Overview
- The Bureau of Land Management announced on Nov. 6 that investigators found graffiti carved into two prehistoric panels near Moab, one at the Bear Panel along Highway 279 and one near Hell’s Revenge in the Sand Flats area.
- BLM said the damage includes names and initials scratched over images such as a bear, a bighorn sheep, a humanlike figure, and geometric motifs, and the agency has opened a criminal investigation and has no publicly identified suspects.
- Officials are asking the public to call BLM Moab law enforcement at 435-259-2131 with tips and have appealed for information to help identify who is responsible.
- Conservation teams will apply specialized treatments to reduce visible chalky residue in the coming days, but BLM warned that deeper cuts into the soft sandstone may be permanent and that improper cleaning by visitors can cause further harm.
- The panels date to about A.D. 400–1300, hold cultural value for descendant tribes and pueblos, and their damage could hinder tribal heritage and regional archaeological research while exposing vandals to federal penalties under the Archaeological Resources Protection Act.