The Ute/Tabeguache lived in the valleys and mountains of central-western Colorado - the Rocky Mountains. They traveled here every summer to hunt and fish.
Tava (Sun Mountain) is just to the east of where I live. A very important place for the Ute. There are many valleys here where they set up camp and thrived. The area of the fossil beds, where I made the image today, was populated by the Ute every year.
The Utes were among the first Native Americans to acquire the horse as a means of transportation, and in rock writing the Utes are depicted as horses. After several armed conflicts with Mormon settlers in 1861, the Utes were relocated to the Uintah Basin in northeastern Utah. They turned the horse into one of their greatest assets. The horse allowed the Utes to travel farther and more quickly, and they began to adopt many aspects of Plains Indian culture, living in mobile tipis and hunting buffalo, elk, and deer over long distances. They first acquired horses from the Spanish in 1580. They viewed the horse as a sanctified blessing that should be protected at all times.
A valley where the Ute camped every year to hunt and fish. Whole Plate Calotype (paper negative). September 27, 2022.
This was a test to see if it was possible to make a paper negative of a living creature - I didn’t know what would happen. I was really surprised. I’ll be working toward a final image of a horse or horses for the project. Whole Plate Calotype (paper negative). September 27, 2022
Whole Plate Calotype (paper negative). September 27, 2022.