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Aboriginal Youth Identity Series: Spirituality and CreationGlossaryTidbitsPhoto Gallery
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Anderson Medicine Wheel site An illustration of a buffalo pound. Pounds were used on the plains in areas where jumps were not possible. In addition to medicine wheels, early peoples also made what are called effigies out of rocks in the shape of humans and animals. Pictograph from Grotto Canyon






Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump from below. Locations of medicine wheels in Alberta. Alberta has the largest concentration of these sites in North America. Some 45 medicine wheels have been found in Alberta; most on top of hills such as this one. No one is really sure why they were created, but the oldest medicine wheels were begun about 5000 years ago, and many are still used by First Nations for ceremonies. A view of Old Women's Buffalo Jump. The word 'old' refers to the age of the jump, not the women who used it. A type of projectile point known as the Old Women's was first identified at this site






Petroglyphs are incised carvings on stone while pictographs are paintings or designs made with paint or ochre on stone. This fine example of a petroglyph comes from a remarkable site called Writing-On-Stone in southern Alberta. Now a part of a provincial park, Writing-On-Stone offers visitors a rare chance to see petroglyphs in their original context Drawing of the Sundial Hill medicine wheel. Not all medicine wheels are alike. In fact, each is different, though Alberta archaeologist John Brumley believes all can be classified into one of eight categories or subgroups. Among Subgroup 2 medicine wheels, Sundial Hill's double ring and south facing pathway set it apart. Another example of the remarkable petroglyphs found at Writing-On-Stone. Examples of the 8 types of medicine wheels found in Alberta




 

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