Project Information
It's been a couple of years (life is way too busy) since my last segmented bowl projects, a Southwest style bowl, and my Ugliest Bowl - which I made to link the past with the present.
Since then, I've been seeking inspiration for a new project, and I found it in an unusual place. It too combines old and new.
Near our Southern Utah home are many ancient petroglyphs, considered to be quite old (probably well over a thousand years) as measured by the "desert varnish" that coats them.
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Petroglyphs, or "rock art" are common to many parts of the USA. Some believe them to be just primitive "scratchings" of no particular significance beyond artistic expression. Others believe them to be a symbolic expression of a sign language universal among the many Native American tribes, that allowed a form of communication despite their having totally different spoken languages. I favor the latter view, which I believe explains the similarity of petroglyphs in many widely separated locations.
I thought perhaps I could incorporate some of these designs into a bowl, as a way of honoring the ancient artists who made them, and also allowing me to try out some inlay techniques I'd been reading about.
I took photographs of several of the petroglyphs and attempted to duplicate the design as accurately as possible by using my computer to create a black image of the petroglyph from the photo, which then became my pattern for engraving the design into wood.
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Instead of gluing up the segment blocks, turning the ring, and then engraving the designs (which one would normally do), I actually created the radius of the design ring segments using my bandsaw. Having never engraved anything before, I was afraid if I created the entire ring first, I might ruin the whole thing if I made a mistake on any one of the engravings. Fortunately, that didn't happen. So after engraving, filling, and sanding the design pieces, I glued up the ring.
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Here is each design and the petroglyph it was taken from:
The Chief:
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Bow & Arrow:
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Medicine Man:
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The Sun?
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Mountain Sheep:
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Solstice Marker - which may be an equinox oriented lunar-solar calendar record:
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"Manasseh". This is the most fascinating of all. Compare the petroglyph to the word "Manasseh" in Hebrew and consider the implications. You be the judge!
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Spiral: Meant to call attention to something or indicate direction.
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Lastly, I made the bottom to represent a nearby "Medicine Wheel", which "has been used by generations of various Native American tribes for health and healing. It embodies the Four Directions, as well as Father Sky, Mother Earth, and Spirit Tree-all of which symbolize dimensions of health and the cycles of life."
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My segmented bowl projects would be easier if I could see the end from the beginning, but seldom do they turn out the way I originally envision them,-which is for the better, I think. Originally I planned to add additional top rings and taper the bowl at the top, but as this progressed, it began to remind me of a Native American drum, or "tom-tom", so I decided to leave it like that as one more symbol of their culture.
This has been an interesting project. I hope it doesn't take me two years to get to the next one!
![]()
Since then, I've been seeking inspiration for a new project, and I found it in an unusual place. It too combines old and new.
Near our Southern Utah home are many ancient petroglyphs, considered to be quite old (probably well over a thousand years) as measured by the "desert varnish" that coats them.
Petroglyphs, or "rock art" are common to many parts of the USA. Some believe them to be just primitive "scratchings" of no particular significance beyond artistic expression. Others believe them to be a symbolic expression of a sign language universal among the many Native American tribes, that allowed a form of communication despite their having totally different spoken languages. I favor the latter view, which I believe explains the similarity of petroglyphs in many widely separated locations.
I thought perhaps I could incorporate some of these designs into a bowl, as a way of honoring the ancient artists who made them, and also allowing me to try out some inlay techniques I'd been reading about.
I took photographs of several of the petroglyphs and attempted to duplicate the design as accurately as possible by using my computer to create a black image of the petroglyph from the photo, which then became my pattern for engraving the design into wood.
Instead of gluing up the segment blocks, turning the ring, and then engraving the designs (which one would normally do), I actually created the radius of the design ring segments using my bandsaw. Having never engraved anything before, I was afraid if I created the entire ring first, I might ruin the whole thing if I made a mistake on any one of the engravings. Fortunately, that didn't happen. So after engraving, filling, and sanding the design pieces, I glued up the ring.
Here is each design and the petroglyph it was taken from:
The Chief:
Bow & Arrow:
Medicine Man:
The Sun?
Mountain Sheep:
Solstice Marker - which may be an equinox oriented lunar-solar calendar record:
"Manasseh". This is the most fascinating of all. Compare the petroglyph to the word "Manasseh" in Hebrew and consider the implications. You be the judge!
Spiral: Meant to call attention to something or indicate direction.
Lastly, I made the bottom to represent a nearby "Medicine Wheel", which "has been used by generations of various Native American tribes for health and healing. It embodies the Four Directions, as well as Father Sky, Mother Earth, and Spirit Tree-all of which symbolize dimensions of health and the cycles of life."
My segmented bowl projects would be easier if I could see the end from the beginning, but seldom do they turn out the way I originally envision them,-which is for the better, I think. Originally I planned to add additional top rings and taper the bowl at the top, but as this progressed, it began to remind me of a Native American drum, or "tom-tom", so I decided to leave it like that as one more symbol of their culture.
This has been an interesting project. I hope it doesn't take me two years to get to the next one!
