Peterborough Petroglyphs, Ontario
This petroglyph of a shaman is one of hundreds of ancient drawings
at Peterborough in Ontario, Canada. All photos © Lone Primate.
Petroglyphs of a shaman and snake (left) and of Nanabush the Trickster.
Petroglyph of a spirit boat.
Other assorted intriguing petroglyphs at Peterborough.
The Peterborough Petroglyphs are a remarkable collection of over 900 ancient images carved into crystalline limestone located near Peterborough in Ontario, Canada.
History
After being lost for centuries, the Peterborough Petroglyphs was rediscovered by historian Charles Kingam in 1924.
The limestone at Peterborough is generally believed to have been carved by the Algonkian people between 900 and 1400 AD. Today, the First Nations people of Ontario call the carvings Kinomagewapkong, meaning "the rocks that teach."
However, there are several other theories of the date and authors of the remarkable petroglyphs:
- Retired Harvard professor Barry Fell believes the petroglyphs are inscriptions by a Norse king named Woden-lithi (Servant of Odin), who was said to have sailed from Norway up the St. Lawrence River in about 1700 BC.
- Mayanologist David H. Kelley viewed the petroglyphs and declared that some of the symbols were European, dating perhaps to ca. 1000 BC
- According to Andis Kaulins and Megaliths.co.uk, the petroglyphs are a sky map of the heavens from c.3117 BC based on European tradition; they have nothing to do with Native American traditions.
The area surrounding the petroglyphs was established as Petroglyphs Provincial Park in 1976.
What to See
The Peterborough Petroglyphs consist of more than 900 individual images, which are carved into a slab of crystalline limestone 180 feet (55 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide. About 300 of these are discipherable shapes, including humans, shamans, animals, solar symbols, geometric shapes and boats.
The boat drawings among the petroglyphs do not resemble the traditional boat of the Native Americans. One solar boat — a stylized shaman vessel with a long mast surmounted by the sun — is typical of petroglyphs found in northern Russia and Scandanavia.
A fissure in the rock is thought to have been revered as the entrance to the underworld or the symbolic womb of the Earth Mother.
Quick Facts
The park is open daily from May until Thanksgiving weekend and is located 55 km northeast of Peterborough in Ontario.Sources
- Atlas of Holy Places and Sacred Sites, p. 80.
- Megaliths.co.uk - "Peterborough Petroglyphs" - with drawings
More Information
- Ontario Parks - "Petroglyphs Provincial Park"
- TripAdvisor - travel forum on Peterborough, Ontario
- The Canadian Encyclopedia - "Pictographs and Petroglyphs" - by Joan M. Vastokas
- Joan M. Vastokas and Romas K. Vastokas, Sacred Art of the Algonkians: A Study of the Peterborough Petroglyphs - by the chief authorities on the site
- Andis Kaulins, Stars, Stones and Scholars: The Discipherment of the Megaliths (has a companion website)
