New testing is being done at one of the most unique tourist attractions in southern Saskatchewan to try and find out when people first visited the area. The St. Victor Petroglyphs Provincial Park, which is located southeast of Assiniboia, features over 300 ancient carvings. Areas of the park have been carbon-14 tested, a method to determine the age of organic materials, to see what how far in the past the place was occupied. David Munro, president of the Friends of St. Victor Petroglyphs, said digging to the depth of 50 centimetres was also done, with items collected along the way. “We sent away material from 10-20 centimetre level, and we got a date back of the year 900 AD,” he said. “The other one was at 50 centimetres down and that was dated at 120 BC.” The area was once a significant gathering place for a number of Indigenous tribes. During the dig, several different pottery pieces were found at a specific depth, the likely sign of a big event. “When you are dealing with maybe seven different varieties of pottery all coming out in one washout, that tells you somewhere at some time everybody from all the different pottery makers showed up here,” he explained. The petroglyphs are now a protected site and are now a part of a provincial historic park. Linda Benson brought her friend Janice McCrum to see the carvings for the first time and to experience one of Saskatchewan’s most glorious viewpoints. “[It’s] just a very spiritual place, which I think that’s what the petroglyphs are all about, especially coming from the city, believe me, it’s an overwhelming experience,” McCrum said. There are over 360 known petroglyphs on the rock cliffs. Animals and people largely make up what is depicted. There are no carvings of horses, a reflection of the life of Indigenous peoples before First Contact. Munro has been giving tours of the cliffs for 40 years. Many of the carvings can only be seen in certain light, making some only visible during different times of the year. “May is different right through into September. The light hits them in a different angle, and suddenly one pops out you haven’t seen in a couple years,” he said. The petroglyphs museum located 2 kilometres away celebrates the cliffs and its history. Artifacts from the area are displayed here. “We can relay to people; this is the age of stuff that is here. A real answer to say this is the timeline,” Munro said.
