2025-03-14

Wolfman Panel, Butler Wash, Utah

Wolfman Panel is really interesting petroglyph and special. 

There are several things often observed in petroglyphs and pictographs in the American Southwest including bighorn sheep, spiral, wavy lines, etc, but here in the Wolfman Panel is unique. 
Wolfman Panel

Picture above, I think that it contain the "Wolfman"
The main person in the middle with long fingers and big leg toes. He seems to have some power. Left and right bottom of the panel has distinct wolf footprint. They are much bigger than actual wolf footprints but there might be some meaning why it is big. I guess this combination of wolf footprints and a man makes the panel called Wolfman. Wolfman is pretty big. May 2 meters. Although the name is Wolfman, the panel is not only that. There are many unusual pictograph as you can see. I see a bird with big wing. Two big eyes? in the right, and so on. Sadly bullet holes are everywhere, but I just oversee it.
Wolfman Panel continues


Another interesting thing on the panel. The middle reminded me of "ObakenoQtaro", Japanese anime character. I am 200% sure the creator didn't mean it. Wikipedia for the anime is below. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obake_no_Q-Tar%C5%8D

Left is interesting figure as well. It looks to me a faucet but there was no faucet there where this was depicted. The right was a sort of plant? 
More interesting shape in the left picture, although highly damaged by bullet holes. It is a perfect circle and there is another shape inside the circle. It might be hard to guess the size by picture, but it is very big actually. Maybe bullet hole size helps to guess the size of petroglyph.



With harsh environment and limited food source and tough life, making this big panel is a lot of work I guess. Thus this panel must have ment a lot for Anasazi people. Why did they make this? To pray? For fun? Imagining their life is fun and never ending. 


Other side of the canyon from Wolfman panel, we noticed that there is ruin there. Also there is a used path to it. Why not check out?!
There are so many pieces of pottery scattered. Never have enough time to check  them all out, but we spent significant amount of time to enjoy each piece's pattern and colors. I wonder the Anasazi broke these potteries intentionally when they disappeared abruptly. 
Ruin is well preserved and really worth to check out by going down the canyon and up. 
Around the ruin, there are at least 100 pictograph. It is really interesting but can't put all the pictograph here. We enjoyed A LOT. Near the ruin, the item they curved were relatively common stuff, such as spiral, bighorn sheep etc as I put two representative picture in the left. 



Butler Wash area is relatively remote but it is good access from Bluff. From parking to the Wolfman panel is less than a mile of walk . Worth checking it out.