U.S.–Mexico border wall damages ancient drawing older than the pyramids

Construction of a border wall between the United States and Mexico has seriously damaged an ancient ground drawing in Arizona that researchers estimate to be at least 6,500 years old. A geoglyph – that is, a drawing on the ground – is a giant figure of a fish carved into the desert floor and is considered the oldest known example of this kind of art in America. It was built before the first Egyptian pyramid and Stonehenge in Britain. The drawing, whose original length was about 83 metres, was previously believed to be around 1,000 years old. However, the latest research shows it was created at least 6,500 years ago, and possibly as much as 7,500 years ago. Contractors engaged in building an additional wall along the Arizona–Mexico border in April, according to the Center for Biological Diversity, damaged the site with machinery and “scraped” a section of the drawing about 15 metres long, as NBC News reports today. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the site was damaged unintentionally during the works and that the remaining part has been secured. The disappearance of the geoglyph further aggravated the dispute between the area’s Native American people and the U.S. authorities over the construction of a border wall through the reservation. The Tohono O’odham tribe’s reservation stretches along the U.S.–Mexico border and its members are allowed to travel between the two countries with identity checks.