graffiti?

[Iceaxe]

the photos are of the old H. Pace
inscription in the canyon dating to 1872 that unfortunately no longer
exists.

Just curious.... what is the cut off date that defines graffiti/trash and separates it from history/'unfortunately no longer
exists'?

This little argument has always interested me.... if Pace had not scratched his name in the wall the later names would probably never have been carved into the wall.... and I always joke with friends that in 5000 years folks will be booking trips to southern utah to see where the ancients carved their names in the wall with dates like 1999.....

I know this argument also dates to other items like the 'historic' pipes in Knotted Rope.

:popcorn:

[James_B_Wads2000]

I watched a show about this recently and I think technically anything older then 40 years is considered historic. So technically the bullet holes in Temple Wash panel are of value since some may date back to the 50

[stefan]

the photos are of the old H. Pace
inscription in the canyon dating to 1872 that unfortunately no longer
exists.

Just curious.... what is the cut off date that defines graffiti/trash and separates it from history/'unfortunately no longer
exists'?


graffiti is usually defined in the context of "illicit" behavior, so you could go by the laws of our country. over 100 years ... i think it goes without saying that it's unfortunate that something like that is gone. i think "we" had a pretty strong notion from the 60s onward that graffiti in our natural world is in poor taste, though it's clear many have thought otherwise. so i'd say at the VERY least, sometime earlier than the 60s, could be much earlier, but i haven't set my mind on anything in particular.



and I always joke with friends that in 5000 years folks will be booking trips to southern utah to see where the ancients carved their names in the wall with dates like 1999.....


the only problem with this logic is that we (society in general) now think very differently and perceive the natural world differently from the folks who lived 100+ years ago. i would hope people 5000 years from now would rather come to see the unsullied beauty of nature than scrawls from folks who thought it'd be cool to carve themselves up on a canyon wall in an age so far removed from the time when folks were settling this amazing land.