Petroglyphs of Dry Island and Ringbolt Island
A
design or figure carved on a rock is called a petroglyph. The word comes
from the Greek 'petra' meaning rock and 'glyphe' meaning carving. A petroglyph
is made by striking one rock, a hammerstone, against the surface of another
repeatedly in the same spot until a depression or groove is made. This
pecking process continues for many hours until the design is created.
In the Skeena Region the shapes are usually human and animal, sometimes
in transformational stages. No one knows the exact reason for the petroglyphs,
their meanings, or their significance.
The significance of petroglyphs may be associated with shamanism. A shaman is a religious specialist and healer whose primary function is to cure people. The making of petroglyphs may be associated with shamansim because the idea of transformation is associated with shamanic activity. Also, shamanic activity tended to occur away from villages and the petroglyphs are also usually located away from villages. The fact that many many of the petroglyphs become submerged in water by either rising river or tidal levels may also be associated with the shamanic idea of transformation in the different zones of land and waters.
Four single petroglyphs have been found on Dry Island. See Kitselas Canyon Site Map. Dry Island is a narrow outcrop of bedrock located adjacent to the village of Gitsaex and parallel to Ringbolt Island. Dry Island can be walked to most of the year. The only time it is inaccessible is during high water between the middle of May to August. At high water when Dry Island in fact becomes an island the petroglyphs are submerged.
Three of the Dry Island petroglyphs depict faces, side by side almost parallel with the river. The fourth petroglyph is very difficult to see but appears to be an animal form. The most interesting aspect about these petroglyphs is the idea of transformation. The idea of transformation is a very spiritual concept among the Tsimshian. It was believed that some shamans had this power of transformation. An example of how this transformation is shown is the carving of one of the petroglyph faces of Dry Island. When viewed with your back to the river the carving has the appearance of a human face, or perhaps a mask. When the same petroglyph is viewed from the other side, looking toward the river, the face seems to have transformed into that of an animal, or perhaps another mask.
Five separate petroglyphs have also been rediscovered on Ringbolt Island. Ringbolt Island is a long rock island in the middle of the Skeena River. See the Kitselas Canyon Site Map. The first petroglyph was found in 1967 and it is the largest. It is called the 'Main Glyph' and it measures 2.1 by 1.8 metres. It required a double bed sheet to do a complete rubbing of the entire carving. This elaborate petroglyph represents two human figures shown in frontal view and at least two animal figures in profile. Both of these human figures are wearing headdresses that may indicate shamanic activity. Another feature of the carving that may represent shamanic activity is the circular mouths. These 'O' mouths may represent a spirit entering or leaving the body. The other major petroglyph on Ringbolt Island is referred to as 'Rescued Rock.' This large petroglyph includes images of human figures and animals. Again concepts of transformation appear in these images. Of all the petroglyph figures on Ringbolt Island, perhaps the most well known locally is the small 'Blackfish' petroglyph. This carving may represent a killer whale and is the symbol used by the Terrace Public Library with the permission of the Kitselas Band.