Hovenweep’s Horseshoe site, there is a fine collection of handprint pictographs that are well protected by an overhanging cliff upon which stands Horseshoe House. The handprints at Horseshoe are considered “positive” images, made by applying paint to the hands and then making prints on the canyon wall.

Handprints at Horseshoe

Handprints may simply be a record of who was there, a family or kinship group gallery, or a message to descendents.

At both the Hackberry and Square Tower units of Hovenweep, handprints can be found that were made in a different fashion creating “negative” images. Paint was sprayed over a hand resting on the rock wall, leaving an outlined painting and empty space where the hand was.

Handprint at Hackberry

Little Ruin Canyon Handprint

Petroglyphs are found in two locations at Hovenweep. Petroglyphs are etchings in the rock, often on sections of rock that have been stained with “desert varnish” which is made of clay and oxidized minerals (primarily iron and manganese), processed by microorganisms.

Desert Varnish

At the Square Tower section of Hovenweep, the petroglyph panel is directly below the round tower structure at Tower Point. Found there are a snake, a lizard, three images of macaws, a T-shaped doorway, an open spiral, and a geometric symbol. The open spiral is often thought to be a symbol of migration, and is consistent with the oral histories of present day Zuni and Hopi peoples who tell stories of their ancestors’ migrations leading to their present-day locations.

Petroglyph Panel in Little Ruin Canyon

The petroglyphs at the Holly Unit of Hovenweep are particularly unique. They are etched into a wall beneath an overhang of a broken boulder on the canyon slope. There are three sun symbols made up of numerous spirals and concentric circles. At sunrise on and around the summer solstice a dagger of light shines through a narrow gap formed by the upper edges of two additional boulders and passes through the petroglyphs, and at its most intense, connects the centers of the spiral and concentric circles which are several feet apart. The Holly Solstice Panel is one of several calendrical features found at Hovenweep.

Summer Solstice Petroglyphs at Holly

I am convinced that Hovenweep’s ancestral Puebloan structures should be considered rock art as well as the pictographs and petroglyphs.  Exceptional craftsmanship is clearly demonstrated in the shaping of both rock and structures. When one looks closely at the rockwork in any of the towers or other buildings at Hovenweep it is easy to see the way the sandstone rocks have been pecked and shaped, in many cases looking more like fabricated bricks than native stones.

Masonry Detail at Cutthroat Castle

Many of the building blocks used in structures like Hovenweep Castle are so brick-like in shape that beautiful square corners are created. The rockwork and masonry in these 800 year old buildings indicate a level of skill that is far from primative.

Hovenweep Castle from Little Ruin Canyon Bottom

One of the towers at the Holy unit of Hovenweep National Monument is square however the corners themselves are rounded. Again, the evidence that the rock was carefully worked is clear and the very detailed and exact nature of the ancestral Puebloans’ construction techniques are apparent. Round, square, or some other shape, the towers of Hovenweep are testament to the expertise of their builders.

Masonry Detail at Holly (Rounded Square Corner)

The vast majority of the remaining Hovenweep structures are built on canyon rims, on the solid foundation that bedrock provides. Several of the towers are built on boulders which stand on the canyon bottoms or on talus slopes. Perhaps most unique is a round tower at the Cajon site, built on, around, and fully incorporating three boulders on the canyon floor. Such construction, to me, indicates an intimate knowledge of the land, the rocks, and very sophisticated building techniques.

Round Tower Incorporating Boulders at Cajon

One building that makes almost whimsical use of a boulder on a canyon slope is Eroded Boulder House in Little Ruin Canyon. It seems clear that the ancestral Puebloans had an architectural aesthetic. The towers and other structures of Hovenweep are, indeed, another form of rock art.

Eroded boulder House, Little Ruin Canyon

Yet one more set of changes to the land created by the ancestral Puebloans at Hovenweep holds beauty and intrigue for me. When first created, they were purely functional. With the centuries, they have, for me, taken on the quality of art. At the Horseshoe site, there is a "Moqui Step" carved into the rock, a simple aid to make climbing out of the canyon easier.

Moqui Step at Horseshoe

At both Little Ruin Canyon and Cajon, there are depressions in the rock used for grinding corn and other seeds as well as for sharpening tools. These carvings in the bedrock, like art pieces, reveal something of their creators.

Grinding Depressions at Cajon

In my nearly three months at Hovenweep I have found great beauty in the rocks. Like the "rock art" left by the ancestral Puebloan people, there is also Nature's geologic "art." The upper layer of Dakota Sandstone creates a gently undulating surface. In its potholes and curves it is easy to visualize its origin, being deposited on the bottom of a shallow sea.

Potholes in Dakota Sandstone

Dakota Sandstone

Beneath the surface layer of sandstone is the only other rock formation at Hovenweep, the Burro Canyon Formation. This is primarily a conglomerate rock, laid down as river bottom sediment.  In seeing the variety of pebbles cemented together in discernible layers it is easy to visualize that rocky Cretaceous river.

Burro Canyon Conglomerate, Little Ruin Canyon

Burro Canyon Conglomerate at Cutthroat

At the point immediately beneath the sandstone there are some deposits of shale which were laid down in muddy deposits as the river filled and became a marshy environment.

Burro Canyon Shale at Horseshoe

In one of my last days at Hovenweep I noticed a small rock arch, formed as the porous and layered sandstone eroded due to repeated freezing, thawing, and other action by water and wind. Though the void beneath the arch is only about six inches high and the span is less than three feet, it is another example of the beauty found in this exquisite land of rock.

Miniature Arch at Horseshoe

We mark the trails here at Hovenweep with either cairns (piles of rocks) or rock borders. This is critical for visitor wayfinding and for resource protection. In particular, we work heard to protect the unique cryptobiotoc soil crust which is particularly robust at Hovenweep. The biological soil crust or "hidden life" is a symbiotic relationship between fungi, moss, lichens, cyanobacteria, and the mineral soil itself. The knobby black to brown crust slows erosion, makes nitrogen and carbon available for plants, and helps to retain precious moisture. It also grows very, very slowly. One misplaced footstep can undo decades worth of biological work. We are vigilant about keeping visitors on the trail so as to protect the cryptobiotic soil crust as well as the other natural and cultural resources preserved at Hovenweep.

Trail Border Protecting Soil Crust

In some places the rock borders have an artistic and aesthetic appeal all their own.

Rock Border and Trail at Horseshoe/Hackberry

On Saturday January 29^th, I was working with my fellow volunteer, Petra, and our Resource and Visitor Protection Ranger, Chris Nickel. That morning we laughed about the trail borders which Chris was referring to as “our rock art.” He planned to be on the trail that afternoon for the first time in the two months I had been at Hovenweep. For eighteen months Chris had been in the position of "Acting Chief Ranger" for both Hovenweep and Natural Bridges National Monuments and it was earlier that week that the position was finally filled and the new Chief Ranger had reported for duty. Chris shared his joy in returning to his single, dedicated position at Hovenweep and celebrated that he could, once again, perform his duties to his standard. One thing Chris intended to do while on the Little Ruin Canyon Trail that day was to check the effectiveness and aesthetics of our "rock art." In anticipation of his patrol, he produced some before and after photographs from previous seasons in the park. It was very clear that he was using the term "before" to mean "bad" or ineffective and the term "after" to mean "Chris's way." Out of respect for Chris and in celebrating his joy in getting into the field, we did not question his expectations of the trail marker conditions. We did hope that our work met his standard of perfection. 

The Way "Rock Art" Should Be!

Chris set the tone that has made Hovenweep such a positive and pleasant place to work. Early in my time here Chris sat down with me so he could share his “perspective on the park.” He made it clear that the most important aspect of our work here was the protection of the many and unique natural and cultural resources. He also emphasized the importance of providing the highest quality visitor experience and that the only thing that might limit the activities of our visitors would be our vigilant protection of the park itself. Hovenweep, as a very small unit of the National Park System, works. It is a positive, affirming, stimulating, beautiful, and challenging place. I say this in thanks to Chris, to our Lead Interpreter Todd Overbye, and to our Maintenance Supervisor Alan Shumway. Together, these three men oversee a small team that has been an amazing joy to be part of.

It is with great sadness that I report Chris Nickel's passing. On that beautiful, almost balmy Saturday afternoon, Chris left the Visitor Center to get a bite to eat at his residence and then head onto the trail to oversee his special domain. Early on his hike, Chris collapsed and died. We don't know what happened but believe that he did nothing more than sit down and die. HIs death has left a huge hole in the Hovenweep community and our collective heart. The only sense of consolation or peace in this tragic incident is that Chris passed while overseeing a place he loved and cared deeply for. It is in tribute to him, his work ethic, his solid commitment to resource protection, and his special way in the world that our park community has been rededicated to carrying on and holding close to the lessons he provided.

My dear friend, colleague, and fellow volunteer Petra is better and more economical with words than I am. Her tribute to Chris cut right to the heart of who he was and the impact he has had.


The Provenance of Stars


R.I.P. Chris Nickel: friend, colleague.

Your kind, dryly witty, meticulous, nature-loving, pistol-packing      soul will forever walk the trails at Hovenweep National Monument.

The smell of sage will always remind me of you now; and I will always be convinced that shooting star I saw was you, laughing.

From the pleasure of working for and with Chris, and out of the saddness of losing him, I can only say, "thanks!" My work will always, to some degree, be guided by him.

In Honor and Memory of Ranger Chris Nickel