The petroglyphs of Cerro Barajas, Guanajuato, Mexico

Abstract

Registration of 89 petroglyphs in Cerro Barajas, located in the southwestern area of the state of Guanajuato and the Bajío region, in the middle valley of Lerma River. Their position on the river bank seems to be strategic according to cultural dynamics and population movements during the Epiclassic in North and Central Mesoamerica. In the context of the Barajas Project (cnrs-cemca), numerous petroglyphs were found on rocks of different dimensions in the open air, near agricultural terraces, simple domestic structures, and in lesser proportion, near monumental structures. Engraved motifs are exclusively abstract, geometric, based on undulating lines and spirals, sometimes creating labyrinthine images, whose meaning remains problematic. Nevertheless, the clearly characterized spatial and chronological context of these archaeological sites enables us to develop some interpretations of these remains.