Exploring Nevada's Ghost Towns

Pyramids, hieroglyphics and 

Mayan Temple in the Great Basin Desert?

Driving through the desert will often turn up exciting and intriguing finds, like when I stumbled upon what appeared to be an excavation site of some ancient civilization. 

Huge stone boulders and columns that appeared as pyramids lined the entrance and were elevated above the large open compound.  My imagination began to run wild as I stood looking down from the dirt road. As with the ancient Mayan's, were religious ceremonies once held along these platforms and was  the desert wind finally revealing its long buried secrets?

As curiosity got the better of me, I left my truck and walked for a closer view.  That was when I saw a number of paintings on the 25 foot tall pyramid columns that resembled hieroglyphics. 

 At this point I was becoming even more excited about what I had discovered out in the middle of the desolate desert.  Was I caught in a time warp and standing somewhere between a Mayan Temple and an ancient Egyptian town?  Had this site been revealed through desert storms and by the Egyptian god of the wind, "Seth”?  With such dark red to orange sand, I could only imagine the presence of Seth, lord of the red desert lingering nearby as I clicked my shutter. 

After checking GPS coordinates, I found this was actually the site of what was considered a modern metropolis of around 1,000 citizens in the early 1900's.  The city of Ludwig was a large copper ore smelting operation that had the modern convenience of electricity. Unfortunately, around 1914 copper production began to decline and so went the town.  

Tall concrete pillars and some cement platforms that were used in the processing plant for the copper ore are all that's left to remind us of a once thriving community. 

 How the paintings were created on the pillars and by whom, is left to the imagination. 

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What an exciting and interesting photo-adventure this day has been.  I love it when I am drawn to an area and not knowing what to expect I get treated to new experiences. 

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Photography places me in the moment where I can share that moment in time. It becomes a life story as represented by my interaction with the scene. The happiness and beauty or the sorrow and strife; how I focus leaves a lasting impression that might touch the viewer on a spiritual level.

 "Reflecting Nature's Artistry" 

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 http://www.bonnierannald.com/ 

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 All rights reserved, world-wide and images protected by Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). All photography, graphics, text, design, and content is copyrighted by Bonnie Rannald and should not be copied, down-loaded, transferred and re-created in any way without the express consent, in writing to Bonnie Rannald. For information on Bonnie Rannald licensed, right-managed images, please submit a written request.

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