8 years ago
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Petroglyph thieves grab and deface California carvings
At least four of the carvings, known as petroglyphs, were taken over a period of several hours, US officials said, with others badly defaced.
The petroglyphs are thought to have survived for thousands of years at the desert site near Bishop, California.
Petroglyphs, or rock engravings, are created by removing the surface layer of rocks to reveal the colours below.
They are usually of prehistoric origin, and can be found at ancient sites around the world.
The carvings vandalised in the Volcanic Tablelands area of California vanished from a site on land held sacred by the Paiute-Shoshone tribe in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, near the Nevada state line.
The extent of the theft - as well as the amount of damage inflicted on other carvings left in place - prompted a sombre verdict from the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which administers the area.
"This was the worst act of vandalism ever seen" on BLM land, archaeologist Greg Haverstock told the Los Angeles Times.
At least four of the petroglyphs have gone, while a fifth was defaced with deep cuts on its sides. A sixth carving was removed and broken before being propped against a boulder near a visitor's car park.
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