Moab Area
Rock Art:
Golf Course Panel
This page contains a discussion of the rock art found on the Golf Course Panel in Moab, Utah. All photographs are from our our personal collection. If you'd like to see more rock art from this location, or if you'd like to see higher resolution or larger images, send us an e-mail message and we'll see what we can do.
This interesting panel runs from ground level up to approximately 30 feet on a high rock wall. The images cover an area about 90 feet wide. The panel is from the Formative Period and has many apparently human figures, elk, canines, and several types of bighorn sheep.
To get to the site from the corner of Main and Center in downtown Moab, take Highway 191 approximately four miles south to the golf course turn off (it is signed). Turn left and proceed to Spanish Trail Road, approximately one mile, just past the fire station located on the left side of the road. Take the round-about to Westwater Drive, which is on the far side of the circle. Proceed about .5 miles to a small pullout on the left side of the road. You'll notice a large white gateway to a private ranch. Do not block the driveway. There is no other large sandstone outcrop in the area, so you can't miss it. The GPS Coordinates for the panel are: 38 32.275N; 109 28.777W; at an elevation of 4,682 feet.
- Archaeological Resources Protection Act Hotline: 800-227-7286.
- See Archaeological Site Etiquette.
- See American Antiquities Act of 1906.
- See Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979.
- See More Rock Art Sites.
Photo Gallery
All of these photos have been resized and manipulated in Photoshop to give the best representation of the image. Some color distortion is inevitable. If you would like to see higher quality versions of these shots, or if you would like to use these images for any purpose, please contact us and we would be glad to help if we can.
Select an image to see a full sized version.
| Anthropomorphs | |
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The locally famous "Moab Man" petroglyph. This figure has a triangular shaped torso, a very long, thin neck, a relatively small head with large dangling earrings and a set of of multi-pronged antlers. The legs have feet, and the arms extend out of the shoulder area. The right arm curves downward at the elbow, ending in a four-fingered hand. The left arm curves upward at the elbow and ends in a five-fingered hand raised as if in greeting. |
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This anthropomorph petroglyph is in general similar to the figure above, with the same configuration of the arms, raised as if in greeting. The left arm in both figures has an object seemingly dangling from the left elbow. Both figures have horned heads, though the style of the horns is different, and the heads are shaped differently. This figure also has a long wave of a line passing through it, from near its right elbow, across its torso, then curving back across the hip area, then back again to end near the feet. |
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There are probably seven anthropomorphs in this part of the panel, and one small zoomorph that may be a canine. At least one of the figures seems to be raising its right hand in greeting, and this figure also has a round head with what look like rays radiating out from it. There is also an unusual figure in that the body is thick, with even broader, thicker looking shoulders (much like a weight lifter), and the arms give the appearance of large wings held down to the side. The figure appears to have four stick legs, all of about the same length. It is possible that the middle pair is an extended vulvaform. The head is also unusual in that if you look at it closely it almost takes on the appearance of an eagle's head in profile, with the beak pointing to the left in this photo. However, it is possible that the "beak" might be do to spalling. |
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This is a closer view of two of the main figures, including the one that gives the appearance of being an eagle in profile. The headdress of the central figure (with the bottom portion of the body spalling off) is quite interesting. There also appears to be a zoomorph to the right of the figure, being held in the hand of the smaller figure to the right. |
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This strange figure appears to have four arms extending to the sides of a round upper torso. This round area could represent a shield. The small round head sits atop a long, thin neck. There are horizontal "horns" or feathers protruding from each side of the head. |
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This figure appears to be older than many on this panel due to extensive repatination. The figure has a thick body, with short arms and legs and a mound for a head, with a short feather protruding from its top. |
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There are two anthropomorphs in this view which also appear to be old due to repatination. They are more of a stick figure style, with extended arms that curve upward. The legs are spread wide, and the figure on the right has a large, round object protruding from between its legs. This figure resembles to some degree the birthing figure at the Birthing Rock site along Kane Creek Road. |
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This figure seems to be fading away due to repatination. It is very similar to many of the anthropomorphs on this panel. |
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This is a distinctive anthropomorph with stick figure arms and legs and neck, but with a round torso. The arms are long and curve in an arc on each side, ending at the hips. The head is a relatively small orb that has thin, downwardly curved "horns" extending from either side. The legs are spread wide, giving the entire figure the appearance of defiance. |
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This figure is very similar to the one above, except that the downward curing arms do not extend to the hips. Instead, they are spread wide, giving the appearance of a high noon gunfighter from a modern western movie. |
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This figure is also somewhat similar to the two immediately above, however, the body has been enlarge into more of a heart-shape, with the shorter arms extending from the shoulder area. The legs are also somewhat shorter and are more curved than in the two previous figures. The interior chest area was solidly pecked, like the above figures, while the additional portion of the torso is more loosely pecked, giving it an almost transparent appearance. |
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There are three anthropomorphs on this section of the panel. The one in the upper middle has the typical triangular shaped torso, very short downward curved arms, and short stick legs. There is a long, thin neck with no apparent head. What looks like a feather protrudes at an angle from the head area. See the next photo for more detail on the figure in the lower right. The third figure is to the left of the upper figure and appears to be a much smaller version of the figure in the lower right. |
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The figure in the lower right is the most intriguing. At first it give an almost crab-like appearance. It has an oval shaped torso, with three legs protruding downward. The middle "leg" may represent a long penis or tail feathers. Each arm is made up of two parallel lines which end at a point, giving the impression of wings. The long neck ends with no obvious head, with two horizontal lines extending left and right from the head area. In the end, this figure has somewhat of a bird appearance, but there is nothing conclusive to indicate that this is so. |
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There are two full anthropomorphs, and one partial anthropomorph in this part of the panel. They are typical of the figures found in this area. |
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This is a close up of the larger figure in the above photo. It has a long, oval-shaped torso, with extremely long legs. The figure has short arms that curve back toward the chest area. The head sits atop a short neck, and has upwardly curving horns coming from either side. |
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Due to the apparent lack of repatination, this figure seems to be more recent. It has a rectangular shaped body with arms and legs. The right arm is raised as if in greeting. There is a single feather protruding from the ball-shaped head. |
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There are two anthropomorphs in this photo. The one on the left is short, with a well defined triangular shaped torso. It appears to have short arms and legs, but no visible head. See the next photo for a description of the figure on the right. |
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The figure on the right is in a stick figure style, with a long thin body, graceful legs that curve outward, and short arms. The left arm bends downward at the elbow and seems to be grasping one end of a line of dots. The figure has a small head and a large, long feather protruding from it. |
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This is a somewhat unusual figure for this panel, but I have seen this style elsewhere in this area. The torso, neck, and head all blend in this somewhat pointed oval shaped body that gives the impression of a seal, especially when you look at the short downward bend arms and the pair of legs at the bottom that look a little like "flippers." |
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| Geometric Figures and Patterns | |
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It's difficult to determine what this figure is supposed to represent. It has a generally square central area, with straight lines radiating out from each corner. There is also a horizontal line that cuts through the middle vertically, and another line that cuts through the middle horizontally. The figure gives the impression of the sun or a bright star but may represent something completely different. |
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| Panels | |
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A snake and one of the anthropomorphs described above. |
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A large anthropomorph with two zoomorphs that could represent some sort of insects. |
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Several anthropomorphs with horizontal and vertical wavy lines. The horizontal wavy line might represent a snake, while the pair of vertical wavy lines may represent water. |
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A long line of desert big horn sheep, all running to the right of the image. There is one big horn that is headed in the opposite direction. There is also an object in the lower left that might be a zoomorph on its back, but that is difficult to determine. This shot also shows the seal shaped figure describe in the Anthropomorphs section above. |
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A close up of one of the figures described in the Anthropomorphs section above. The figure has a slender, triangular shaped torso, two well defined legs, two curved arms each ending in a well defined hand. The left arm curves downward while the right arm curves upward, ending in a hand with spread fingers, giving the impression of waving a greeting. There is a large, hollow round head with many straight lines protruding from it, like a representation of the Sun. |
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Two of the figures described above in the Anthropomorphs section, with a small zoomorph between them. |
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A broad view of one of the heart-shaped figure describe in the Anthropomorphs section, appearing with what looks like a snake and a small figure of an elk or mule deer buck. |
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A small anthropomorph with two zoomorphs that may be canines. The anthropomorph is rendered in a somewhat different style than most on this panel, yet it retains the major characteristics of many of the local figures. |
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| Zoomorphs | |
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Two zoomorphs that may represent some sort of insect, like a millipede. |
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This zoomorph appears to be a prancing or happy canine, with legs spread as if running with pleasure. The extremely long tail is curved playfully over the back, while the long, slender neck is curved slightly backward, giving the back an arched appearance. The head appears to be that of a dog or other canine, with long, erect hears. |
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This zoomorph appears to be a female desert big horn sheep. The way the body has been pecked gives the appearance of a woolly coat. |
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A pair of elk or mule deer bucks. |
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Several zoomorphs of different types. |
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A pair of short horned zoomorphs with thick bodies. |
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A close up of the only prominent snake on this panel. You can see it in association with an anthropomorph in one of the photos above. |
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What appears to be a desert big horn sheep. |
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Appears to be either an elk or mule deer buck. It does not appear to have legs. |
