Native American Rock Art, Tehachapi Mountains

Elaborate swirls, wheels, anthropomorphics, arcs, fringes, and webs decorate the overhung lee side of this huge granite boulder. This is a very busy panel, and remarkably well preserved. The whites and reds are very vivid, while the black pigments have faded to a dusky charcoal blue. Below the panel are two flat slabs, smoothed by use and pocked with numerous cupules and deep mortars. The site can be found on the southern slope of the Tehachapis, tucked deep in a desert canyon near a spring. I have found little information regarding the origins of the artists, though one nonscientific on-line page states that the site fell within the overlapping domains of the Kitanemuk and Kawaiisu indians. Four wheel drive and some real ingenuity are required to reach the site. There are numerous web pages which refer to this place by it's geographical name. For those with the urge for a little off-road exploration I'll throw you a bone. This site's official designation is KER-237. Follow the bread crumbs.