Agathla Peak – 9″ x 12″ oil on canvas board
Agathla Peak or Agathlan (Navajo: Aghaałą́)
A little practice piece from a not-so-good photo taken during midday while driving past. I wish Katie and I could have been there during better light for a better reference image. It was also a cloudless day, so I improvised on the sky. This color palette is outside of my comfort zone. I’ve wanted to paint this for years, so I gave it my best shot with what I have.
If you’ve ever been driving on US 163 through the Navajo Nation near Kayenta, AZ you’ve probably seen it; but there’s no sign on the highway telling you what it’s called.
“The English designation Agathla is derived from the Navajo name aghaałą́ meaning ‘much wool’, apparently for the fur of antelope and deer accumulating on the rock. The mountain is considered sacred by the Navajo. Agathla Peak is an eroded volcanic plug consisting of volcanic breccia cut by dikes of an unusual igneous rock called minette. Ages of these minettes and associated more unusual igneous rocks cluster near 25 million years old”
Thanks for reading.
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