ESRARA is one of the 60 member organizations of the International Federation of Rock Art Organizations (IFRAO). In 2018 ESRARA members Mark Wagner, Mary McCorvie and Kayleigh Sharp attended the 20th meeting of IFRAO in Valcamonica, Italy, where Mark and Kayeligh presented a paper entitled “The Utility of 3D Modeling in the Documentation and Preservation of Illinois Rock Art Sites”. The location of the congress, which was held in a spectacular setting in the foothills of the Alps in northern Italy, was sponsored by the Centro Camuno di Studi Preistorici (CCSP) (Center for the Study of Prehistory and the Società Cooperativa Archeologica “Le Orme dell’Uomo” (Footsteps of Man Archaeological Cooperative Society).
In addition to the presentations, one of the highlights of the conference was a guided tour of the UNESCO World Heritage Valcamonica petroglyph site that contains between 200,000 to 300,000 images spanning an 8,000 year period with the last images at the site having been created over an 8,000 year period from the Neolithic period to the Roman Empire. The “petroglyphs depict themes connected to agriculture, deer hunting, duels, as well as geometric-symbolic figures” with individual images including human-like anthropomorphs with weapons, and antlered elk. The majority of the images are located on horizontal bedrock outcrops although images located on the sides of blocks also are present.
