REACHING FOR THE STARS: A MULTI-METHODS APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING NAVAJO STAR CEILINGS

Abstract

Star ceilings are a type of Native American pictographic rock art style characterized by cruciform icons that symbolically represent the stars of the night sky, and they are generally found throughout the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) Portal to the Heritage of Astronomy, there are approximately 80 known star ceiling sites (2025). Star ceilings are attributed to the Navajo people—also known as the Diné—because they are primarily found on traditional Navajo/Diné lands (Chamberlain and Schaafsma 2005; UNESCO 2025). These pictographic artworks are typically found in cave sites, spring sites, and underneath cliff and/or rock overhangs, and they are known to contain deep spiritual significance and power for the Navajo people (Chamberlain and Schaafsma 2005). Because this work is a multi-methods approach—that is, I use several techniques to collect data and use data—I base my research activity on several data-collection techniques that coalesce around one thesis research question: How can combining traditional rock art research techniques, such as fieldnotes and photography, together with modern technologies, like portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) pigment analysis, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Virtual Reality (VR), provide new insights into the material choices, ritual painting processes, and digital research and preservation of Navajo star ceilings, and what does this reveal about the potential usefulness of emerging digital tools for documenting, conserving, and preserving ancient rock art? This thesis aims to expand existing star ceiling research through data collection performed at two distinct sites—one found on private land and the other on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) public land—both located within the traditional Navajo landscape (Dinétah). This research utilizes modern analytical techniques, specifically pXRF, to identify the elemental chemical constituents of star ceiling pictographs. By uncovering the material makeup of the pigments used at two star ceiling sites, this thesis offers a deeper understanding of their original production and use. Furthermore, this project experiments with emerging technologies like AI and VR to assess their effectiveness and suitability as tools for digital reconstruction and restoration. By testing these innovative approaches, this thesis also evaluates whether AI and VR are viable and practicable vehicles for documenting and analyzing rock art in general—and sacred star ceiling sites in particular—ultimately supporting the long term interpretation and preservation of these fragile artworks. Star ceilings are now found on UNESCO’s Astronomical Heritage list, and it is vital that we work to understand them and to find pathways to think about protecting and preserving them. While specific to the Navajo cultural experience, these simple and beautiful artworks capture a human yearning shared by all people and cultures, I believe: the desire for a real connection to the night sky and to the stars and the power that the stars symbolically represent.