Ancient Carvings. Living Symbols. Sacred Space. Unlocking the Mysteries of Jeffers Petroglyphs

At Jeffers Petroglyphs, Historic Site, a team of American Indian elders and archaeologists working as colleagues have engaged in a day to day dialogue of researching and telling of American Indian history for 18 years. This research/education/management project explores the rich cultural landscape of JPHS located on the Red Rock Ridge in Southwest Minnesota's Cottonwood County. This 160-acre site, owned and managed by the Minnesota Historical Society, is home to an estimated 5000 American Indian petroglyphs. The site is sacred to many American Indian communities and is situated in a Dakota homeland. The purpose of this article is to present one model for best research, education programming, conservation and operational management museum practice. This model privileges American Indian tradition knowledge, oral traditions spirituality, inquiry methods, and perspectives. Museum staff and non-Indian inquiry methods play a supporting role. This model not only provides a telling of American Indian history from perspective of American Indian elders for museum visitors, but also satisfies the goal of these elders to recover, preserve, enhance and expand our knowledge of indigenous people before the coming of Europeans.