Researcher believes rock art in Utah depicts ancient mammoth

Tuesday, September 6, 2011  

A German researcher believes he's found proof of Indian contact with ancient mammoths on a petrolglyph in Utah.

In the fall 2011 issue of Rock Art Research, Ekkehart Malotk says the petroglyph dates back 11,000 years. It features two carvings of mammoth-like animals, including details on the trunk that give them some credibility.

“It is compelling evidence of the species," Malotki told The Salt Lake Tribune.

Other researchers aren't convinced. They say Malotki hasn't dated the site with enough evidence and that the images may not be of mammoths, which lived in the area before they went extinct about 10,000 years ago.

Get the Story:
Do Utah’s San Juan River petroglyphs depict mammoths? (The Salt Lake Tribune 9/6)