Rock Art Council

The Archaeological Society of New Mexico has been promoting the recording of rock art by trained volunteers since the 1960s. It recently reorganized the administration of the program from a limited committee structure to a more broadly based council structure. The Rock Art Council is open to individuals and organizations engaged in the study and recording of rock art within New Mexico and the adjacent regions.

Purpose:

The Rock Art Council provides an organization and assistance to guide the rock art recording community in New Mexico. The Rock Art Council will continue to base its efforts on maintaining continuity with the past and building on the work of Col. James Bain assisted by his wife Nan, Helen and Jay Crotty, and Jean and Jerry Brody.

The goals established by the ASNM Board of Trustee’s for the Rock Art Council are:

Providing education about rock art;
Establishing standards acceptable to the archaeological community and the Historic Preservation Division that ensure all data collected by rock art recording procedures be mutually compatible and that complete copies of all rock art data are deposited in the Archaeological Records Management Section;
Providing training to interested parties;
Providing assistance to meet the standards;
Assisting in the submission of rock art site records in the New Mexico Cultural Resource Inventory System (NMCRIS); and
Developing communication and working relationships with rock art recording groups, governmental agencies, and individuals in New Mexico and the Greater Southwest region.

The Rock Art Council will also provide a forum to facilitate communication among its members and to operate consistently so that all the data produced by various projects can ultimately be used as if they were a single database.

The Rock Art Council will be administered by its members. The Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary will be recommended by the Rock Art Council and confirmed by the Archaeological Society of New Mexico’s Board of Trustees.