No one is certain who these primitive people were or when they were here. Students of rock are have only theories about the significance and meaning of the designs. Opinions vary widely whether the petroglyphs were made for cermonial purposes, whether they are telling stories to pass along the mythology of their makers, or whether they record hunting hopes or successes. The petroglyphs are pecked, engraved, or abraded into the desert varnish or patins that forms on volcanic basalt rocks with time and weathering. The lighter colored base rock makes the design visible.
Bighorn sheep are the most common design in the region.
Other animals shown include deer, mountain lions, coyotes, foxes, lizards, snakes, tortoises, and very rarely, quail. Hunters with throwing sticks or bows and arrows are also shown. Near the canyon entrance are two human figures shooting at each other with bows and arrows, a rare design. There are many abstract designs whose meanings also remain a mystery. This rock are is so important to our cultural heritage and our knowledge of the desert's past that in 1964 the sites were listed in the National Register of Historic Places.