By Kristy McCaffrey
You’ve likely heard of the Nazca Lines in Peru. Did you know
that similar ground drawings—known as geoglyphs—are present around the world? The
Colorado Desert in California (part of the larger Sonoran Desert) contains the
only known desert ground drawings, or intaglios, in North America. These
geoglyphs (well over 200 of them) are located along the Colorado River, with
the Blythe Intaglios (near Blythe, California) the most well-known.
The Blythe Intaglios consist of three human figures, two
four-legged animals, and a spiral. The largest human figure is 171 feet long.
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| Blythe Intaglios |
Since the intaglios are best viewed from the air, they
weren’t discovered until 1932 when pilot George Palmer noticed them while
flying between Las Vegas, Nevada, and Blythe. In 1982, they were placed on the
National Register of Historic Places.
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| Blythe Intaglios |
Since no Native American tribe has claimed ownership, it’s
believed that the drawings might be from the prehistoric period, but radiocarbon
dating has led researchers to claim the figures were produced between 900 B.C.
and 1200 A.D.
The 1961 Hardy Boys novel, Mystery of the Desert Giant, featured the intaglios.
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I'd never heard of these in Colorado, only the Nazca lines. I wish I'd managed to see them when I went to Colorado, but there's so much to see. Thanks for posting.
ReplyDeleteThese one are actually near Yuma, Arizona, I believe, but I wouldn't doubt that there are others.
DeleteI knew about the geoglyphs in South America--and there association with alleged aliens from outer space (just sayin), but I did not know that the United States had them. So, big surprise there.
ReplyDeleteA most fascinating post, Kristy!
I didn't know about them either. I was shocked really. I've never seen them in person, but hopefully one of these days.
DeleteAnd I meant to say that I love all the alien theories as well. You never know lol.
DeleteKristy,
ReplyDeleteIsn't is amazing that these ancient drawings have withstood the erosion and weathering of the centuries? And to think that the people who created these lines and drawings didn't have the means to look at them from above (a bird's eye view) to see the big picture. Fascinating ingenuity.
It's definitely amazing that they're still intact. And why would people do this?
DeletePlaces and information about these unique and mysterious places are what keep me reading and trying to learn. Thank you. Doris
ReplyDeleteAlways interesting stuff out there. :-)
DeleteI loved reading about this, Kristy, and have to share something. Back in the 70's I got hooked on the book, Chariot of the Gods by Erich von Daniken....I ended up buying the subsequent sequels because I've always believed that we are not the only civilizations in space. Well, back in the 70's we didn't have the internet, so when I went to Google just now to check on the titles of the subsequent books, I started reading...and reading...and reading now nd am so disillusioned about him as an author and his book(s). His theories have been debunked, and even worse, he made up so much stuff. All these years I truly believed his theories. Here is the Wikipedia link to read more on this fascinating subject and history.
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_von_D%C3%A4niken
Elizabeth,
DeleteI'm a great fan of the show Ancient Aliens, but if you dig deeper into much of what they talk about, it becomes clear they're making a lot of it up. On the other hand, I still believe there are unexplained things here on earth (and beyond). Just because there's a few bad players out there, we shouldn't suppress our imaginations. We just need to listen to those people with a good dose of discernment. :-)