Rock Art Glossary

A GLOSSARY OF ROCK ART TERMS

ASC - altered states of consciousness
Algonkian - the Native American language group that includes the Ojibwa, Cree, etc.
altered states of consciousness - an unusual state of mind which may include the experience
of entoptic phenomena or hallucinations
anthropology - the holistic study of human beings, including their physical evolution and
biology, culture and society, archaeology, and linguistics
anthropomorph - a rock art figure shaped like a human being or human-like
archaeoastronomy - the anthropology of astronomy; the reconstruction of past astronomical
practices, celestial lore, mythologies, religions and world-views of ancient cultures related to the
sky
archaeology - the reconstruction of the human past primarily through its material remains
Archaic - the Eastern Archaic tradition is an archaeological time period from about 6000 B.C.
to 800 B.C. generally associated with the appearance of ground-stone and copper tools
atlatl - spearthrower; a stick with a hook on the end (that often looks like a large crochet hook)
used to throw a spear or dart 2 and times further
Au ge jak - Ojibwa word for the "little people" often associated with rock art
banner stone - a stone found in the archaeological record that may have been a component
of Archaic atlatls
bas relief - a three dimensional carving still attached to the background wall
birch bark scroll - a form of pictographic writing (non-phonetic) often used to remember
songs orshamanic rituals
bison - the North American buffalo; a bovine ruminant
blade - a stone tool that is at least two times as long as it is wide that may have been used as
a projectile point, knife, etc.
buffalo - North American bison (not "water buffalo")
chert - a type of stone favored for knapping stone tools and projectile points because of its
structure and predictable fracturing characteristics
Cheyenne - a Native American cultural group and a tribal affiliation
Chippewa - an older name (currently less favored) for Ojibwa
1

 copper age - an archaeological period during the Archaic when copper tools first appeared
culture - the non-biological characteristics unique to a particular society and the nongenetic
means of adaption e.g. learned behavior; culture is not unique to human beings
cup and rings - cupules surrounded by one or more concentric circles; the term favored in
Europe
cupmark - cupule
cupule - a petroglyph in the shape of a "cup" (or the bottom half of a sphere) in stone usually
about 2 inches (5cm) and about 5/8ths inch deep found all over the world
Dakota - a Native American cultural group and a tribal affiliation
effigy mound - a mound of dirt in the shape of a figure such as an a bird or snake that may
have burials
en toto - the interior of an outlined figure has been pecked
entoptic- visual phenomena generated within vision (or more loosely within the nervous
system); generally the images seen in the first stage of altered states of consciousness
excised - carving away the background around a figure in stone
fauna - animals
flint - a type of stone favored for making stone tools because of its ability to fracture (like
glass) in predictable and controllable ways
flintknap - the technique of making stone tools by knocking flakes off of a stone to shape it
fluted points - a projectile point that has a flake or flakes removed from the interior area or
end of the point to thin the point for hafting; usually seen in Clovis and Folsom points
geoglyph - images formed on the ground by scraping away surface material to form an image
out of the exposed underlying soil, or by arranging stones to form a figure such as a petroform
hafting - tying something such as a stone tool or projectile point onto a handle or spear
heart line - a line in a petroglyph from the mouth or the chest that usually ends in a heartshaped object
historic - during a period when written history existed
incised - carving figures into rock by cutting lines to outline a figure
intaglio - incised rock carving with a sunken design
Jessakid - one of the three types of Ojibwa shamen; usually solo practioners associated with
contacting the dead e.g. with a "shaking tent"
Lewis, Theodore H. - the first archaeologist to systematically survey andrecord the
petroglyphs, cave art, incised boulders, and burial mounds of Minnesota and many other states
during the late 19th century. Much of Lewis' work was financed by Alfred J. Hill.
2

 lilliputian hallucination - the medical term for seeing "little people" while hallucinating; often
associated with atropine, alcohol withdrawal, and DMT hallucinations
lithics - artifacts like projectile points made of stone
lunate - lunar or moon shaped
mammoth - a large cold adapted elephant-like extinct animal with a domed head, large tusks,
and long thick fur
manido - a spirit
manitou - a spirit
maymaygwayshi - the Ah ge jaks or "little people" associated by some Ojibwa with rock art
medicine bag - a bag carried by Native Americans containing spiritually important objects
usually made from the skin of an animal
megafauna - large animals such as now extinct North American mammoths, mastodons,
camels, giant ground sloths, giant beaver, giant bison
Mide - one of the three types of Ojibwa shamen; a male or female shaman initiated into the
organized Midewiwin or "Grand Medicine Society" which practiced medicine, healing, naming of
children and other spiritual practices
Midewiwin - the Ojibwa organized shamanic society, sometimes referred to as the "Grand
Medicine Society"
Minnesota - Dakota for "Land of Sky-Tinted Waters" - more popularly translated as "Land of
Sky-Blue Waters." The state is named after the Minnesota River.
Mississippi- "Mee-zee-see-pee" in Ojibwa means "Father of Waters" or "Big River"
Mississippian - an archaeological time period from about 900 A.D. to 1700 A.D. generally
associated with the appearance of organized agriculture
mobiliary art - portable, mobile or movable art such as small objects that can be transported
neuropsychological model - a theory of rock art related to the representation of figures and
shapes commonly perceived during altered states of consciousness
obsidian - a form of natural volcanic glass used to make projectile points and other tools
Ojibwa - the largest Native American culture or tribal affiliation in North America
Paleo-Indian - the earliest archaeological time period in North America before 6000 B.C.
associated with the culture of mammoth and giant bison hunters
parietal art - art on the walls of caves and rock shelters
patination - the thin layer of material that forms on a rock surface after weathering that can
change its color

 pecked - a dimpled appearance on stone when a hammer stone is used to shape or roughen
a surface
petroform - a representational figure laid out on the ground with stones or boulders
petroglyph - an image carved or pecked into a rock face using tone tools.
pictoglyph - a less used general term for a petroglyph or pictograph
pictograph - an image that is painted or drawn on to a surface; it may also reference a form of
symbolic imagery used as a mnemonic device that is usually not phonetic but is representational
pitted boulder - a boulder (usually a glacial erratic) with cupmarks on it
pipestone - a type of stone (Catlinite) reddish in color, used to make ceremonial pipes and
traded across North America
pit and grooves - cup shaped petroglyphs with incised lines
prehistory - before written history
projectile point - a more neutral and general term that encompasses arrowheads, spear
points, dart points, etc. which may or may not have been thrown, thrown with an atlatl, or shot
with a bow
quartzite - a fine grained extremely hard metamorphic rock (or bedrock)
rock art - a general term for petroglyphs, pictoglyphs, pictographs, mobiliary art, etc.; "art" as
we think of it in a modern sense may not have been the motivation for the creation of these
cultural artifacts; "rock art" is the term more frequently used in Europe rather than the more North
American term "petroglyph"
rock shelter - an overhang such as on a cliff face used as protection or shelter from the
elements; often a temporary camp or permanent living area; favored because a fire in a true cave
can suffocate the occupants
sculpture - three dimensional representation of a figure
shaman - a person skilled in contacting the otherworld who may be specialized in medicine,
contacting the dead, love magic, hunting magic, etc.
Sioux - an older less favored term for the Dakota
solar marker - petroglyphs designed so that sunlight or shadow interacts in a distinctive way
with the rock art. These interactions may occur on astronomically significant days.
Sheyenne - older spelling of Cheyenne; also the name of a river in North Dakota that flows
into the Red River
St. Croix - the name of a river on the Minnesota, Wisconsin border; also the name of a type of
projectile point

 style - a distinctive manner or way of doing something e.g. a unique decoration or expressive
shape
tanged projectile point - a projectile point with a very long slender tongue or shank projecting
from it for inserting into a shaft or dart
totem - the symbolic association of animals with clans, family groups, and individuals in
Ojibwa society
tutelary spirit - a guardian spirit or spirit helper
vision quest - the attempt to obtain a vision, contact spirits, obtain a guardian spirit or gain
spiritual knowledge
Wabeno - one of the three types of Ojibwa shamen who often worked alone and performed
love magic, hunting magic, etc.
Wakan - the Dakota organized medicine society of shamen
Woodland - an archaeological time period from about 800 B.C. to 1700 A.D. generally
associated with the appearance of pottery and burial mounds
UMRARA - Upper Midwest Rock Art Association
Winnebago - a Native American cultural group (they prefer the name Hochunk)
zoomorph - a rock art figure that is animal-like