ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on cultural transmission and innovation literature to establish a context for understanding variation in Coso rock art panels. Rock art is a visible component of the archaeological record in California, and has inspired much speculation about its intended meaning to the original artists. Quantitative studies of other artifact categories, such as projectile points, Olivella beads and ecofacts have led to many insights about tool production and use, the organization of food exploitation, cultural transmission, and the evolution of societies in California and the Great Basin. Most rock art panels are located within the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake in Ridgecrest, California, which limits public access, although the Maturango Museum in Ridgecrest runs tours for small groups of US citizens on weekends during the spring and fall. Representational motifs are less common in the Great Basin, which is dominated by abstract motifs, which do not clearly depict a visible, physical referent.
