(Just something to ponder...)
Petroglyphs
are protected around the world. They are valued as a historical record
of the people that lived thousands of years ago. We can learn how
prior humans hunted and even what animals where their prey. Some
of these animals, such as mammoths and mastodons, are no longer present
in the modern-day landscape. We can also learn about daily activities
in their past villages. Many of the more valued pieces of rock art
are more abstract and appear to be art for art's sake. Researchers
cherish these because they show that our ancestors had time to ponder things
other than the daily, hard routine of survival. They provide a window
into their minds and are believed to demonstrate evolving higher intelligence.
In a recent trip through some immense rock canyons in the American West, I observed hundreds of petroglyphs scattered on the walls. It raised the question...
"Are petroglyphs anything more than 'graffiti' of our ancestors?"
Did
the parents in the tribe look around the walls of their canyon... their
home... and say, "How many times have I told you kids to quit drawing on
the walls?" Did they say, "Now we're going to have to move again!
And, in our next home, there will be no drawing on the walls!" Today,
we protect this 'old graffiti' as a historical treasure. The irony
is that we don't allow people of today the same privilege. In fact,
we've made it illegal - punishable with fines and possible jail sentences.
I've personally visited petroglyph locations where today's youth have 'defaced'
the area with graffiti. It is quickly removed by park officials.
Are we robbing future generations of 'our petroglyphs'? You may rightly point out that the graffiti of today's youth is temporary. It's quickly splattered on public buildings, signs and fences using cheap spray paint. This is an entirely valid point. However, could it be that this is simply the result of our laws? Would today's kids create more durable and meaningful art if they were given the time?... and without the fear of legal action? Sadly, my opinion is most of our youth don't have the desire or patience to create something valuable and long-lasting. Many would rather party or play Nintendo. But, that is not true for all children. You may also argue that most of today's graffiti represents nothing more than territorial markings of gangs. But, wouldn't we be naive to think that our some of our ancestor's petroglyphs were not tribal markings as well? Finally, it's obvious that the world's population is exponentially larger than it was thousands of years ago. If today's kids created graffiti at rates equal to our ancestors, there wouldn't be a single thing in site that wasn't 'defaced'.
This
article isn't intended to start a political movement like... "The Alliance
for Legalizing Today's Durable Rock Art", or something of the sort.
It's goal is simply to provide another perspective on a present day issue...
just something to ponder. And, as I write, I'm also pondering what
the result would be of a nationally designated area for the creation of
today's petroglyphs. It seems that this might be a worthy social
experiment - maybe a remote canyon on public lands set aside for selected
individuals to create something worthy of protection for future generations?
A stupid idea? Maybe. Just something to ponder...