Publisher's Synopsis
Petroglyphs Studies by William Coxon is a reference book consisting of a collection of observations, photographs, and theories on petroglyphs dating from 1937 until roughly 1957 by former Arizona senator William Coxon. Senator Coxon stumbled into the field of petroglyphs study while serving as an emissary for the United States and ended up devoting his life to pursuing and understanding the purposes and mental process behind the creation of these symbols. In addition to providing insight into the archaeological field’s perception of petroglyphs at that time, this compilation of one man’s research on the purpose rather than the translation of petroglyphs begins in the American southwest and spreads across both the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans and from north to south. For nearly 20 years, William Coxon conversed with notable experts including Thor Heyerdahl and Dr. Emil Haury, and studied then current writings from experts Julian H. Steward, A. T. Jackson, and Thomas Wilson. He read the works of earlier explorers including Colonel Garrick Mallery and Dr. James Churchward and talked to local inhabitants then known as the Pima to learn more about the people who made the images. Coxon also interviewed a Yaqui elder who was able to draw the elaborate “labyrinth maze” petroglyph. Sometime in the early 1960s, the former senator began writing a book at the behest of friends and colleagues to publish his theories and present his collection to the general public. Unfortunately, Coxon died in 1963 before its completion.
