Viking Ribstone Historic Park

Uncle Alan, Dave, Jon, our cousin Doran and I all piled into Uncle Al's car to find the Ribstones near by. It was about a 45 minute drive east on hwy 14 we turned onto a back road to find a small hill - the only one for miles - in fact this is the highest point of the county. On the top of the hill we found 2 large carved stones.
Created, hundreds or thousands of years ago, as a monument to Old Man Buffalo and where ancient aboriginals would leave offerings for good luck in an upcoming hunt or after a successful hunt. It is thought that the grooves represent the ribcage of a buffalo. Only nine of these have been found in Alberta and these are still in their original location. The stones are quartzite, a hard material that originally came from the ancient Canadian Shield. Today, geologists know these rocks as glacial erratics, stones transported many thousands of miles to their current resting place by the great continental glaciers that once covered the land. There were once 3 ribstones: the Bull, the Cow and the Calf - Now there are only two. We noticed offerings of coins, tobacco and sweetgrass braids on the ribstones indicating that the site still has spiritual significance to some. Also there were prayer flags hanging in poplars nearby and strips of cloth tide to the trunks.


The photo collage has pictures of both stones and Uncle Alan and I playing with the stunning sunset.