Petroglyph National Monument

Ancient rock art carved on volcanic basalt boulders on Albuquerque's west side

Address 6001 Unser Blvd NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120
Phone (505) 899-0205

Petroglyph National Monument preserves about 24,000 images carved into the basalt boulders along the escarpment of an ancient volcanic lava flow on Albuquerque's west side. The petroglyphs were made by ancestral Pueblo peoples over several centuries, and include figures of people, animals, birds, and abstract symbols — their precise meanings are known to the Pueblo descendants, not to archaeologists. The monument is an active cultural landscape, not an archaeological ruin, and several Pueblo tribes maintain ties to the site.

Three main trails let you walk among the boulders: Boca Negra Canyon (paved, accessible), Rinconada Canyon (longer, more remote feel), and Piedras Marcadas Canyon (the most petroglyph-dense). Go early in the morning — the sun can be intense and the contrast on the rock is better in low-angle light. Free entry at most trailheads. The small visitor center has background on the site's cultural significance.

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Most of the approximately 24,000 images at the monument were carved by ancestral Pueblo peoples between 1300 and 1680 CE, using harder stones to chisel through the dark volcanic "desert varnish" — manganese and iron oxide — to expose the lighter basalt beneath. A smaller number were made by Spanish settlers after 1630 and by later Pueblo artists who still consider the site sacred.

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