There are hundreds of accessible American Indian petroglyph and pictograph sites in the American Southwest, in particular around the canyons and caves of Arizona, Colorado and Utah. There are some (but many less) in the eastern United States that have been developed for education and public access.
The rock art dates typically dates back a few thousand years, from people of the Mesquite Flat Culture (3,000 BC to 1 AD) and more commonly people from the Fremont and Anasazi cultures (600 AD to 1,200 AD).
Petroglyphs and pictographs in a small cave along the Barker Dam Trail in Joshua Tree National Park.
- California, USA
- National Park: Joshua Tree National Park
- Number of motifs: 30
- Quality: 4.5/5
- Condition of art: Good
The Birthing Panel or Birthing Rock petroglyph site is a large boulder covered on all sides by Native American rock art. The petroglyphs spans three different periods almost 2,000 years.
Reached via an off-track route across a field from Kolob Terrace Road, the Cave Valley Pictographs have over 20 motifs in white, yellow, red and black pigment.
- USA, Utah
- National Park: Zion National Park
- Number of motifs: 25
- Quality: 4/5
- Condition of art: Good
The Descending Sheep Petroglyph Panel along the Colorado River has been estimated to be 3,000 to 6,000 years old and interpreted as a hunting scene.
- Arizona, USA
- National Park: Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
- Number of motifs: 30
- Condition of art: Good
The signposted Fremont Culture petroglyphs in Capitol Reef National Park consist of multiple rock art panels at the base of a tall cliff, accessed via a boardwalk.
- USA, Utah
- National Park: Capitol Reef National Park
- Number of motifs: 30
- Quality: 3.5/5
- Condition of art: Good, Weathered
The Indian Cave in Kodachrome Basin State Park has over a hundred grooves or handprints carved into the sandstone wall outside a shallow overhang. It's not certain that they were made by American Indians.
- USA, Utah
- National Park: Kodachrome Basin State Park
- Number of motifs: 100
- Quality: 4/5
- Condition of art: Good
The Intestine Man rock art site in Utah features an anthropomorphic figure which has its intestines showing, as well as three bighorn sheep and other motifs.
One of the finest examples of easily accessible Anasazi rock art, the Sand Island Petroglyphs panel in Utah contains Native Indian rock art which ranges from 300 to 3,000 years old.
- USA, Utah
- National Park: Bears Ears National Monument, Sand Island Recreation Area
- Number of motifs: 300
- Quality: 4.5/5
- Condition of art: Good
Located in the Monument Valley and accessible on a Navajo tour, the Anasazi Suns Eye petroglyph site features a number of bighorn sheep.
- USA, Utah
- National Park: Monument Valley Tribal Park
- Number of motifs: 15
- Quality: 4/5
- Condition of art: Good
Pictographs and petroglyphs dated up to several thousand years old are located at the base of one of The Chimneys
- Texas, USA
- National Park: Big Bend National Park
- Number of motifs: 40
- Quality: 5/5
Multiple panels of Native American rock art high above Utah Scenic Byway 279 (Potash Road) in Utah
The Wolfe Ranch Petroglyph panel is a signposted Ute Indian rock art site, along the Delicate Arch Trail in Arches National Park.
- USA, Utah
- National Park: Arches National Park
- Number of motifs: 19
- Condition of art: Good
Useful sites
- Archaeology Travel – Interactive Map of Rock Art sites around the world