Although his work on Mayan scripts is widely cited by other scholars, they prefer to ignore Kelley's opinions on the petroglyphs, because they can't believe Bronze Age Scandinavians could have travelled as far as Peterborough. I have no particular desire to be a martyr, and have my colleagues jump on me, but I don't think 'you must be wrong' is ever a good answer. Kelley said he's convinced there was a lot more travelling in prehistoric times than most scholars believe. The petroglyphs were discovered in 1954 under a covering of lichen, and are now enclosed in a climate-controlled visitors' centre. The Ojibway say the carvings match a legend of what their people called the Talking Rocks and regard them as sacred.
Many native people visit the rocks regularly to fast and meditate.
Interpreters hired by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources tell 20,000 visitors a year that the carvings were probably carved between 600 and 1,100 years ago by aboriginal shamans who went there for vision quests. The 800 carvings of snakes, birds, and fertility symbols are the largest collection of petroglyphs in North America. We welcome your feedback. All rights reserved.