Mesa Prieta facts for kids

Mesa Prieta is a mesa in Rio Arriba County New Mexico that lies at the confluence of the Rio Grande and the Embudo River. The mesa was formed by a basaltic lava flow approximately 3.3 myr. When the Rio Grande began to flow through the area, it eroded the softer sedimentary layers beneath the basaltic layer creating a mesa.

Petroglyphs

The basaltic rocks of the mesa naturally form a patina which can be scraped by humans to create petroglyphs. Mesa Prieta is the site of one of the largest collections of petroglyphs in New Mexico. Archaeological surveys have estimated that there are anywhere between 50,000 and 100,000 petroglyphs on the Mesa. These artifacts contain examples from the Archaic, Pueblo, and Spanish periods and show evidence of human habitation in the region dating back 10,000 years ago.