’alaxulux’en
“that which goes around.”
Painted Cave in Santa Barbara, California, is one of the best known rock art sites in the country. Situated near the summit of San Marcos Pass, located within a small cave overlooking Maria Ygnacio Creek. Since 1908, access to this cave has been restricted by an iron gate.
Though the rock art has not been dated, it was no doubt created by multiple artists over centuries, with some elements composite images potentially spanning a thousand years. This history is represented by four distinctive styles. Numerous theories of what the art depicts have been published, including: trade interactions, the journey of the dead to similaqša, a solar eclipse, and more recently, an abstracted and stylized representation of Chumash astronomical knowledge.
The name for the site, ‘alaxulux’en, was recorded by John P. Harrington from Juliana Ignacio and Luisa Ignacio. Luisa was the grandmother of Mary Yee, the last first-language speaker of the Barbareño Chumash language.
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