Blythe Intaglios

The Blythe Intaglios or Blythe Geoglyphs are a group of gigantic figures incised on the ground near Blythe, California, United States, in the Colorado Desert [1]. The Blythe Intaglios contain three human figures, two four-legged animals, and a spiral; although Harner reported two spirals [1]. The largest human figure in the Blythe Intaglio group is 171 feet long [1]. The Blythe Geoglyphs or intaglios were created by scraping away layers of darker rocks or pebbles to reveal a stratum of lighter-valued soil [1]. The displaced rocks outlined the figures and the exposed soil was stamped down which makes it more difficult for plants to grow in the lines [1]. Jay von Werlhof and his collaborators obtained 13 AMS radiocarbon dates for the figures, ranging from 900 BCE to 1200 CE [1]. In 1932, George Palmer, a pilot flying between Las Vegas, Nevada and Blythe, California noticed the Blythe geoglyphs [1]. Malcolm J. Rogers subsequently studied and sketched the Blythe Intaglios in 1939 [1].