Rock art and native Americans: A view from South Dakota

As highly visible features of the archaeological landscape, rock art sites require special management considerations Native Americans contacted as par t of a state-wide rock art survey in 1992-93 had firn, and sometimes surpri sing, views regarding such issues as opening sites for public visitation, i nterpretive materials, and site preservation. Public education, site protec tion, and studies of oral traditions concerning rock art sites were viewed favorably by the Native Americans participating in the survey. Developing s ites for public visitation raised concerns about protecting the privacy of individuals using the sites for religious purposes. Personal interviews wer e more successful than questionnaires in gathering Native American views on rock art site management.