Weird to See Handprints Made in Rock at Utah State Park Like it Was Butter

Located inside a state park in Utah is the side of a rock with hundreds of handprints gouged into it. It is in Kodachrome Basin State Park, and it looks like the prints were made in cookie dough, but it is sandstone.  

Handprints in Rock Found All Over the World 

These impressions in the rock have a name. They are called petrosomatoglyhs and can depict any human anatomy. Some have been found in Tibet dating to 226 thousand years ago. That is before they say humans were around and would be made by some sort of ancestor. 

Kodachrome Basin State Park is in Kane County and there are two different places in the park where the prints can be seen. Most are shallow but some are 4 to 5 inches deep. There are a few theories on how they were made. 

The Official Explanation for Handprints in Rock 

At first archeologists felt the prints had been carved into the sandstone, but this would be hard to do. The current theory is the rock is soft here and with repeated swiping of the fingers through the rock, it scraped away layers creating the prints.  

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If you visit the location yourself, you can decide if this would work. Most people can’t resist pressing their fingers in the same places. It seems like it could be a possible explanation. I have certainly found rocks that were softer than others. 

Can Rock Be Created Like a Plaster? 

A second possibility has been put forth by a man named Marcell Foti. He has shown how rock can be broken down using a kind of salt and recreated much like cement is made from crushed limestone. 

Read More: Footprints found in Utah are Pushing Back Human Timeline

He claims the mix when it is soft can be spread on a surface like plaster. It would be an easy thing to make prints in before it dries. Whatever the explanation is, this wall of handprints is something to see.