Courthouse Wash Pictographs

The Courthouse Wash Pictographs are a series of large pictographs created over a long period of time, located on a sheltered sandstone wall in Arches National Park, Utah. The series of images depict a variety of figures, many of them anthropomorphic and measuring up to 5 feet (1.5 m) in height. The Courthouse wash site is located near the junction of Courthouse Wash with the Colorado River, extending over a 100-meter section of cliff base. The pictographs include painted figures resembling those found in Horseshoe Canyon in Canyonlands National Park, 35 miles (56 km) to the west. Other figures, including those of animals, have been incised by removal of the rock's covering of desert varnish. The painted figures follow the Barrier Canyon Style and are believed to be between 1500 and 4000 years old. The incised figures are attributed to the Fremont culture and are dated to about 1000-1200 AD. Figures mounted on horseback were created in historical times since the 16th century introduction of horses and are attributed to Navajo or Ute artists.[2]

Courthouse Wash Pictographs
Nearest cityMoab, Utah
Coordinates38°36′26″N 109°34′47″W
Area0.1 acres (0.040 ha)
NRHP reference No.76000207 [1]
Added to NRHPApril 1, 1976

The site is accessible from a footpath, .5 miles (0.80 km) from US 191 northeast of Moab, Utah. The site was extensively vandalized in 1980, but has been conserved.[3]

The Courthouse Wash site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 1, 1976.[1]

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. Loope, David B. (May 28, 1974). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Courthouse Wash Pictographs". National Park Service. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  3. "Courthouse Wash Rock Art Site". Bureau of Land Management. Archived from the original on 22 September 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  • at the National Park Service
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