Coso Rock District
National Historic Landmark

Coso Rock District

China Lake, Inyo County, California
Listed
October 14, 1966
Type
Site
Period
Pre Contact
Ref No.
66000209

About this property

Coso Rock Art District is a rock art site containing over 100,000 Petroglyphs by Paleo-Indians and/or Native Americans. The district is located near the towns of China Lake and Ridgecrest, California. Big and Little Petroglyph Canyons were declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964. In 2001, they were incorporated into this larger National Historic Landmark District. There are several other distinct canyons in the Coso Rock Art District besides the Big and Little Petroglyph Canyons. Also known as Little Petroglyph Canyon and Sand Tanks, Renegade Canyon is but one of several major canyons in the Coso Range, each hosting thousands of petroglyphs (other locations include Haiwee Springs, Dead End Canyon, and Sheep Canyon). The majority of the Coso Range images fall into one of six categories: bighorn sheep, entopic images, anthropomorphic or human-like figures (including animal-human figures known as pattern-bodied anthropomorphs), other animals, weapons & tools, and "medicine bag" images. Scholars have proposed a few potential interpretations of this rock art. The most prevalent of these interpretations is that they could have been used for rituals associated with hunting. Most of the Coso Range is on the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, where visitation is restricted, vandalism is low, and preservation is most likely. The Coso Range is between the Sierra Nevada and the Argus Range. Indian Wells Valley lies to the south of this location. This north-south trending range of about 400 square miles (1,000 km2) consists of rhyolitic domes and outcrops of volcanic rock. The most popular subjects are bighorn sheep, deer, and antelope. A November 2007 Los Angeles Times' Travel feature article includes it within a top 15 list of California places to visit. The area was also mentioned in Groupon's "10 Most Unique Autumn Festivals in the Country" as a part of the Ridgecrest Petroglyph Festival.

Location

China Lake, Inyo County, California

Categories

PREHISTORICART
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
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Questions about this property

When was Coso Rock District listed on the National Register?

Coso Rock District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 14, 1966.

What type of historic resource is Coso Rock District?

Coso Rock District is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.

Is Coso Rock District a National Historic Landmark?

Yes. Coso Rock District has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.

What is the period of significance for Coso Rock District?

The period of significance for Coso Rock District is recorded as the pre_contact era.

Can I research the history near Coso Rock District?

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