Although the site is not well known, the Tohono O'odham people that live to the north are familiar with the site because historically their ancestors passed by this site on their way to the annual feast day at Mission San Xavier del Bac. The petroglyphs are believed to span a long period of time from about 450 A.D. to about 1450 A.D. Archaeologists know that some of the images are very old because there are signs of desert rock varnish forming on the petroglyphs. Although there are no written records, archaeologists believed that the Hohokam people who carved most of the petroglyphs are descendants of the Huhugam (Huhugam means something that has disappeared or has been used up; thus, the Huhugam are the people who have disappeared.), so the terms Huhugam and Hohokam are sometimes used interchangeably.
Because the Hohokam kept no written records, no one really knows what the petroglyphs mean or why they were carved throughout the Southwest. However, the Tohono O'odham people ask that the sites be respected and not damaged. My favorite image a this site was the "man-in-the-maze" petroglyph that is rare, but also reported to be scratched into the plaster of an interior wall at the Casa Grande ruins (the ruins can not be entered by the public) and another site near the Mexican border. Located in this area are also mortars holes in the bedrock that were used for grinding mesquite beans that grow along the area washes. This was a great place to spend an early morning, even during the summer months.
"Man-In-The-Maze" Design
Ron, these are fabulous. Thanks for sharing your adventures!
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