Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park
| Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park | |
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Native name Siksika: Áísínai’pi |
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This petroglyph was created prior to the arrival of the horse. It shows a warrior carrying a body shield.
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| Location |
County of Warner No. 5,  Alberta,  Canada
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| Coordinates | 49°4′55″N 111°37′1″W / 49.08194°N 111.61694°WCoordinates: 49°4′55″N 111°37′1″W / 49.08194°N 111.61694°W |
| Area | 17.8 square kilometres (6.9 sq mi) |
| Founded | January 8, 1957 |
| Governing body | Alberta Environment and Parks |
| Official name: Áísínai’pi National Historic Site of Canada | |
| Designated | March 2005 |
| Official name: Writing-on-Stone, Glyphs | |
| Type | Provincial historic resource |
| Designated | 1981 |
| Reference no. | 4665-0060 |
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IUCN Category III (Natural Monument)
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| Designated | 1977 |
 Location of Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park in Alberta
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Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park is located about 100 kilometres southeast of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, or 44 kilometres east of the community of Milk River, and straddles the Milk River itself. It is one of the largest areas of protected prairie in the Alberta park system, and serves as both a nature preserve and protection for a large number of aboriginal rock carvings and paintings. The park is important and sacred to the Blackfoot and many other aboriginal tribes. The park has been nominated by Parks Canada and the Government of Canada as a World Heritage Site. Its UNESCO application was filed under the name Áísínai’pi which is Niitsítapi (Blackfoot) meaning "it is pictured / written". The provincial park is synonymous with the Áísínai’pi National Historic Site of Canada.
Writing-on-Stone Park contains the greatest concentration of rock art on the North American Great Plains. There are over 50 petroglyph sites and thousands of works. The park also showcases a North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) outpost reconstructed on its original site. It was rebuilt since the original outpost was burned down by persons unknown.
The park comprises 17.80 square kilometres (4400 acres) of coulee and prairie habitat, and boasts a diverse variety of birds and animals.
Bird species include prairie falcon, great horned owl, short-eared owl, American kestrel, cliff swallow and the introduced ring-necked pheasant and grey partridge.
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