The weekend rain gave way to a beautiful sunrise and then mist
rising between the mountains on Monday morning.
You may recall there was “something I wanted to check
out” the other day right down the road and Monday morning was a perfect day to do
that! Cool, crisp and sunny! So off I
went... but not before seeing, for the briefest split of a split second, what I
thought was a stray dog (because his head looked like Nikko's) about 30 yards away, across the road. But in the next slice of that split second, I
realized it was a coyote. Good thing Nikko wasn’t with me then! Anyway, off I went to the V Bar V Heritage
Site....just a 10-15 minute walk from the campsite.
The V Bar V Ranch was first settled by Benjamin Franklin
Taylor and his wife, Florence, in 1900.
Their cattle was branded with the “100” brand, and the ranch became
known as the “100 Place”. The ranch
changed ownership in 1908, 1917, and again in 1927. At that time, the new owners James and Ida
May Swift (of the Chicago Swift Meat Packing family) formed the V Bar V Cattle Company,
and the ranch was then renamed, V Bar V Ranch. This was their branding symbol:
V
V
Due to a severe drought in 1932-1933, the ranch was sold
again to Marcus Lawrence of Prescott, AZ.
He didn’t live on the ranch, but instead, gave Bruce Brockett part
interest for his agreement to operate the ranch. Interestingly, Mr. Lawrence was murdered
under circumstances that made sensational headlines at the time. Mr. Brockett was allowed to buy the cattle
operation in whole via probate. Many
well-known people stayed as guests at the Brockett home-ranch. These included Barry Goldwater and several
Arizona governors.
As time went on, Mrs. Brockett’s nephew, Bill Sullivan,
joined the operation of the ranch. Bill
and Shirley Sullivan became part owners in 1960. When Mr. Brockett died in 1971, they assumed
full management of the ranch. When Bill
Sullivan died in 1985, it was sold to Ben and Betsy Zink. Ultimately, the University of Arizona
acquired the ranch in 1994. The University traded the ranch to the U.S. Forest
Service for other property farther south and the Forest Service opened it to the public in 1996. (The University still uses the V Bar V branding symbol on its cattle.) This
is what remains of the ranch:
Note the V/V brand on the fireplace...
Where is all this leading???? So far, frankly, it’s not anything too
noteworthy. Let’s start with the fact
that because we know the ownership history, this ranch area was private
property for almost 100 years, therefore, off limits to any unwanted
visitors. Obviously, that isn’t the case
now as it is open to the public via the Forestry Service. But why would the Forestry Service want an
old fireplace and outdoor fire grill as “go to” attractions?
Let’s follow the property’s ½ mile path back into the woods….it’s a
wonderful walk which runs along Beaver Creek. Eventho’ it is too heavily wooded now to actually see the creek, you can hear it.
Along the walk are a few placards...one describing the Native American Indian, specifically the Sinagua's, presence in the area...you might want to read this brief synopsis...
The
Handwriting on the Wall
OK --- This is why it’s a “go to” attraction! The Southern Sinagua Rock Art Panels!
The petroglyph site has been known to archaeologists since
1945, when it was reported by a landmark survey of the Beaver Creek area. However, it was not documented in detail, and
was only sporadically visited by archaeologists until it became the property of
the Forestry Service. Because the site
could only be accessed through the ranch, it was protected from the vandalism
that defaced many other petroglyph sites in the Valley. Hence, the overall importance of the V Bar V
Ranch!
I highly suggest clicking on this link and keeping it in the background while you go through the rest of this post!
A total of 1,032 individual petroglyphs line this (approx.)
800 year old 4-panel rock wall! This is
Southern Sinagua art. That is a huge number vs. other petroglyph sites. The
elements of these panels are outstanding examples of the Beaver Creek Style
(found throughout the eastern half of the Verde Valley), consisting of a large
number of anthropomorphic, zoomorphic and geometric forms. The Style is noted for its precise
execution. (Note – petroglyphs are
carved/etched into the stone vs. pictographs which are painted on walls with
natural pigments.) The zoomorphs are the most common here, including elements
that resemble snakes, fish, turtles, coyotes/dogs, and female deer or antelope.
The V Bar V Heritage Site is unique in several ways. In addition to its sheer size, there is only
one style present – the Beaver Creek Style – unlike most other sites in the
Verde Valley. Another unique aspect of
the site, with only a few exceptions, is the petroglyphs have not been pecked
on top of others. There seems to have
been a special effort to not overlap or cover any element. There is, however, connectivity by way of
meandering lines or where great care was taken to make petroglyphs touch, but
not overlap, as if to link them together into some story line or relationship. This is highly suggestive of the concept held
by some archeologists that such lines indicate a history of events, clan
migrations, or pathways of life. The
frequency of connectivity here is unique in the rock art of the Southwest.
Unique to only a few sites in the Verde Valley is the heron-like
water bird, however, the palm tree-like figure of the bird, shown here, is found nowhere else.
The next most prominent element classes include the
anthropomorphs, geometrics, random pecking and amorphous shapes. Stick-figured humans and stick-figure humans
with circular stomachs, lizard forms, foot prints or bear paws, crosses and
young girls (identified by hair whorls on the sides of their heads) are common
on these walls. Other distinctive
elements are walking figures with backpacks and a cougar-like animal on the
back of a doe. Geometrical forms include
a variety of lines, astericks, rectangles, grids, spirals, concentric circles
and dots. (The very black background is known as "desert varnish"....a naturally forming and remarkable biogeochemical phenomena in arid desert regions of the world. Here's a link to this very interesting, one hundredth of a millimeter thick, geographic element -- Desert Varnish )
Another characteristic of the Beaver Style is the pairing
elements, such as two humans, two turtles, two geometrics, etc. Such turtles are particularly distinctive of Southern Sinagua rock art
and, where present, are almost always in pairs with their legs bent
upwards.
Now I will just post some photos of the site (but not nearly all that I took!)…you can
examine them as to the features I have mentioned. (Now you see why I wanted to go back to the larger pixel photos!)
I found all of this absolutely fascinating!
This photo shows what appears to just be a squiggle line - maybe a snake - but it is actually the same formation as the Verde River! You may think the thinner lines are tributaries, but no....they are thought to be animal paths....
Some of the more elaborate figures (with headdresses) are more than likely representing the shaman...those people regarded as having access to, and influence in, the world of good and evil spirits.
Note the shaman near the large crack....evil spirits came and went through that crack! He was there to give protection!
Many pottery shards have been found in the area...
Could
There Be a Solar Calendar?
The V Bar V site contains a number of images that are
generally ascribed as having astronomical meaning. The “Solar Panel” contains 10 concentric
circles, believed to represent the solar system, and snake-like glyphs.
The light and shadow effects on the Solar Panel are created by a trilogy of boulders wedged in a crevice in the rock face. When the sun crests the bluff, the sunlight strikes the protruding boulders. The resulting effect is a shaft of sunlight between two lines of shadow produced by the boulders. I have, as closely as possible, replicated (from a picture in a pamphlet) one of my photos to show the Summer Solstice shadows....
The light and shadow effects on the Solar Panel are created by a trilogy of boulders wedged in a crevice in the rock face. When the sun crests the bluff, the sunlight strikes the protruding boulders. The resulting effect is a shaft of sunlight between two lines of shadow produced by the boulders. I have, as closely as possible, replicated (from a picture in a pamphlet) one of my photos to show the Summer Solstice shadows....
Studies have documented the recording of time over a
12-month period through this play of light and shadow on the petroglyph
images. With years of observations, the
Sinagua would have noted the repetition of certain events at regularly spaced
intervals, most easily seen during the solstice and equinox events. Since these occur at regular and repeated
intervals, it would have been simple to organize the intervening days into
equal periods of 30 days. The result was
the creation of a full 12-month calendar.
All of this was very important to plan for crop planting.
Too much to explain here, there are other shadow features
which produce interesting effects, also tied to “calendar” readings. However, we will never know for absolute
certain if this was a Sinagua calender despite the very precise geometric
alignment of images. What is more
certain is that the V Bar V solar panel appears to have played an integral part
of the Southern Sinagua complex that linked time with the ritual and
agricultural cycles of the valley’s population.
The V Bar V is the most elaborate of the sun marking locations found to
date in the Verde Valley.
I hope you have enjoyed the tour of this astounding
archeological site. It was certainly a highlight of this boondocking site for
me! Especially since I didn’t even know
it was here! Of course, you can learn
much more about this site and others in the Southwest via the internet. Hopefully this has sparked your interest!
I realize this has been a very long post, but one last
note…. (no pun, here!). Our very, very
informative guide, Jim, mentioned the importance of music in the lives of the
Southwestern Indians. Most of you have seen
the figure “Kokopelli” playing his flute...
Well, Jim, is a very accomplished flutist. He claims, “anyone can play a flute like
this!”
I have given a flute like this as a gift and purchased it
from High Spirits Flute in
Patagonia, AZ. In addition to their perfect tones (you can get
them in different keys), they are an absolute work of art! They have been handcrafted by High Spirits Flutes for 25 years. The Native American flute music is extremely
soothing, which you have probably felt if you have been listening via the above link. I highly
recommend the purchase of a few Native American flute CDs....and a flute if you are so inclined! I receive
nothing from mentioning High Spirits
here…I just have firsthand experience with their beautiful flutes. I really wish I had one myself!
Here ends my Monday, April 27th! It was a very interesting day, to say the least! I have always been enthralled by our Native
American culture. This was just a very minute
touch of that culture, but a great one!
Next up…. another "something sacred" with some walking involved! Stay tuned!
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This is my 100th post!
