Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument
Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument, Petroglyphic site in San Juan County, United States
The 200-square-foot rock panel displays over 650 carved petroglyphs featuring human figures, animals, and geometric patterns on dark desert-varnished Wingate sandstone.
Native Americans from different cultures, including Archaic, Anasazi, Fremont, and Navajo people, created these rock carvings between 2000 years ago and the early 1900s.
The site, named Tse Hone in Navajo language, contains numerous depictions of daily life, including hunting scenes, territorial markings, and representations of spiritual beliefs.
Located 28 miles northwest of Monticello along Utah State Route 211, the monument offers a paved parking area and viewing platform with spotting scopes.
The rock surface contains multiple petroglyphs showing polydactyly, a genetic condition where individuals have extra fingers or toes, suggesting its prevalence in ancient communities.
Location: San Juan County
GPS coordinates: 37.98806,-109.51833
Latest update: May 27, 2025 13:20
Utah preserves thousands of years of human history alongside some of North America's most varied geological landscapes. The region contains extensive rock art panels and Ancestral Pueblo ruins, including the 13th-century stone structures at Bears Ears National Monument and the 650-plus petroglyphs carved into Newspaper Rock over two millennia. Fremont Indian State Park displays more than 1,000 artifacts from the indigenous peoples who inhabited these lands, while fossilized dinosaur tracks near Moab record the passage of Allosaurus and Diplodocus across ancient mudflats 150 million years ago. The natural environment ranges from the sculpted sandstone formations of Goblin Valley, where erosion has created mushroom-shaped rocks rising 20 feet (6 meters) from the desert floor, to the narrow passages of Kanarra Creek Canyon with its red walls and cascading waterfalls. The Wedge Overlook reveals 1,000-foot (300-meter) cliffs above the San Rafael River, while Monroe's thermal springs emerge from the ground at 110°F (43°C). Whether exploring slot canyons, examining ancient handprints on rock walls, or walking among eroded sandstone formations, visitors encounter landscapes that document both geological processes spanning millions of years and the enduring presence of human cultures in this high desert region.
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