Rock Art at Hot Springs
When J.O. Langford homesteaded this section in 1909, he was moving into an area that had long been inhabited by native Americans. Walk this trail to view pictograph and petroglyphs created by prehistoric people hundreds or even thousands of years ago. Do not touch any surfaces containing rock art: the natural oils on your hands will cause the images to decay.
Pictographs are images painted onto rock.
Petroglyphs are images carved or pecked into rock.
Numerous red pictographs decorate the cliff face. The red coloring is a pigment made from hematite, a mineral sometimes called “red ocher”. Cinnabar, or mercury ore, was also used in this area to produce a maroon pigment. Pigments were usually mixed with a binder of blood, egg or animal fat, which made the pigment adhere to the rock surface.
Marker can be reached from Hot Springs Road 1.5 miles from Rio Grande Village Drive, on the left when traveling south.
Courtesy hmdb.org
