New Mexico 'treasure' signs

rginn · Jan 7, 2026

OK I'm bored and lookin through old pics and came across some markings I saw in New Mexico. I'll give you my explanation of them. The first is a shelter used by Bosque sheepherders and the cross is for protection or to indicate a Christian lives here. Man the next, the anchor, or JJ, got my interest. However, it is carved in soft sandstone, and got to observe it degrade quickly over the next five years, maybe not even visible now. Probably not more than 10 years old when I came across it? The last, this was a stop along the old Sante Fe trail, and this appears to be a trail marker pointing the way up out of the canyon. Also on top of that rock is a pothole that holds water when it gets pretty dry elsewhere. Just my interpretations, and any ideas y'all got are welcome.

robertk · Jan 7, 2026

Very cool. I'm with you on the sandstone. Exposed to the elements, it really wants to be sand again as quickly as possible. That actually brings up a thought ... have you ever visited an old cemetery and seen the markers that are almost entirely unreadable now? Those were a hard stone, and yet a couple hundred years in the elements and nature takes back what's hers.

Mattock · Jan 7, 2026

If that happens to be close to Cimarron it could be a possibility. Good eye.

Steely · Apr 10, 2026

Anchor could or shaft or tunnel at foot of hill. Is thereon nearby?

Prairie Gazingfox · Apr 10, 2026

The Anchor, if that Camera Cap is about 6 ot 7 cm diameter, what i see is the crumbling/ Diminishing lines are pretty wide. And deep.
Sandstone or not, this Anchor is definitely more than 10 years old. I would say 30 to 50. Or more.
Trust your eyes. These Lines had time to deepen and widen...
This is my Grandmother's house built 1981.
Very bad pic taken directly from a screen of an old smartphone around 2017.
However the purposely textured wall cement coating is almost 100 % preserved. Even now.

The only external maintenance The house has received since then is small patching of the roof. It is an abandoned house because it has 3 owners and they can't agree...

This sandstone or whatever its still a stone !, Didn't happen in 10 or 15 years!

sdcfia · Apr 11, 2026

rginn said:
OK I'm bored and lookin through old pics and came across some markings I saw in New Mexico. I'll give you my explanation of them. The first is a shelter used by Bosque sheepherders and the cross is for protection or to indicate a Christian lives here. Man the next, the anchor, or JJ, got my interest. However, it is carved in soft sandstone, and got to observe it degrade quickly over the next five years, maybe not even visible now. Probably not more than 10 years old when I came across it? The last, this was a stop along the old Sante Fe trail, and this appears to be a trail marker pointing the way up out of the canyon. Also on top of that rock is a pothole that holds water when it gets pretty dry elsewhere. Just my interpretations, and any ideas y'all got are welcome.
View attachment 2240073 View attachment 2240074

The anchor is a well known KGC sign indicating Jesse James. You're correct that sandstone erodes faster than most other rock types, but there are lots of different sandstones in lots of settings and climates. What part of NM did you find the anchor and arrow?

rginn · Apr 14, 2026

This was at Clayton Lake New Mexico. An oasis in the middle of nowhere? It was kind of a halfway point between here and Oklahoma so I would stop there and spend the night on my trips back and forth, cause although I can do it, I hate a twelve hour drive if I got the time to dally. I would go with the anchor being older than ten years. What you don't see in the pic is other graffiti surrounding it with recent dates. It's open to the elements, and last time I was there you could barely make it out. I'm pretty sure about the cross. In the lower left of the pic you see a rock, two Hispanic guys carved their names with the dates in the very early 1900's. Below that in the canyon and farther along there are these sheep holding pens they built with rocks in the shape of a square. I located a prehistoric rock shelter in that canyon, and there were ground out depressions on theshelter floor which they tell me were caused by forming and sharpening axes. I guess. Couple of points and lots of flakes lying around. Coolest thing I did find, was a small petroglyph down from the rock shelter, very closely resembling some of the ones you see down in Picture Canyon. I caught up with the Park Ranger, told him about the rock shelter and the glyph, which he didn't know about (didn't give him the location of the glyph) and he topped me. He told me a few years back a guy had found a leather bag with some perfect blades in it stashed back in the rocks which were donated to a local museum.

Prairie Gazingfox · Apr 14, 2026

rginn said:
This was at Clayton Lake New Mexico. An oasis in the middle of nowhere? It was kind of a halfway point between here and Oklahoma so I would stop there and spend the night on my trips back and forth, cause although I can do it, I hate a twelve hour drive if I got the time to dally. I would go with the anchor being older than ten years. What you don't see in the pic is other graffiti surrounding it with recent dates. It's open to the elements, and last time I was there you could barely make it out. I'm pretty sure about the cross. In the lower left of the pic you see a rock, two Hispanic guys carved their names with the dates in the very early 1900's. Below that in the canyon and farther along there are these sheep holding pens they built with rocks in the shape of a square. I located a prehistoric rock shelter in that canyon, and there were ground out depressions on theshelter floor which they tell me were caused by forming and sharpening axes. I guess. Couple of points and lots of flakes lying around. Coolest thing I did find, was a small petroglyph down from the rock shelter, very closely resembling some of the ones you see down in Picture Canyon. I caught up with the Park Ranger, told him about the rock shelter and the glyph, which he didn't know about (didn't give him the location of the glyph) and he topped me. He told me a few years back a guy had found a leather bag with some perfect blades in it stashed back in the rocks which were donated to a local museum.

Yes. Time goes by fast. A lot of human interference may have taken place in those rock shelters..