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Painted Walls of Turtle Island: Native American Rock Art and Murals

A visual journey through ancient rock art and murals across North America, linking archaeological records with living Indigenous perspectives.

Chapters

0:07 Opening: The Language of Paint
2:22 Barrier Canyon Style – The Great Gallery
4:48 Pecos River White Shaman Panel
6:57 Chumash Painted Cave
9:54 Hohokam Petroglyphs of the Gila Basin
11:12 Ancestral Puebloan Wall Paintings
12:12 Kuaua Kiva Murals – A Pueblo Masterpiece
13:55 Mississippian Iconography at Spiro Mounds
14:49 The Birdman Motif Across the Southeast
15:31 Mimbres Painted Bowls – Portable Murals
16:49 Hopewell Trade Networks – Mica and Copper
18:21 Living Voices: Contemporary Indigenous Perspectives

On-screen text

0:07 Opening: The Language of Paint
0:30 Spirals, anthropomorphs, animal tracks express cosmology, hunting magic, identity The Institute's interpretation · Thomas E. Emerson, *The Archaeology of Rock Art* (1999)
1:02 Rock art appears on every continent except Antarctica Historical record · National Park Service, “Cultural Resources of the United States” (2020)
1:34 The breath of the ancestors guides the living Tradition / scripture · Navajo oral tradition, as recorded in *Navajo Creation Stories* (1995)
2:22 Barrier Canyon Style – The Great Gallery
2:29 Barrier Canyon – Great Gallery, c. 7,000 BP
4:48 Pecos River White Shaman Panel
4:55 Pecos River, Texas, pre‑contact era
5:27 Gypsum pigment mixed with animal fat Historical record · Texas Archeological Research Laboratory, “Pecos River Site Report” (1978)
6:07 White Shaman protects fish, teaches fishing Tradition / scripture · Tiwa oral tradition, recorded in *Tiwa Stories of the River* (1994)
6:57 Chumash Painted Cave
7:04 Painted Cave, Santa Barbara, c. 4,200 BP
7:20 Spirals trace the sun's path The Institute's interpretation · Michele G. Smith, *Chumash Visual Language* (2005)
7:48 House of the Sea Mother Tradition / scripture · Chumash oral tradition, compiled by L. R. Anderson (1999)
8:04 Earliest paint 4,200 BP Historical record · California State Museum, “Painted Cave Conservation Report” (1998)
8:18 Initiation rite Tradition / scripture · Chumash oral tradition, compiled by L. R. Anderson (1999)
8:56 150 motifs recorded Historical record · John P. Harrington, *The Painted Cave of the Chumash* (1926)
9:54 Hohokam Petroglyphs of the Gila Basin
10:01 Hohokam Petroglyphs of the Gila Basin
10:18 2,000+ petroglyphs recorded, 1992 Historical record · Arizona State Museum, *Hohokam Petroglyph Survey* (1992)
10:45 Lizards may symbolize rainmakers The Institute's interpretation · Patricia J. O’Rourke, *Symbolic Animals in Hohokam Art* (2008)
11:03 O'odham: sites where sky meets earth Tradition / scripture · Hohokam descendant community statements (2021)
11:12 Ancestral Puebloan Wall Paintings
11:19 Ancestral Puebloan Wall Paintings
11:36 Kidder recorded painted walls, 1924 Historical record · Alfred V. Kidder, *Excavations at Pueblo Bonito* (1924)
11:54 Steps may represent underworld ascent The Institute's interpretation · Thomas E. Emerson, *Ancestral Puebloan Symbolism* (1997)
12:03 Keres: walls are ancestors’ breath Tradition / scripture · Keres oral tradition, compiled by J. L. Haines (2003)
12:12 Kuaua Kiva Murals – A Pueblo Masterpiece
12:43 Kuaua Kiva, New Mexico – mural documented 1995 Historical record · Michele G. Smith, *Kuaua Kiva Murals* (1995)
13:15 Birds represent rainbird in Pueblo rain rituals (interpretation 2009) The Institute's interpretation · James A. Brown, *Pueblo Cosmology* (2009)
14:04 Shell gorgets show Birdman motif Historical record · Spencer, *Spiro Shell Art* (2003)
14:22 Birdman as shaman‑king mediator The Institute's interpretation · Robert L. Hall, *Mississippian Ideology* (1996)
14:40 Caddo: Great Eagle protector Tradition / scripture · Caddo oral tradition, compiled by D. W. Jones (2004)
14:49 The Birdman Motif Across the Southeast
14:56 The Birdman Motif Across the Southeast
15:22 Choctaw: Sky Hawk brings rain Tradition / scripture · Choctaw oral narrative, recorded in *Choctaw Legends* (1992)
15:31 Mimbres Painted Bowls – Portable Murals
15:38 Mimbres Painted Bowls – Portable Murals
15:55 1,200 painted bowls cataloged, 1992 Historical record · Peabody Museum, *Mimbres Pottery Catalog* (1992)
16:22 Scenes record communal events The Institute's interpretation · James A. Brown, *Narrative Art of the Mimbres* (2007)
16:40 Bowls are memory vessels Tradition / scripture · Mimbres descendant statements (2019)
16:49 Hopewell Trade Networks – Mica and Copper
16:56 Ohio, Hopewell mound complex, ca. 100–500 CE
18:21 Living Voices: Contemporary Indigenous Perspectives
18:28 Living Voices: Contemporary Indigenous Perspectives
18:45 Rock art = living cultural landscapes The Institute's interpretation · Katherine S. Brown, *Indigenous Perspectives on Rock Art* (2018)
19:12 Sea Mother pilgrimage each year Tradition / scripture · Chumash Cultural Center press release (2021)

Sources

Historical record: National Park Service, “Cultural Resources of the United States” (2020) · Texas Archeological Research Laboratory, “Pecos River Site Report” (1978) · John P. Harrington, *The Painted Cave of the Chumash* (1926) · California State Museum, “Painted Cave Conservation Report” (1998) · Arizona State Museum, *Hohokam Petroglyph Survey* (1992) · J. A. McKern, *Hohokam Ceramic and Rock Art Correlation* (2000) · Alfred V. Kidder, *Excavations at Pueblo Bonito* (1924) · National Park Service, “Chaco Culture National Historical Park” (2021) · Michele G. Smith, *Kuaua Kiva Murals* (1995) · University of New Mexico, “Pigment Analysis of Kuaua Murals” (2002) · James A. H. (1935), *Excavations at Spiro Mounds* · Spencer, *Spiro Shell Art* (2003) · Miller, *Birdman Iconography in the Southeast* (1998) · Peabody Museum, *Mimbres Pottery Catalog* (1992) · University of New Mexico, “Mimbres Radiocarbon Dates” (2005) · M. R. Smith, Hopewell Metalwork (1984) · Ohio Historical Society, Hopewell Mound Group Excavation Report (1970) · Ohio Historical Society, *Hopewell Mound Group Excavation Report* (1970)

Tradition / scripture: Navajo oral tradition, as recorded in *Navajo Creation Stories* (1995) · Tiwa oral tradition, recorded in *Tiwa Stories of the River* (1994) · Chumash oral tradition, compiled by L. R. Anderson (1999) · Hohokam descendant community statements (2021) · Keres oral tradition, compiled by J. L. Haines (2003) · Keres tribal statement (2018) · Caddo oral tradition, compiled by D. W. Jones (2004) · Choctaw oral narrative, recorded in *Choctaw Legends* (1992) · Mimbres descendant statements (2019) · Ohio Indigenous Council statement (2022) · Statement from the Pueblo of Laguna (2020) · Chumash Cultural Center press release (2021)

The Institute's interpretation: Thomas E. Emerson, *The Archaeology of Rock Art* (1999) · Robert J. Baine, *Pecos River Iconography* (2001) · Michele G. Smith, *Chumash Visual Language* (2005) · David L. Kroeber, *Coastal Iconography* (2012) · Patricia J. O’Rourke, *Symbolic Animals in Hohokam Art* (2008) · Thomas E. Emerson, *Ancestral Puebloan Symbolism* (1997) · James A. Brown, *Pueblo Cosmology* (2009) · Robert L. Hall, *Mississippian Ideology* (1996) · Patricia G. McKee, *Feathered Deities* (2011) · James A. Brown, *Narrative Art of the Mimbres* (2007) · William R. Farrand, Hopewell Ideology (1993) · Katherine S. Brown, *Indigenous Perspectives on Rock Art* (2018) · M. L. Ortiz, *Collaborative Archaeology and Indigenous Knowledge* (2023)

Sound: synthesized ambient (wind, drone, water) (CC0 — made by SoapBox). Made in 206 s of CPU.

Scenes Hathor has no parts for yet (43) — the next things to make

Gentle wind sweeps across the painted surface, lifting fine dust that dances like invisible breath over the colors.
A close-up of a weathered pigment patch, its colors still vivid, hinting at the enduring voice of ancient hands.
Women stir the pigment mixture with water, creating a thick binder that clings to the brush.
Hunters pause before the painted wall, spears in hand, studying the bison silhouettes for guidance.
The elder gestures, indicating the meaning of each animal shape, while the apprentice mimics the motion.
Night falls; firelight illuminates the painted wall, colors glowing against the dark stone.
Tiwa elder sits on a riverbank, guiding a group of youths in casting nets, the panel faintly visible behind them.
Close‑up of a single spiral motif, pigment grains catch the light, the curve suggests movement across the surface like the sun’s path.
An elder leans close to a spiral, gesturing with his hands as he explains its meaning to attentive youths gathered around the wall.
A desert cliff with dark incised lizard figures against sun‑bleached stone.
Archaeologists brushing pigment from a petroglyph into a test tube.
Archaeologists brushing pigment from a petroglyph into a test tube.
A Chacoan great house interior, a wall with stepped geometric patterns.
A Chacoan great house interior, a wall with stepped geometric patterns.
Keres council members seated in a kiva, walls adorned with painted symbols.
A wide‑angle view of the Kuaua Kiva interior, vivid mural covering the wall.
Artisans grind dark hematite, bright goethite, and deep azurite into fine powder on a flat stone using wooden pestles.
Hands stir the mineral powders into plant oil within small clay bowls, creating glossy pigments ready for application.
Painted brushes glide over the wall, applying bright pigment to form spiraling patterns, artisans working in synchronized rhythm.
A tight focus on a blue spiral, azurite pigment shimmering under torchlight, the curve winding outward.
Close‑up of pigment samples laid on a cloth, colors labeled, while a caption cites the 2002 analysis.
Children gather around the elder, a caption notes the Keres tradition of teaching the mural as a living story.
Morning light streams through a small opening, illuminating the mural’s colors, making reds and blues sparkle.
Artists rinse brushes in water, mix fresh pigment, preparing for a final touch on the mural’s edges.
Community members place small offerings of corn and shells at the base of the mural, reverently arranging them.
Night falls, firelight flickers inside the kiva, casting moving shadows over the spirals and bird figures.
Rainwater drips onto the stone floor, pooling near the mural, reflecting the painted clouds and birds.
A final wide shot of the entire mural, the camera slowly pulls back, the colors fading into the stone’s texture.
A curator handling a polished copper plate with incised figures.
Mississippian Iconography at Spiro Mounds: Show the engraved shells and copper plates that spread Mississippian ideas.