The Navajo people may have resided in the area of Crow Canyon for several centuries. They probably left it to move westward around 1700. By that time, the Spanish had reestablished their control of the area after the suppression of the Pueblo Revolt.
This hunting scene shows that the Navajo were hunters of big game including elk, bison and big horn sheep. It seems as if the animals are being driven into a large net to the right. Long, knee-high nets were used by high desert peoples for trapping jackrabbits. This is the only example I have seen of such a large-scale effort. It is hard to believe that large animals could have been captured in this manner, but the figures that appear to be holding the net seem to be the right scale.
2 comments:
I really enjoy the contrasts in that b/w shot.
The landscape is from the little Vivitar Ultra Wide and Slim. The Ektar color didn't scan well, so I converted to black and white. I was inspired to do this partly after seeing an old Crow Canyon shot that is at the Library of Congress site.
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