Subtitled "Ancient Indian Rock Art of Arizona," this video treads through the desert peering at pictographs (painted images) and petroglyphs (carved images) created by prehistoric Native Americans. Scholars wonder whether the rock art is religious, territorial, mythological, historical or simply an "I was here" type of graffiti. They try to attribute particular examples of rock art to certain tribes and periods, and make educated guesses about their meanings. For instance, depictions of pregnant game animals may have been wishful drawing on the part of a particular tribe. Contemporary Native Americans, including Navaho, Pueblo, Anasazi, and Hopi, look to the rock art as inspiration from their ancestors and gain a renewed understanding of the timelessness of their culture. The latter third of the video is spent lamenting the vandals that deface the rock art and the difficulty of stopping them. From this reviewer's perspective, Marks of the Ancestors is serviceable for the curious but not especially captivating. Unfortunately, rock art doesn't play well on video; the medium fails to capture its age, subtlety and texture. This video would probably be most useful in university classrooms as an introduction to archaeology, or perhaps, in an art class. Otherwise, this is optional. Audience: C, P. (A. Laker)
Marks of the Ancestors
(1994) 40 min. $59.95. Vision Maker Video. PPR. Color cover. Vol. 11, Issue 5
Marks of the Ancestors
Star Ratings
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